THE 4 MAIN CAUSES OF ILLUSTRATION - PHILOSOPHY - 2024

The causes of the Enlightenment were, among others, the reaction towards societies in which religion was above all, the thought of the importance of the human being above the deity or the wars of religion that had plagued Europe for years.

It can be said that the Enlightenment is heir to the Renaissance, when a recovery of Reason over Faith begins. The Enlightenment, or Age of Enlightenment, is a cultural and philosophical movement that takes place in Europe during the 18th and early 19th centuries., depending on the country.

The main point of this movement is the superiority of human Reason over religious beliefs. Besides, it developed politically demanding a more egalitarian society. The English and French revolutions are daughters of this thought.

Main causes of the birth of the Enlightenment

After the centuries of darkness in the Middle Ages, in which religion and God were above the human being, the Renaissance brings new airs to European society.

Even without breaking with the previous structures, part of the Aristotelian ideas is recovered and Reason begins to gain importance.

The Wars of Religion that unfolded in France and part of Europe in the 16th and 17th centuries, also make certain social layers begin to tire of the superiority of everything religious.

1- Appearance of intellectuals and the bourgeoisie

The structure of social layers that had been rigidly maintained for centuries begins to change little by little. The appearance of the bourgeoisie, with economic means, changes the balances of power.

Where before there were only upper class, clergy and lower class, now it finds a new actor who, in addition, begins to consider the need for changes.

In this way, intellectuals appear who clamor to give greater importance to the human being and who do not accept the preponderance of religion and the Church. This leads to a great political and philosophical movement.

two-

After a long time in which science was threatened by religion, which considered many investigations heretical, characters such as Newton or Locke in England, began to develop their ideas.

In this way, the human being realizes that he can begin to explain the universe without resorting to Faith, which gives him a great capacity for thought.

The Church is no longer needed to know what is happening, but rational explanations appear for the events that occur.

Finally, this will lead to the so-called Encyclopedism. It is the great project developed in England first, and then in France.

Authors such as Diderot, Voltaire or D'Alembert make an effort to make all their knowledge accessible to the population who could read at the time.

3- Waste

The expenses caused by the Wars of Religion, plus that of religious institutions, caused enormous discomfort among the first enlightened.

At a time when large sections of the population were starving or living in subhuman conditions, the expense of Cardinals, Bishops and other religious was seen as unethical.

4- Changes in the world view

The Enlightenment not only affected science and philosophy in the abstract, but also changed the vision of how the world should be. Authors such as Montesquieu, Rousseau or Voltarie begin to theorize about changes in society to end inequalities.

With some differences between them, if they agree that the Faith and the Church have contributed to making the people ignorant and thus more easily manageable.

By betting on Reason, they claim that anyone is the owner of their own destiny and the revolutionary concept that everyone is born equal begins to appear.

These ideas would develop over the years until leading to the French Revolution. There, the motto of Liberty, Equality and Fraternity and putting Reason and the human being on religious beliefs, would become the greatest exponent of the Enlightenment.

Articles of interest

Consequences of the Enlightenment.

References

1. Paxala. Illustration. Retrieved from paxala.com
2. Mayos, Gonzal. Illustration. Recovered from ub.edu
3. History.com. Enlightenment. Retrieved from history.com
4. Suffolk County Community College. The Enlightenment. Retrieved from sunysuffolk.edu
5. Duignan, Brian. Enlightenment. Retrieved from britannica.com