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1、Get Started Text Study Supplementary Resources Get StartedGet Started1. A General Introduction 2. Focus In Get Started Get Started The Enlightenment, a period in European history, occurred during the 18th century. This period is also known as the Age of Reason. The Enlightenment was a time of awaken

2、ing of political, social, and economic thought. The ideas of the Enlightenment originated in France and eventually spread throughout much of Europe and into the North American colonies of Britain. These ideas helped lay the philosophical foundations for the American and French revolutions. The Enlig

3、htenment developed out of the works of 17th-century thinkers such as Isaac Newton, Ren Descartes, and John Locke. A belief in the supremacy of reason was the chief Get Startedcharacteristic of the Enlightenment. Thinkers of the Enlightenment believed that through the use of reason, people could lear

4、n humanitys true nature and use this knowledge to establish a perfect society. Another hallmark of the Enlightenment was an enduring belief in the scientific method, rationalism, and the existence of unchangeable natural laws. Many of the writings of the Enlightenment challenged the accepted politic

5、al ideas and religious beliefs of the time, including the concept that monarchs receive their right to rule directly from God. Get Started The foremost figures in the Enlightenment were a group of French thinkers known as philosophers. The preeminent member of this group was the writer, historian, a

6、nd poet Voltaire. He emerged as the Enlightenments chief critic of contemporary culture and religion. Another important member of this group was Jean Jacques Rousseau, whose writings greatly influenced the political thinking of the time. Also influential were the writings of Charles, Baron de Montes

7、quieu, who challenged the idea of rule by a monarch and championed individual freedom. The philosopher Denis Diderot, in collaboration with Jean DAlembert, planned and edited a multivolume encyclopedia designed to include all realms of knowledge. Many of the entries were written by other philosophie

8、s. Get Started It was under such political, economic and intellectual circumstances that the Enlightenment began to be seen in France as an unprecedentedly intellectual and cultural movement. Its influence was to be perceived later in the French Revolution, the American War of Independence, and even

9、 in Chinas May 4th Movement of New Culture in the early years of the 20th century. Get Startedl To get a brief view of the social and theological background of the Enlightenmentl To get to know major representative figures of the Enlightenment and their ideasl To understand the features of the Enlig

10、htenment and its significance Text StudyText StudyI. Background II. Empiricist Influences from Britain III. Representative Figures of the Enlightenment and Their Ideas IV. Literature during the EnlightenmentV. A Reflection on the Enlightenment and Its Significance The Enlightenment is generally agre

11、ed to have originated in France. It was due to the fact that France met with a period of decline after its national prosperity during the reign of Louis XIV, which was demonstrated by the sharpening class clashes and social crises resulting from the deteriorating political and economic conditions. I

12、nternationally, France also suffered a series of setbacks in its competition with other European powers, such as Britain when the latter was marching steadily on its way towards a dominating position following the Glorious Revolution in 1688. The situation was worsened by Frances fiscal deficits and

13、 economic difficulties, caused by heavy Text StudyMain IdeasMain Ideas Text StudyMain IdeasMain Ideasheavy taxation and frequent famines, which made peasants and poor citizens rise up in revolt against the royal government. During Louis XVs reign, France witnessed violent resistance by the poor to c

14、ruel exploitation and oppression and successive defeats in the wars with Austria, Russia and Prussia in the middle of the 18th century. These wars cost France the loss of most of her colonies in Asia and North America. In addition there was her failure at sea resulting to the British domination and

15、loss of her traditional naval advantage. Text StudyMain Ideas Main Ideas In this critical situation, there was no other choice but a political reform. As the whole situation worsened, the majority of the French population, peasants and the impoverished city dwellers in particular, suffered bitterly

16、from the economic deterioration, political instability, social chaos and cultural retrogression and hence responded unhesitatingly to the bourgeoisie who strongly demanded that the decline be curbed and reforms be carried out. Under such circumstances, some progressive intellectuals began to think s

17、eriously and tried to find a way out through social and political reformation. Meanwhile, the dissemination of scientific knowledge was under way with the development of capitalist production, whose influence began to motivate and evoke a breath of enlightenment and theoretical guidance across the E

18、uropean continent, including the British empiricism, which was picked up by Voltaire and his contemporaries and helped to ease the French intellectual tension. Since the Renaissance the intellectual climate in France had greatly improved. Many of the people were better educated and more knowledgeabl

19、e about science. They had had Text StudyMain Ideas Main Ideas Text StudyMain Ideas Main Ideasbecome more aware of the practical significance of science and technology, and this altered their traditional views of daily life as well as their cultural and social affairs. The results of the scientific r

20、esearch of Copernicus, Galileo and Newton were passed on quickly through access to books, newspapers and journals resulting from the invention of printing. This greatly informed and affected the public whose cultural taste and political viewpoints were thus modified to the new intellectual climate.

