THE AGE OF ENLIGHTENMENT

AND RESTORATION AGE

 BACKGROUND

q For centuries, European monarchs held absolute power,

justifying their authority through the belief in the divine
right bestowed upon them by God. However, in 1689,
England enacted the Bill of Rights, which curtailed the
monarch's authority and reduced their power. In contrast,
other European countries continued to have monarchs
who wielded supreme power without such limitations. In
the mid-1700s, a movement known as the Enlightenment
emerged, introducing novel concepts about governance.
This period marked a time of questioning established
practices and beliefs, although untested alternatives were
yet to be fully embraced. Furthermore, advocating for
these new ideas carried risks and uncertainties.
 THE LEGACY OF LOCKE AND NEWTON

q The intellectual inspiration for the Enlightenment came primarily

from two Englishmen, Isaac Newton and John Locke, acknowledged
by the philosophes as two great minds.
q Enchanted by the grand design of the Newtonian world-machine, the
intellectuals of the Enlightenment were convinced that by following
Newton’s rules of reasoning they could discover the natural laws that
governed politics, economics, justice, religion, and the arts. The world
and everything in it were like a giant machine.
q In the eyes of the philosophes, only the philosopher John Locke came
close to Newton’s genius. Although Locke’s political ideas had an
enormous impact on the Western world in the eighteenth century, it
was his theory of knowledge that especially influenced the
philosophes. In his Essay Concerning Human Understanding, written
in 1690, Locke denied Descartes’s belief in innate ideas.
 THE PATHS TO ENLIGHTENMENT

q Many philosophes saw themselves as the heirs of the

pagan philosophers of antiquity and the Italian humanists of
the Renaissance who had revived the world of classical
antiquity. To the philosophes, the Middle Ages had been a
period of intellectual darkness, when a society dominated
by the dogmatic Catholic church allowed faith to obscure
and diminish human reason. Closer to their own period,
however, the philosophes were especially influenced by the
revolutionary thinkers of the seventeenth century.
 THE AGE OF ENLIGHTENMENT DEFINED

qThe Age of Enlightenment, also known as the

Enlightenment or the Age of Reason, was a significant
philosophical movement that shaped European intellectual
thought during the 18th century.
qIt revolved around the central belief that reason should serve
as the primary basis for authority and legitimacy.
qThis intellectual shift promoted various ideals such as
liberty, progress, tolerance, fraternity, constitutional
government, and the separation of church and state.
qThe Enlightenment emphasized the scientific method and
encouraged the critical examination of religious traditions.
qMany of the fundamental concepts underpinning modern
democracies, including civil society, human and civil rights,
and the separation of powers, originated from the
Enlightenment.
 ENLIGHTENMENT BEGINNING

qThe exact commencement of the Age of

Enlightenment is a topic of debate among
scholars. Two commonly proposed starting
points are the early 18th century (1701) or
the mid-17th century (1650). Traditionally,
historians have placed the period of
enlightenment between 1715 and 1789,
spanning from the beginning of Louis XV's
reign until the French Revolution.
 E N L I G H T E N M E N T E X PA N S I O N

qThe Enlightenment had its beginnings in various European countries, each with its own unique
focus:
qIn France, it was closely associated with radical anti-government and anti-Church sentiments.
qIn Germany, the Enlightenment reached the middle classes and took on a spiritualistic and
nationalistic character that did not pose a threat to established governments or churches.
qThe British government largely disregarded the leaders of the Enlightenment in England and
Scotland.
qIn Italy, the decline in the Church's power created a fertile period of intellectual exploration and
invention, including scientific discoveries.
qIn Russia, the government actively promoted the arts and sciences in the mid-18th century, leading
to the establishment of the first Russian university, library, theatre, public museum, and
independent press.
qAmerican Enlightenment produced the American Revolution, the writing of the Declaration of
Independence, the creation of the American Republic under the United States Constitution of 1787,
the Bill of Rights in 1790, as well as the development American government throughout the early
1800s.
 SCIENTIFIC REVOLUTION

