The 18th Century: Enlightenment Philosophy and Neoclassical Art

The Age of Enlightenment: Reason, Politics, and Society

The eighteenth century has been called the Age of Enlightenment. This metaphor expresses the clarity that reason brought to the era. The movement relied on reason to understand reality and its governance, rejecting irrational explanations of the Universe.

Philosophical Foundations and Key Thinkers

The Enlightenment had its epicenters in British philosophical thought, developed by Locke, Hume, and Newton, but it was structured and primarily disseminated through L'Encyclopédie by Diderot. This knowledge was used to spread the ideals of the era, defending freedom and placing reason at the center of human life. Key figures included Montesquieu, Voltaire, and Rousseau.

This intellectual environment led to the creation of multiple academies devoted to languages and sciences. The period saw the rise of freethinking, linked to intellectual reason used for criticism.

Political and Economic Impact

Enlightened despotism was criticized. Montesquieu elaborated the theory of the separation of powers into legislative, executive, and judicial branches. Voltaire undertook significant social, religious, and political criticism, while Rousseau laid many of the foundations of modern democracy.

There was also reflection on economics, emphasizing the liberal doctrine advocated by Adam Smith. This intellectual movement led directly to the Independence of the United States (1776) and the French Revolution (1789), embodying the values championed by Montesquieu, Voltaire, Rousseau, and Smith.

Aesthetic Movements of the 18th Century

In the eighteenth century, there were three aesthetic and artistic movements: the late Baroque, Neoclassicism, and Preromanticism. In fact, Neoclassicism was the most current and defining movement, best illustrating the ideals of the Enlightenment.

Neoclassicism: Art and Literature

This aesthetic trend sought to reassess the classical notion of the artistic work, opposing the Baroque style and linking back to the humanist process of the Renaissance. Neoclassical awareness was heightened by archaeological discoveries in Pompeii (1713 and 1748), leading to the study of classical architectural details.

Characteristics of Neoclassical Art

Neoclassicism called for:

• Clarity in composition.
• Decorative sobriety.
• The recovery of classical art elements: the column and pediment, marble, and mythological motifs.

Literary Trends

Neoclassical literature was marked by the triumph of rationalism and the Enlightenment. Therefore, various forms of the essay gained great importance, with special attention paid to the epistolary genre, such as Montesquieu's Persian Letters and Cadalso's Moroccan Letters.

Neoclassical aesthetics were defined by theorists like Boileau, Gotthold Ephraim Lessing, and Winckelmann, who imitated and analyzed classical models.