What is the Enlightenment?
The Age of Enlightenment, also known as the Age of Reason, was a period in which many intellectuals developed a new way to reform society. They used science and reason rather than faith, tradition, and revelation to spread their thinking. This new strategy promoted science and intellectual interchange and opposed superstition, intolerance, and abuse from some churches and the state. Although many participants did have a religion, they still tried to advance on society with their logical thinking.
Originating about 1650 to 1700, it was sparked by philosophers Baruch Spinoza, John Locke, Pierre Bayle, Voltaire, and the famous and well-known physicist Isaac Newton. Ruling princes often endorsed and fostered figures and even attempted to apply their ideas of government in what was known as Enlightened Despotism. The Enlightenment flourished until about the late 1700s, after which the emphasis on reason gave way to Romanticism's emphasis on emotion and the Counter-Enlightenment gained force.
Originating about 1650 to 1700, it was sparked by philosophers Baruch Spinoza, John Locke, Pierre Bayle, Voltaire, and the famous and well-known physicist Isaac Newton. Ruling princes often endorsed and fostered figures and even attempted to apply their ideas of government in what was known as Enlightened Despotism. The Enlightenment flourished until about the late 1700s, after which the emphasis on reason gave way to Romanticism's emphasis on emotion and the Counter-Enlightenment gained force.
So... what does the Enlightenment have to do with Benjamin Franklin?
The new intellectual forces spread to urban centers across Europe, notably England, Scotland, the German states, the Netherlands, Russia, Italy, Austria, and Spain, then jumped the Atlantic into the European colonies, where it influenced Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson, among many others, and played a major role in the American Revolution. The political ideals of the Enlightenment influenced the Declaration of Independence, and the Bill of Rights.
Benjamin Franklin also played a part in the Enlightenment, for having discovered electricity and expressing his viewpoints through his published works. These, along with his other accomplishments, furthered the efforts of the Enlightenment. People all around the world had heard about Franklin's amazing discoveries and inventions, and they were starting to lean towards science and logical reasoning.
Benjamin Franklin was indeed an important intellectual of the Enlightenment period.
Benjamin Franklin also played a part in the Enlightenment, for having discovered electricity and expressing his viewpoints through his published works. These, along with his other accomplishments, furthered the efforts of the Enlightenment. People all around the world had heard about Franklin's amazing discoveries and inventions, and they were starting to lean towards science and logical reasoning.
Benjamin Franklin was indeed an important intellectual of the Enlightenment period.