In the seventeenth century, the Scientific Revolution had provided a new model for
solving problems through rational thought and experimentation (secular), rather than
on the authority of religion (theological.)
Rene Decartes
qFrench philosopher, mathematician and scientist who saw man’s ability to reason as
the very proof of his existence
q“I think, therefore I am,” Discourse on Method, 1637
qDescartes rejected all forms of intellectual authority except the conclusions of his
own thought, which he then used to prove the existence of God.
Sir Isaac Newton
qThis revolution culminated in the seventeenth century with the publication of Sir
Isaac Newton’s Principia in 1687, in which a thoroughly mechanical universe was
explained through universal laws of motion.
qNewton, like Descartes, presented a vision of the universe whose most basic
workings could be calculated and understood rationally, but which was also the
work of a Creator.
qThe triumph of Newtonian science coincided with and helped to produce a
fundamental intellectual change.
 A NEW SKEPTICISM

q The great scientists of the seventeenth century, such as Kepler, Galileo,

and Newton, had pursued their work in a spirit of exalting God, not
undermining Christianity. But as scientific knowledge spread, more and
more educated men and women began to question religious truths and
values.
qSkepticism about religion and a growing secularization of thought were
especially evident in the work of Pierre Bayle (1647–1706), who
remained a Protestant while becoming a leading critic of traditional
religious attitudes. Bayle attacked superstition, religious intolerance,
and dogmatism. In his view, compelling people to believe a particular
set of religious ideas (as Louis XIV was doing in Bayle’s contemporary
France) was wrong. It simply created hypocrites and in itself was
contrary to what religion should be about. Individual conscience should
determine one’s actions. Bayle argued for complete religious toleration,
maintaining that the existence of many religions would benefit rather
than harm the state.
 THE PHILOSOPHES AND THEIR IDEAS

qThe intellectuals of the Enlightenment were known by the French

name of philosophes although not all of them were French and
few were philosophers in the literal sense of the term. They were
literary people, professors, journalists, statesmen, economists,
political scientists, and, above all, social reformers. They came
from both the nobility and the middle class, and a few even
stemmed from lower- middle-class origins. Although it was a
truly international and cosmopolitan movement, the
Enlightenment also enhanced the dominant role being played by
French culture. Paris was the recognized capital of the
Enlightenment, and most of its leaders were French. The French
philosophes, in turn, affected intellectuals elsewhere and created a
movement that touched the entire Western world, including the
British and Spanish colonies in America.
MONTESQUIEU AND POLITICAL THOUGHT
qCharles de Secondat, the baron de Montesquieu (1689–1755), came
from the French nobility.
qHe received a classical education and then studied law.
qIn his first work, the Persian Letters, published in 1721, he used the
format of two Persians supposedly traveling in Western Europe and
sending their impressions back home, to enable him to criticize
French institutions, especially the Catholic church and the French
monarchy.
qMuch of the program of the French Enlightenment is contained in this
work: the attack on traditional religion, the advocacy of religious
toleration, the denunciation of slavery, and the use of reason to
liberate human beings from their prejudices.
qMontesquieu’s most famous work, The Spirit of the Laws, was
published in 1748. This treatise was a comparative study of
governments in which Montesquieu attempted to apply the scientific
method to the social and political arena to ascertain the “natural laws”
governing the social relationships of human beings.
VOLTAIRE AND THE ENLIGHTENMENT
q The greatest figure of the Enlightenment was Francois- Marie Arouet, known simply as
Voltaire (1694–1778).
q Son of a prosperous middle-class family from Paris, Voltaire received a classical education
typical of Jesuit schools.
q Although he studied law, he wished to be a writer and achieved his first success as a
playwright.
q By his mid- twenties, Voltaire had been hailed as the successor to Racine (see Chapter 15)
for his tragedy Oedipe and his epic Henriade on his favorite king, Henry IV.
q His wit made him a darling of the Parisian intellectuals but also involved him in a quarrel
with a dissolute nobleman that forced him to flee France and live in England for almost two
years.
q Well received in English literary and social circles, the young playwright was much
impressed by England. His Philosophic Letters on the English, written in 1733, expressed a
deep admiration of English life, especially its respect for merchants, scientists, and literary
figures, its freedom of the press, its political freedom, and its religious toleration.
q Upon his return to France, Voltaire’s reputation as the author of the Philosophic Letters
made it necessary for him to retire to Cirey, near France’s eastern border,
q Although he touched on all of the themes of importance to the philosophes, Voltaire was
especially well known for his criticism of traditional religion and his strong attachment to
the ideal of religious toleration
DIDEROT AND THE ENCYCLOPEDIA
qDenis Diderot (1713–1784) was the son of a skilled crafts-
man from eastern France.
qHe received a Jesuit education and went on to the University
of Paris to fulfil his father’s hopes that he would be a lawyer or
pursue a career in the church.
qDiderot did neither. Instead he became a freelance writer so
that he could be free to study and read in many subjects and
languages.
qFor the rest of his life, Diderot remained dedicated to his
independence and was always in love with new ideas.
qDiderot’s numerous writings reflected typical Enlightened
interests.
qOne of his favourite topics was Christianity, which he
condemned as fanatical and unreasonable. As he grew older,
his literary attacks on Christianity grew more vicious.
 THE LATER ENLIGHTENMENT

