Midterm- Ap European History: The Age of Enlightenment; Eighteenth-Century Thought (Chapter 9)

Intellectual - Print culture allowed the number of literate people to increase as well as the amount of libraries

Social- Successful authors were accepted into upper levels of society

Philosophes were writers and critics who advocated for tolerance and reform through reason, criticism, and common sense. Since philosophes weren't organized themselves, they saw organized religion as their biggest threat and thought society should be based on reason instead of religion which is why they sought to abolish it

• Complained that Christian churches prevented the pursuit of rational life and the scientific study of humanity and nature

• Opposed the power and structure of the Old Regime, which the church followed

• Deism ( the thought that the life of religion and reason could be combined)

Social- Created social laws to end human cruelty by provided effective and just punishment for the crimes committed

Economic- Establishment of the Encyclopedia, it included articles on manufacturing, ship building, and improved agriculture.

• In the Spirit of Laws, Montesquieu pursued an empirical method and concluded that no set of political laws could apply to all people at the same time and place.

• Rousseau believed that the law to obey should be created by general will.

• Philosophes urged better education for women

• Men were still expected dominate marriage and family

• Rousseau stated that a woman’s function is to bear children and be pleasing to me

• Women were portrayed as weaker and inferior to men

• Still excluded from political life

Monarchs who ruled absolutely had enlightenment ideas relating to rationalism and toleration without the need of an absolute monarchy.