Great Enlightenment Thinkers

Description

Covers the transition from pre-enlightenment ideology to post-enlightenment ideology and the thinkers which contributed to the understanding of the birth of modern capitalism, political democracy, utilitarian and the use of science and technology to develop excess capacity and the ability to reason.
rebeccafrances
Flashcards by rebeccafrances, updated more than 1 year ago
rebeccafrances
Created by rebeccafrances about 9 years ago
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Resource summary

Question Answer
What was the Enlightenment? Th Enlightenment was the shift from using religion and superstition to understand human action and its consequences, to the use of technology and scientific knowledge.
How did Callinicos describe the cycle of society, and how did this change post-enlightenment? Callinicos described the cycle of society as fixed whereas scientific knowledge and technology proved that societies were formed in a fluid cycle.
What are the 5 stages of Callinicos's cycle of society? VI M D D D R Vigorous Intervention Maturity Degeneration Decline Death Renewl
what was the Great Chain of Being? The great chain of being dominated pre-enlightenment conceptions on how the hierarchy of society should be. This religiously influenced ideology maintained the unequal hierarchy of social groups with God being the almighty spirit, followed by Men, Women and other elements.
Thomas Hobbes believed that we could examine the hierarchy of society and improve the structure of the state. What did Hobbes believe the outcome of this would be? Hobbes believed that this would result in economic development and the improvement of social inequalities throughout society.
What did Hobbes believe the natural state of human kind was like? Hobbes believed that the nature of human kind was driven by greed, competition, envy and fear.
Why did Hobbes believe it was important to examine society as a product of human nature? Hobbes believed that it was important to examine society as a product of human nature in order to understand how social inequalities continue to exist throughout society.
How does Hobbes form the basis of liberal politics in modern society? Liberal politics in modern society adopted Hobbes ideology by campaigning for: - The right of the individual. - A distinction between civil society & the state. - The natural equality of all men.
How is Hobbes fundamental to the idea of modern democracy? Hobbes influenced modern liberal politics by introducing the idea that all legitimate political power must be based upon the consent of the people and representative of all members of society.
What term did Rousseau coin in the 17th Century? Rousseau coined the term 'societe' which introduced a key concept to understanding human action and social relationships.
Did Rousseau adopt Thomas Hobbes idea about democracy? Yes, Rousseau later adopted Thomas Hobbes ideas about democracy by arguing that legislation should reflect the demands of the people. Otherwise, it becomes a dictated means of control.
What phrase did Rousseau use to describe political legislation in the 17th Century? "A Man is born free, but everywhere he is in chains."
Why was Rousseau's idea about democracy and legislation so revolutionary in the 17th Century? Politics was controlled and dictated by those in power throughout the 17th Century. This is why Rousseau's ideas about democracy and legislation reflecting the demands of civilians was revolutionary at the time of writing.
How are Rousseau's ideas about democracy relevant to modern society? Rousseau is seen as very influential to modern society as the idea about democratic voting is implemented across the UK with all British Civilian's of voting age being eligible to vote in a democratic, political system.
What are Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson best known for? Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson are best known for establishing the American Declaration of Independence. This was seen as the final product of the Enlightenment philosophy.
What did Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson use scientific knowledge and rational reasoning to identify about human kind? Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson used scientific knowledge and rational reasoning to identify that all human kind are born equally.
What did Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson argue that the equality of all humankind? The equality of all humankind is determined by their inalienable rights which include, life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
What did Immanuel Kant argue about the development of human kind? Immanuel Kant argued that the development of human kind relied on their ability to use scientific thought and rational reasoning to think WITHOUT limits. They should therefore think about the future, and not the present.
Did the Enlightenment period allow humans to develop excess capacity? The enlightenment period allowed humans to use technology and scientific knowledge to develop excess capacity. This means that they can live beyond their basic necessities and it can be argued that this brought about the beginning of mass consumerism.
