The Enlightenment creates modern ideas of the self, a just society, and reformed institutions. The course explores six interrelated developments: (1) taking nothing on authority, a spirit of critique examines knowledge, religion, and government; (2) the spread of general knowledge to populations of increasing literacy; (3) debates about human nature—naturally selfish or sympathetic, altered by race or gender, innate or learned? (4) new institutions for equity and justice, even using violent revolution; (5) efforts supporting abolition, women’s rights, and religious toleration; (6) self-consciousness in philosophy, art, and psychology. Thinkers include Pope, Montesquieu, Voltaire, Diderot, Johnson, Rousseau, Burke, Lessing, Gibbon, Smith, Kant, and Wollstonecraft.
Note: This course fulfills the requirement that one of the eight General Education courses also engage substantially with Study of the Past. This course, when taken for a letter grade, meets the Core area requirement for Literature and Arts C.