21、Gradually they gave up their religious and metaphysical modes of reasoning and adopted a new outlook with a more progressive and scientific basis. Text StudyInterpretation of Cultural Terms Interpretation of Cultural TermsPrussia 普 魯 士 ： A German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duc

22、hy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. Prussia shaped the history of Germany, with its capital in Berlin after 1451. After 1871, Prussia was increasingly merged into Germany, losing its distinctive identity. It was effectively abolished in 1932, and officially abolished in 1947. Prussia a

23、chieved its greatest importance in the 18th and 19th centuries. During the 18th century, it became a great European power under the reign of Frederick the Great (17401786). During the 19th century, Chancellor Otto von Bismarck united the German principalities into a “Lesser Germany” which would excl

24、ude the Austrian Empire. Text StudyInterpretation of Cultural Terms Interpretation of Cultural Terms Text StudyInterpretation of Cultural Terms Interpretation of Cultural TermsThe British Glorious Revolution 光 榮 革 命 : Also called the Revolution of 1688 or the Bloodless Revolution, it was the overthr

25、ow of King James II of England in 1688 by a union of Parliamentarians with an invading army led by William of Orange from Holland who subsequently ascended the English throne together with his wife Mary II, as the joint ruler of England. It can be argued that Jamess overthrow initiated modern Englis

26、h parliamentary democracy: never again would the monarch hold absolute power, and the Bill of Rights became one of the most important documents in the political history of Britain. Text StudyInterpretation of Cultural Terms Interpretation of Cultural TermsBritain. The deposition of the Roman Catholi

27、c James II ended any chance of Catholicism becoming re-established in England, and also led to limited toleration for nonconformist Protestants, thus ensuring the Protestant succession. Text StudyInterpretation of Cultural Terms Interpretation of Cultural TermsEmpiricism 經(jīng) 驗(yàn) 主 義 : The use of experie

28、nce or experiments as the basis for your ideas or the belief in these methods. In philosophy, empiricism is a theory of knowledge which asserts that knowledge arises from experience. Empiricism emphasizes the role of experience and evidence, especially sensory perception, in the formation of ideas,

29、while discounting the notion of innate ideas. In the philosophy of science, empiricism emphasizes those aspects of scientific knowledge that are closely related to evidence, especially as discovered in experiments. Text StudyInterpretation of Cultural Terms Interpretation of Cultural Termsexperiment

30、s. It is a fundamental part of the scientific method that all hypotheses and theories must be tested against observations of the natural world, rather than resting solely on a priori reasoning, intuition, or revelation. Hence, science is considered to be methodologically empirical in nature. The Enl

31、ightenment first started in . In the 17th century, France became more powerful in economic and military achievements due to the measures and reforms taken by . In century, France lost its initial domination at the sea to England. The Enlightenment was influenced by British and dissemination of . Wit

32、h the worsening situation of France in 18th century, more and more people, led by newly emerging strongly demanded for political reforms. Text StudyComprehension ExercisesFill in the blanks.(1)(2)(3)(4)(5) Comprehension Ex ercisesFrance_Louis XIV_18th_ empiricism_scientific knowledge_ Bourgeoisie_,

33、Text StudyThink and DiscussPlease give an account of the setting of the Enlightenment. The fact that the Enlightenment first occurred in France was ascribed to the deterioration in economic, political, social and cultural conditions in the 18th-century France. The French people strongly demanded tha

34、t the declining situation be arrested and reforms be carried out. Under such circumstances, progressive intellectuals began to think more seriously about the solutions to the crises and tried to resort to intellectual and Think and Discuss Text StudyThink and Discuss Think and Discussand social mean

35、s. This movement also asked for more political power to the people as the bourgeoisie joined in with its economic support and thus the cultural movement tinned with political colour as a bourgeois mark. On the other hand, the dissemination of scientific knowledge and the influences of British empiri