Immanuel Kant argued that reason allows us to make judgements from historical and scientific knowledge to determine the consequences of human action. What did the ability to reason also create? The ability to reason allowed human to develop a moral coding to judge the consequences of their actions, and whether to perform the action due to the consequences.
What were the two outcomes of the Enlightenment period? - Modernity - Industrial Revolution.
How does Albrow describe modernity? Albrow describes modernity as the political reshaping of society, and the combination of rationality and innovation. Also, modernity was the birth of bureaucratic organisations and citizenship.
The Enlightenment was therefore the birth of....? - Political democracy - The modern state - The Industrial Revolution - Excess capacity and consumerism -Rational thinking and the ability to reason - Modern science and technology to understand human action.
What did internal migration throughout Europe during the industrial revolution result in? Mass Urbanisation: Rural populations decreased as people migrated to urban areas for employment and to improve their quality of living.
What were the Industrial 'hot spots' in the UK? Many of those who migrated from rural populations were concentrated in Industrial hot spots around the UK, such as Liverpool and Manchester.
What did large industrial factories require? Industrial factories required large amounts of labour and these employees lived in slums and low quality back-to-back housing conditions. They also worked in dangerous conditions which meant that factory workers had low life expectancies.
What were the two responses to social change? - Revolutionary: Individuals have the right to a decent standard of living and equality should be evenly divided across society. - Reformers: Society and politics should change.
What did Jeremy Bentham's concept of Utilitarianism involve? - Introducing the NHS to improve life expectancy and death rates of the work force. - The prison system should focus on rehabilitation. - Educational reforms to teach Children about democracy and politics.
Jeremy Bentham believed that these reforms required a system which could test the effectiveness of these social structures. What was this system? Jeremy Bentham introduced the system called: 'The greatest happiness principle' which aimed to ensure the majority of the population are happy with political reforms.
How can the greatest happiness principle be criticised? - Happiness is subjective as it means different things to each individual. It is therefore hard to measure or quantify. - Happiness is not always about providing well-being. - The minority continue to be ignored under this system.
What did the reform act called: 'The representation of the people' in 1832 introduce? The representation of the people act in 1832 enabled more people to vote on political legislations and as a result of this, the number of people voting increased by 1/5. This shows how there was movement towards politics reflecting the demands of the masses.
Did Jeremy Bentham believe in equal rights for women? Yes, Bentham believed that women should be eligible for voting and should receive equal rights.
What did John Stuart Mill believe about power and social institutions? John Stuart Mill believed that social institutions should become morally responsible and that power should be distributed throughout society in a democratic system.
What TWO reforms did John Stuart Mill advocate? - Education: Those who were of voting age needed to be educated in order to understand politics and implement democracy in society. -Regulation of social institutions power: This aimed to place a legal limit on how much power social institutions had on society in order to prevent power being centralised in the upper classes.
What did John Stuart Mill believe about people being ignorant to social inequality and the destruction of democracy? John Stuart Mill believed that people who stood by and let democracy become destroyed by the dominant upper classes were just as guilty as those causing inequality in society.
According to John Stuart Mill, when should the state intervene with individuals? Only when individuals are causing harm to each other. This is because individual's should have freedom and take responsibility of their actions.
John Stuart Mill therefore believed in minimal state intervention - how is this influential in modern society? The idea of minimal state intervention is influential in society as it was seen as the birth of modern capitalism and liberalism.
What did John Stuart Mill mean by proportional representation? John Stuart Mill believed that in order for society to implement political democracy, it required proportional representation which means that there is a representation of minorities in politics. This ensures that political decisions are representative of all members of society.
Did John Stuart Mill believe in female suffrage? Yes, in 1869 JS Mill introduced the 'Subjugation of Women' which argued that societies exclusion of women was one of the few remaining relics of ancient philosophy.
What are the criticisms of JS Mill's reforms? The idea of proportional representation forces some people out of parliament which contradicts the idea of democracy.
According to Marx, why is human potential so important & how is it shaped? Marx believed that in order for society to be equal, humans should be able to reach their full potential. This means that the structures of society shape human potential.