qBy the late 1760s, a new generation of philosophes who had grown up with the worldview
of the Enlightenment began to move beyond their predecessors’ beliefs.
qBaron Paul d’Holbach (1723–1789), a wealthy German aristocrat who settled in Paris,
preached a doctrine of strict atheism and materialism.
qIn his System of Nature, written in 1770, he argued that everything in the universe consisted
of matter in motion. Human beings were simply machines; God was a product of the human
mind and was unnecessary for leading a moral life. People needed only reason to live in this
world: “Let us persuade men to be just, beneficent, moderate, sociable; not because the gods
demand it, but because they must please men. Let us advise them to abstain from vice and
crimes; not because they will be punished in the other world, but because they will suffer
for it in this.”
 DEISM

qDeism rejects religious dogma, miracles, and divine intervention, emphasizing reason,
observation, and natural law. Its core ideas include:
qGod as the Supreme Creator – Deists believe in a rational, intelligent creator who
designed the universe but does not interfere with human affairs or natural laws.
qRejection of Organized Religion – Deists criticize religious institutions for corruption,
superstition, and reliance on revelation rather than reason.
qNatural Laws Govern the Universe – The world operates according to fixed laws
(gravity, physics, biology), much like a clock running on its own after being set in motion.
qMoral Philosophy over Scripture – Ethical behaviour is based on reason and human
experience rather than religious texts.
 THE “WOMAN’S QUESTION” IN THE ENLIGHTENMENT

