(Humanized essay)
The Enlightenment was a period of shift in the 1700s. But it was an age of reason. It became okay to dare to dream, and people began to challenge established power and culture. He and she based their reasonings on science and logics in order to unravel the mysteries of the world. This was in contrast to earlier times that believed religion and royalty possessed all the authority.
Intellectuals set pace in the process. According to Rena Descartes, man was created as a thinking being in the statement “I think therefore I am.” John Locke argued that people had inalienable rights and these include; life, liberty, and property. Voltaire was a champion of the rights of the people in regards to freedom of speech. Adam Smith once penned an economics book. Immanuel Kant worked here on ethics.
However, deism was a religious concept. From this, it can be gathered that Deists believed in the existence of God but did not believe in things such as miracles. Some believed that God formed the world and determined its principles, and the world continued on its own afterward. This was something most people in the American colonies appreciated.
Enlightenment ideas were employed by the colonies to sought for independence. The Declaration of Independence was authored by Thomas Jefferson. It declared all men are created equal and have right to enjoy life, liberty and its fruits. It also said people have the capacity to unseat a bad government. John Locke had an impact on this.
The Enlightenment also played a role in the formation of the US government. The Constitution has checks and balances to ensure that power would not be concentrated to cause tyranny. Some of its founders were argued to believe in reason and education. They desired to have fair system of governance with individual freedom. It is important to understand that the implications of the Enlightenment are still observable in the world today. It is still relevant as it contains ideas of reason and equality.