If the structure of society shapes human potential, what happens when society constrains certain social groups? Marx argued that any society which places constraints on social groups, restricts their human potential and the individual's become alienated from their needs and ability.
What two categories is human capacity split into? 1. Power: The ability and capabilities of people which shape our needs. 2. Needs: The desires people feel for resources which are not immediately available.
What are the two types of needs that humans desire in society? 1. Natural needs: These are the desires which humans share with animals. 2. Species needs: These are desires which are natural in their function, but appear to be specific to humans by the way that societies shape them.
What does the relationship between natural & species needs identify about society? Marx believed that the relationship between natural & species needs allow us to identify the nature of society the individual lives within, and how it is structured.
How is our consciousness formed? Marx believed that our consciousness is formed by our ability to reason in society.
Does capitalism distort our consciousness? Yes, capitalism constrains people's thinking and therefore, their consciousness and ability to reason.
Olloman (1976) identifies 6 ways in which consciousness makes humans distinct from animals, what are these? 1. Humans have the mental capability to think about the consequences of their actions. 2. Humans have a consciousness which allows them to control & regulate their behaviour. 3. Humankind can plan their actions & predict the outcome. 4. Human's possess both physical & mental capabilities. 5. Humans are able to pay close attention to their actions for long periods of time. 6. The nature of human beings leads them to be highly social.
What does Marx think about our conscious, creative capacity? Marx believes that our conscious creative capacity determines who we are individually and collectively.
For Marx, how is our conscious creative capacity determined? Marx believed that our conscious creative capacity is determined by our social, cultural and physical environment. This means that society controls the shaping of our conscious creative capacity.
What three epochs of society does Marx outline to show that our conscious creative capacity is determined by our social world? 1. Primitive society. 2. Post-modern capitalist society. 3. Communist society.
Name 3 characteristics of primitive society? - production was localised & focused on meeting human's basic needs. - The working day was spent on survival, and people had no time to better themselves and reach their human potential. - People had limited resources & experiences to develop their needs.
How was human capacity and potential fulfilled in primitive society? Marx believes that human capacity and potential in primitive society were expressed in terms of limited requirements, experiences and resources. Therefore, they did not develop complex species needs & they remained at a basic level.
Name 3 characteristics of a capitalist society? - Workers produce and consume goods in an industrialised system. - There is a distinct polarization of the elite groups and the proletariat groups in society. - This is due to the unequal distribution of wealth, power and equality across society.
How is human capacity and potential expressed in a capitalist society? Human capacity is reduced to try and ensure that they can make enough money to own the commodities they desire. This means that they are alienated from their true potential and instead contribute to the maintenance of capitalism and consumerism.
What is the key element of a communist society? Communist societies do not allow private ownership of goods, instead wealth and power is evenly distributed across society.
How is human potential and capacity expressed in a communist society? Human's are able to express themselves through working how they desire to, and this allows them to reach their full potential.
How are humans able to turn the capitalist system into a communist one? Humans will have to organise collective action, and develop a class consciousness in order to challenge and OVERTHROW the structural forces which shape the capitalist structure of society in order to turn it into a communist society.
How are workers alienated from their productive activity in a modern capitalist society? Workers do not work to simply satisfy their needs, instead they work for a wage & employers regulate their productive capacity. Therefore, working becomes a matter of survival instead of allowing humans to express themselves.
How do workers become alienated from the object of their activities? Workers produce an object from their labour, and it belongs to either the consumer or the owner. In a highly productive system, workers also perform specialised tasks, but lack knowledge of the product they are making.
How are workers alienated from their peers? Capitalism encourages competition between workers, and this reduces them to individual's and not members of society. Workers often work with strangers or in isolation and this limits their co-operation with others. This results in hostile behaviour being directed at other workers & not the owners.
How are humans alienated from their own human potential? Individual's perform less like humans and they are reduced to a worker in a system. This can destroy relationships with others & restrict their human potential.
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