Key Concepts of Absolutism, Baroque Art, and Enlightenment
Key Historical Concepts of the Modern Age
Political and Social Structures
- Absolutism: A style of government in which power is not limited by higher law, and the governed have no right to restrict the actions of the ruler.
- Stratum: The dominant form of social division in the Modern Age. Classification was based on birth and social privilege, divided into three estates: the clergy, the nobility, and the commoners (Third Estate).
Cultural and Intellectual Movements
- Baroque: An artistic style that predominated in 17th-century Europe, characterized by the grandeur of its creations, theatrical effects, curved shapes, spirals, and strong contrasting colors.
- Enlightenment: An intellectual movement that emerged in 18th-century Europe. Its representatives argued that reason was the basis of knowledge, while tolerance and freedom of thought were the guarantees of progress.
Scientific Pioneers
- Galileo: Proved the scientific accuracy of the heliocentric theory.
- Torricelli: Invented the mercury barometer.
- Kepler: Formulated the laws of planetary orbits and introduced the language of mathematics into astronomy.
- Newton: Established the law of universal gravitation and the law of action-reaction.
Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Enlightenment Thought
Jean-Jacques Rousseau exerted the greatest influence on the spread of revolutionary Enlightenment thought.
Core Philosophical Principles
- Social Corruption: Rousseau argued that society disfigures and deforms the human soul. By nature, humans are as similar as animals; society is the primary cause of inequality.
- Natural Education: Based on the belief that man is inherently innocent and good. Principles include:
- Allowing the child to experience the world directly.
- Progressive education starting with sensory experience, then intellectual.
- Moral education fostering compassion, justice, and sympathy.
- Modern Democratic Principles: Defines the body politic as a covenant freely entered into. The body politic is sovereign, and its expression is the general will.
Reason and Progress
- Reason serves as the primary foundation of knowledge, leading to the criticism of superstitions and religious dogmas.
- Faith in progress increasingly challenged institutions that hindered societal advancement.