The Enlightenment: Key Concepts and Influential Ideas

What Was the Enlightenment? (La Ilustración)

• It was a period characterized by:
  • Confidence in reason to understand the world.
  • Faith in human progress, science, and education.
  • Criticism of the Old Regime, specifically:
    • Privileged estates.
    • Religious intolerance.
  • Emphasis on equality and liberty.
• Enlightenment ideas were spread through academies, books, newspapers, and salons, which were meetings organized in people’s homes.
• Some thinkers, such as D’Alembert and Diderot, created The Encyclopaedia, an extensive collection of writings which summarized knowledge from many areas of study.

Political Ideas of the Enlightenment

• Enlightenment thinkers wanted to abolish the estates system (sociedad estamental) and make all citizens equal before the law.
• Montesquieu argued for the separation of powers (legislative, executive, and judicial). This would prevent power concentration and abuse.
• Voltaire favored a strong monarchy but one limited by parliament.
• Rousseau introduced the idea of popular sovereignty (soberanía popular):
  • Power resides with the people rather than the crown.
  • Politics should be based on agreement between the citizens and their government.

Economic Ideas of the Enlightenment

• Physiocracy (fisiocracia) is the belief that agriculture is a country’s main source of wealth because it provides food and raw materials.
• Craftsmanship and trade are considered secondary, as they rely on agriculture.
• In the mid-18th century, a new economic doctrine called economic liberalism emerged. It was based on the ideas of Adam Smith.
• The basic principle of economic liberalism is that the state should not intervene in the processes of production or exchange of goods. Instead, it should allow individual business owners to create wealth.
• As a result, economic liberals argue for:
  • Freedom of production: Business owners can produce as much as the market demands.
  • Free trade: The exchange of goods without any restrictions.
  • Free competition: This would force business owners to improve the quality of products and reduce prices in order to sell.