36、cism also immensely heightened intellectual and political awareness of the people in general. This prepared the political basis of the bourgeois revolution to follow. Text StudyMain Ideas Main Ideas Text StudyMain Ideas Main Ideas Text StudyMain Ideas Main IdeasName of Empiricists Ideas WorksJohn Lo

37、cke(1632 1704) a. He rejects the idea of innate knowledge. Instead he insists that knowledge was derived from the experience of the senses and mental reflection.b. Politically, he was the first to talk about the division of power, and he realized the importance in setting up a system of mutually lim

38、iting and balancing powers and authorities. An Essay Concerning Human Understanding (1690);A Letter Concerning Toleration (1689);Two Treatises of Government (1689);Some Thoughts Concerning Education (1693) Text StudyMain Ideas Main IdeasGeorge Berkeley(16851753) a. All reality reduces itself to huma

39、n thought, and the existence of human mind supposes the existence of a universal mind, a God. b. Nature is what men perceive by their senses, and the sense-data can be considered as objects for the mind rather than as substance qualities. c. He was the father of a later philosophical school called P

40、henomenalism. A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge (1710);An Essay towards a New Theory of Vision (1709);Three Dialogues between Hylas and Philonous (1713) Text StudyMain Ideas Main IdeasDavid Hume(1711 1776) a. All ideas come from impression. b. His philosophical intention was to

41、 apply the method of natural science to human nature, and to create a basic science of man. c. He views knowledge from a psychological perspective. A Kind of History of My Life (1734);An Enquiry concerning Human Understanding (1748);An Enquiry Concerning the Principles of Morals (1751) Text StudyMai

42、n Ideas Main Ideasd. He regarded philosophy as the inductive science of human nature, and concluded that man is more a creature of sensitive and practical sentiment than of reason. e. First philosopher of the post-medieval world to reformulate the doubts of the past relating to cause and effect. Tex

43、t StudyInterpretation of Cultural TermsThomas Hobbes 托 馬 斯 霍布 斯 (15881679): British philosopher whose famous book Leviathan ( 利 維 坦 ) in 1651 established the foundation for most of the Western political philosophy from the perspective of social contract theory. Interpretation of Cultural Terms Text

44、StudyInterpretation of Cultural TermsGottfried Wilhelm Von Leibniz 萊 布 尼茲 (16461716): German mathematician and philosopher. In philosophy, he is mostly remembered for optimism, i.e. his conclusion that our universe is, in a restricted sense, the best possible one God could have made. He was, along w

45、ith Ren Descartes and Baruch Spinoza, one of the three greatest 17th-century rationalists, but his philosophy also looks back to the scholastic tradition and anticipates modern logic and analysis. Interpretation of Cultural Terms Text StudyInterpretation of Cultural TermsRen Descartes 笛 卡 爾 (1596165

46、0): A highly influential French philosopher, mathematician, scientist, and writer. Descartes was a major figure in 17th- century continental rationalism, later advocated by Baruch Spinoza and Gottfried Leibniz, and opposed by the empiricist school of thought consisting of Hobbes, Locke, Berkeley, an

47、d Hume. Leibniz, Spinoza and Descartes were all well versed in mathematics as well as philosophy, and Descartes and Leibniz contributed greatly to science as well. Interpretation of Cultural Terms Text StudyInterpretation of Cultural Terms Interpretation of Cultural TermsI m m a n u e l K a n t 康 德

48、(17241804): An 18th-century German philosopher. He is regarded as one of the most influential thinkers of modern E u r o p e a n d o f t h e l a t e Enlightenment. Text StudyInterpretation of Cultural TermsPhenomenalism 現(xiàn) 象 學(xué) : The view that physical objects do not exist as things in themselves but

49、only as perceptual phenomena or sensory stimuli (e.g. redness, hardness, softness, sweetness, etc.) situated in time and in space. In particular, phenomenalism reduces talk about physical objects in the external world to talk about bundles of sense-data. Interpretation of Cultural Terms Text StudyIn

50、terpretation of Cultural TermsAuguste Comte 孔 德 (17981857): A French thinker, widely regarded as the first sociologist. He developed a (secular religion) social theory known as positivism, which emphasizes reason and logic. Comte also founded the social sciences. He and other early social scientists