q For centuries, men had dominated the debate about the nature and value of women. In general, many male intellectuals
had argued that the base nature of women made them inferior to men and made male domination of women necessary
q In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, many male thinkers reinforced this view by arguing that it was based on
“natural” biological differences between men and women. Like Rousseau, they argued that the female constitution made
women mothers.
q Male writers, in particular, were critical of the attempts of some women in the Enlightenment to write on intellectual
issues, arguing that women by nature were intellectually inferior to men.
q some Enlightenment thinkers offered more positive views of women. Diderot, for example, maintained that men and
women were not all that different, and Voltaire asserted that “women are capable of all that men are” in intellectual affairs.
q It was women thinkers, however, who added new perspectives to the “woman’s question” by making specific suggestions
for improving the condition of women.
q Mary Astell (1666–1731), daughter of a wealthy English coal merchant, argued in 1697 in A Serious Proposal to the
Ladies that women needed to become better educated.
q Men, she believed, would resent her proposal, “but they must excuse me, if I be as partial to my own sex as they are to
theirs, and think women as capable of learning as men are, and that it becomes them as well.”
q The strongest statement for the rights of women in the eighteenth century was advanced by the English writer Mary
Wollstonecraft (1759–1797), viewed by many as the founder of modern European feminism.
 CRIME AND PUNISHMENT
q By the eighteenth century, most European states had developed a
hierarchy of courts to deal with crimes.
qExcept in England, judicial torture remained an important means of
obtaining evidence before a trial.
qCourts used the rack, thumbscrews, and other instruments to obtain
confessions in criminal cases.
qPunishments for crimes were often cruel and even spectacular. Public
executions were a basic part of traditional punishment and were
regarded as a necessary means of deterring potential offenders in an age
when a state’s police arm was too weak to assure the capture of
criminals.
qNobles were executed by simple beheading, lower-class criminals
condemned to death were tortured, broken on the wheel, or drawn and
quartered
qEuropean states resorted to forced labour in mines, forts, and navies.
England also sent criminals as indentured servants to colonies in the
New World and, after the American Revolution, to Australia.
qBy the end of the eighteenth century, a growing
sentiment against executions and torture led to a
decline in both corporal and capital punishment. A
new type of prison, in which criminals were placed in
cells and subjected to discipline and regular work to
rehabilitate them, began to replace the public
spectacle of barbarous punishments.
 THE WORLD OF MEDICINE

qIn the eighteenth century, medicine was practiced by a hierarchy of

practitioners
qAt the top stood the physicians, who were university graduates and
enjoyed a high social status.
qDespite the scientific advances of the seventeenth and eighteenth
centuries, however, university medical education was still largely
conducted in Latin and was based primarily on Galen’s work.
qIn England the Royal College of Physicians licensed only 100
physicians in the early eighteenth century. Only officially licensed
physicians could hold regular medical consultations with patients
and receive payments, already regarded in the eighteenth century as
outrageously high.
 CHURCH-STATE RELATIONS

qEarly on, the Protestant Reformation had solved the problem of the relationship between
church and state by establishing the principle of state control over the churches. In the
eighteenth century, Protestant state churches flourished throughout Europe: Lutheranism
in Scandinavia and the north German states; Anglicanism in England; and Calvinism (or
Reformed churches) in Scotland, the United Provinces, and some of the Swiss cantons
and German states. There were also Protestant minorities in other European countries.
qIn 1700, the Catholic church still exercised much power in Catholic European states:
Spain, Portugal, France, Italy, the Habsburg Empire, Poland, and most of southern
Germany. The church also continued to possess enormous wealth. In Spain, 3,000
monastic institutions housing 100,000 men and women controlled enormous landed
estates.
 TOLERATION AND RELIGIOUS MINORITIES

qOne of the chief battle cries of the philosophes had been a call for religious toleration.
qOut of political necessity, a certain level of tolerance of different creeds had occurred in
the seventeenth century in such places as Germany after the Thirty Years’ War and
France after the divisive religious wars.
qLouis XIV had turned back the clock in France at the end of the seventeenth century,
insisting on religious uniformity and suppressing the rights of the Huguenots
qCatholic minorities in Protestant countries and Protestant minorities in Catholic
countries did not enjoy full civil or political rights.
qprogress was made toward the principle of religious toleration. No ruler was more
interested in the philosophes’ call for religious toleration than Joseph II of Austria.
qHis Toleration Patent of 1781, while recognizing Catholicism’s public practice, granted
Lutherans, Calvinists, and Greek Orthodox the right to worship privately.
 TOLERATION AND THE JEWS

