The Ages of Reason and of the Enlightenment

Paper Summary:

This paper explains that, while the Age of Reason is generally considered a separate movement in 17th and early 18th century Europe that evolves into the Age of Enlightenment, both eras are considered to have overlapping boundaries and to be one extended period of intellectual, scientific and philosophical advancement. The author points out that, while Voltaire's most memorable and influential work is "Candide" and Kant is famous for his philosophy of "Universal Law", Rousseau's most meaningful works are his "Second Discourse" and his "Social Contract". The paper concludes that the philosophical writings and intellectual discoveries of the philosophers of the Ages of Reason and of Enlightenment helped to start the American and French Revolutions.

Table of Contents:
Introduction
Voltaire
Jean Jacques Rousseau
Immanuel Kant
Conclusion: The "Enlightenment" led to the American and French Revolutions

From the Paper:

"Rousseau's logic was that disobedience, then, would be "legitimate" as soon as "sufficient power was acquired." Part of what Rousseau was accomplishing in this writing was a rebuttal to Hobbes, who had asserted in chapters 5 and 6 of "De Cive" and ..., that right and force should always go hand-in-hand. Hobbes' reasoning was that mere words (laws), without the "sword" to back them up, were not sufficient to stay the course. You can't just issue degrees without having the use of force lurking in the background to make sure those degrees have some "teeth" so to speak. But Rousseau rejected that idea."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Aldridge, A. Owen. Voltaire and the Century of Light. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1975.
• Hampson, Norman. Will & Circumstance: Montesquieu, Rousseau and the French Revolution. London: Duckworth, 1983.
• HighBeam Encyclopedia "Origins of the Revolution / Rousseau." (2005). Retrieved 29 Nov., 2006, from http://www.encyclopedia.com/html/section/frenchre_effectsoftherevolution.asp.
• Rousseau, Jean Jacques. A Discourse on a Subject Proposed by the Academy of Dijon: What is the Origin of Inequality Among Men, and is it Authorised by Natural Law? (1754). Retrieved 1 Dec. 2006, from http://www.constitution.org/jjr/ineq_01.htm.
• Rousseau, Jean Jacques. The Social Contract. (1763) Retrieved 30 Nov. 2006 from http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/Rousseau-saccon.html.

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