51、 assume that human behavior must obey laws just as strictly as material objects obey Newtons Laws of Motion, and that if we could discover the laws of human behaviours, we could eliminate moral evils. Interpretation of Cultural Terms Text StudyInterpretation of Cultural TermsPositivism 實(shí) 證 主 義 : The

52、 philosophy that the only authentic knowledge is one based on actual sense experience. Such knowledge can only come from the affirmation of theories through strict scientific method to suggest that metaphysical speculation should be avoided. It was developed by Auguste Comte in the middle of the 19t

53、h century. Interpretation of Cultural Terms Text StudyInterpretation of Cultural TermsJeremy Bentham 杰 里 米 邊 沁(17481832): An English jurist, philosopher, and legal and social reformer. He held some radical political ideas as a leading theorist in Anglo-American philosophy of law. He was best known f

54、or his advocacy of utilitarianism, his concept of animal rights, and his opposition to the idea of natural rights. Interpretation of Cultural Terms Text StudyInterpretation of Cultural TermsJohn Stuart Mill 約 翰 穆 勒 (18061875): British philosopher, political economist, civil servant and Member of Par

55、liament, an influential liberal thinker of the 19th century. He was an exponent of utilitarianism, an ethical theory initiated by Jeremy Bentham, although his conception of the theory was very different from the latter. Interpretation of Cultural Terms Text StudyInterpretation of Cultural TermsUtili

56、tarianism 功 利 主 義 : The idea that the moral worth of an action is solely determined by its contribution to overall utility, that is, its contribution to happiness or pleasure as is summed up among all persons. It is thus a form of consequentialism, meaning that the moral worth of an action is determ

57、ined by its outcome the ends justify the means. Interpretation of Cultural Terms Text StudyComprehension ExercisesTrue or false questions. Comprehension Ex ercises(1) Locke rejects the idea of innate knowledge and argues for the acquisition of knowledge from the senses.(2) The late Renaissance focus

58、ed on the metaphysical and rationalist philosophy, while the Enlightenment was based on epistemology and empiricism. (3) Locke rejected the division of legislative power and administrative power. (4) Berkeley was the father of a philosophical school called phenomenalism. (5) Humes empiricist philoso

59、phy greatly influenced Immanuel Kants critical philosophy. T_T_T_F_T_ Text StudyThink and DiscussGive a brief introduction to Lockes life, ideas and great works. John Locke (16321704) was a British philosopher, Oxford academic and medical researcher, whose association with Anthony Ashley Cooper (lat

60、er the First Earl of Shaftesbury) led him to become successively a government official collecting information about trade and colonies. He was also an economic writer, oppositional political activist, and finally a revolutionary whose cause ultimately triumphed in the Glorious Revolution of 1688. Mu

61、ch of Lockes work is characterized by opposition to authoritarianism. This opposition is on the level of both the individual Think and Discuss individual and the institutions such as government and church. For the individual, Locke wants each of us to seek truth by reasoning rather than simply accep

62、t the opinion of authorities. On the level of institutions it becomes important to distinguish the legitimate from the illegitimate functions of institutions and to make the corresponding distinction for the uses of force by these institutions. The positive side of Lockes anti-authoritarianism is th

63、at using reason to grasp the truth and determining the legitimate functions of institutions will optimize the individual and society in respect to its material and spiritual welfare. This, in turn, amounts to following natural law and the fulfillment of the divine purpose for humanity. Lockes signif

64、icant An Essay Concerning Human Understanding Text StudyThink and Discuss Think and Discuss Text StudyThink and DiscussUnderstanding deals with the limits of human understanding of God, the self, natural beings and artifacts, as well as different kinds of ideas. It tells us in detail what one can le

65、gitimately claim to know and what one cannot. Locke also wrote a variety of important political, religious and educational works including Two Treatises of Government, Letters Concerning Toleration, The Reasonableness of Christianity and Some Thoughts Concerning Education.Think and Discuss Text Stud

66、yMain Ideas Main Ideas Text StudyMain Ideas Main Ideas Text StudyMain Ideas Main Ideas Main Ideas Text StudyMain IdeasName of Philosophers Ideas WorksVoltaire (1694 1778) l opposed Christianity and believed in a god of naturel the theory of human naturel the view of social freedom and equalityl the theory of the enlightened autocracy Philosophical Letters; Essays on Customs and Spirit of Nations; The Century of Louis XIV Main Ideas Text StudyMain IdeasMontesquieu (1689 1755) l the theory of natu