q The Jews remained the despised religious minority of Europe. The largest number of Jews (known as the Ashke- nazic Jews)
lived in eastern Europe.
q Except in relatively tolerant Poland, Jews were restricted in their movements, forbidden to own land or hold many jobs, forced
to pay burdensome special taxes, and also subject to periodic outbursts of popular wrath.
q The resulting pogroms in which Jewish communities were looted and massacred made Jewish existence precarious and
dependent upon the favour of their territorial rulers.
q Some Enlightenment thinkers in the eighteenth century favoured a new acceptance of Jews. They argued that Jews and Muslims
were all human and deserved the full rights of citizenship despite their religion.
q Many philosophes denounced persecution of the Jews but made no attempt to hide their hostility and ridiculed Jewish customs.
q The Austrian emperor Joseph II attempted to adopt a new policy toward the Jews, although it too was limited. It freed Jews from
nuisance taxes and allowed them more freedom of movement and job opportunities, but they were still restricted from owning
land and worshiping in public.
q The Austrian emperor Joseph II attempted to adopt a new policy toward the Jews, although it too was limited. It freed Jews from
nuisance taxes and allowed them more freedom of movement and job opportunities, but they were still restricted from owning
land and worshiping in public. the liberation of the Jews as it took a moderate position between toleration and assimilation.
ENGLISH LITERATURE IN THE AGE OF
ENLIGHTENMENT (18TH CENTURY)
 INTRODUCTION

qThe Age of Enlightenment (late 17th–18th century) was an

intellectual movement that emphasized reason, science,
individualism, and skepticism of tradition. In English literature,
this period saw the rise of satire, essays, the novel, and political
writings, often challenging established norms and promoting
Enlightenment ideals.
 KEY FEATURES OF
ENLIGHTENMENT LITERATURE

1.Emphasis on Reason and Rationality – Writers sought to apply logic and critical
thinking to social, political, and religious issues.
2.Satire and Critique of Society – Many works used humor and irony to expose
corruption, hypocrisy, and ignorance.
3.Rise of the Novel – The novel emerged as a dominant literary form, focusing on realism,
character development, and moral questions.
4.Political and Philosophical Themes – Literature often engaged with ideas about
government, human rights, and freedom.
5.Focus on Education and Progress – Many writers aimed to educate the public and
promote intellectual advancement.
RESTORATION PERIOD
(1660-1798)
 DEPOSING OF THE MONARCHY IN
ENGLAND

qThe British monarchy was deposed during the

English Civil War (1642–1651) when King Charles I
was executed in 1649. This led to the establishment of
the Commonwealth of England (1649–1660) under
Oliver Cromwell, effectively ending the monarchy for a
short period.
 KEY EVENTS LEADING TO THE DEPOSITION OF
THE MONARCHY:

English Civil War (1642–1651):

q Fought between Royalists (Cavaliers) who supported King Charles I and
Parliamentarians (Roundheads) led by Oliver Cromwell.
qThe war resulted in the defeat of the king’s forces.
qCharles I was put on trial for treason and executed on January 30, 1649.
qEngland became a republic (the Commonwealth of England), ruled by Parliament and
Cromwell.
qIn 1653, Oliver Cromwell became Lord Protector, essentially ruling as a dictator.
The period begins with the RESTORATION of
the
Monarchy in 1660
q bringing Charles II from his exile in France.
qHe brings with him the indulgent and artistic
ways of Louis XIV’s court
qTwo distinct political parties resulted, the
Whigs and the Tories
a. Whigs wanted to limit royal authority
b. Tories supported absolute royal authority
James II (brother of Charles II) takes the throne
and is voted out by Parliament due to his highly
Catholic ways.
qThe Glorious or Bloodless Revolution is a
reference to the lack of violence needed to
change the throne from Catholic James II to his
protestant daughter Mary and her husband
William.
qShortly after James II’s abdication of the
throne:
a. Bill of Rights limiting the power of the King.
b. Parliament passed an act forbidding
Catholics to rule.
George I of Hanover Germany took the throne in 1714 when his cousin
Anne, daughter of William and Mary, died ending the rule of the
Stuarts and beginning the rule of the House of Hanover.

1. George I and his son George II did NOT speak English and relied heavily on
their advisors establishing the role of England’s first Prime Ministers. Richard
Walpole for George I and William Pitt for George II .

2. Under George I and George II and their Prime Ministers, the British thrived
winning the Seven Years War (aka The French and Indian War) and adding French
Canada and India to the Empire.
qIn 1760, George III became the first British
born Hanover monarch although he was less
effective than his father and grandfather.
qBecause his English was reliable, he used
his Prime Minister less and is held
responsible for the loss of the American
Colonies
 WHY TO NAME IT AS AGE OF REASON &
THE ENLIGHTENMENT PERIOD

This period is known as The Age of Reason and The Enlightenment because of
the country’s shift from an emotional approach to thinking to an educational and
factual one.
A. The Industrial Revolution plus advances in science research and mathematics
influence all aspects of British thought including the literature.
B. People no longer believed in signs and vast punishments from God (ie. The
London Fire and Plague), but begin to turn to science and order. They begin
asking “how” instead of “why.”
C. The writing content, style, and order of scientists spill over into all of literature
as sentences are shortened with the allusions and extended metaphors of their
predecessors.
THEMES
 SUPERIORITY OF THE
INTELLECT

qThe philosophers claimed that humans have the ability to perfect themselves and society
and that the state has the potential to be an instrument of that progress. Part of their
criticism of the existing government was that it impeded such progress in its refusal to
surrender power or resources to the people so that they could take control of their lives.
The philosophers lamented the social conditions of contemporary England and France,
but they remained confident that its people could attain happiness and improve living
standards. Armed with these concepts and fortified by science and reason, the
philosophers attacked Christian tradition and dogma, denouncing religious persecution
and championing the idea of religious tolerance.
 BASIC GOODNESS OF
HUMANKIND

qThe philosophers maintained that people were innately good and that society and
civilization were to blame for their corruption. Because people are good, they are fully
capable of ruling themselves and collectively working toward the welfare of all. Rousseau
asserts this in The Social Contract, as he explains that despite individual differences and
priorities, people as a whole will make decisions for the common good. In Emile, Rousseau
applies this idea to the education of a child, demonstrating that the purpose of education is
not to correct a child or mold the child to exhibit a certain set of characteristics but rather to
draw out the child’s unique gifts and goodness. Not all Enlightenment writers emphasized
man’s inherent goodness, however; in Candide, Voltaire provides numerous examples of
humanity’s cruelty and abuse of power. Once the characters are living peacefully on a farm
(outside of civilization), they seem to be less violent, but the theme of humankind’s
goodness is diminished here.
 DEISM

qDeism is a religious belief system that emphasizes morality, virtuous living, and the
perception of a creative but uninvolved God. Deists believe in God but reject the
supernatural, including the New Testament miracles and resurrection of Christ. They reject
the idea that God is active in people’s daily lives, instead claiming that God created the
world but is now distant.
qThis view of God directly contradicts the view of Catholic and Protestant religions. The
philosophers were particularly incensed by the Roman Catholic Church, which they
perceived as too restrictive and dominant.
qThe period is marked by the rise of Deism, intellectual backlash against earlier Puritanism
and American’s revolution against England.
 DEISM

qAs deists, the philosophers were uninterested in life after death.

They maintained that people should spend their time and energy
improving this life, and they advocated pursuing worldly happiness
and contentment. Diderot addresses these ideas in the
Encyclopedia, and they are implied in the Preamble to the
Declaration of Independence, which states that among a person’s
unalienable rights are ‘‘life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.’’
MAJOR WRITERS AND WORKS
John Locke (1632–1704)
qThough primarily a philosopher, Locke’s
ideas on empiricism, natural rights, and
government by consent influenced
Enlightenment literature.
qHis works inspired later writers on themes
of individual freedom and democracy.
Alexander Pope (1688–1744)
qA master of satire and heroic couplets,
Pope criticized aristocratic vanity and
human folly.
qAn Essay on Man explored human nature
and the idea of a rational, orderly universe.
Daniel Defoe (1660–1731)
qConsidered one of the first modern novelists,
Defoe wrote realistic fiction about survival,
morality, and social mobility.
qRobinson Crusoe explores self-reliance, civilization,
and divine providence.
qMoll Flanders portrays a woman’s struggle in a
rigid class system.
Samuel Richardson (1689–1761)
qA pioneer of the epistolary novel, Richardson
focused on psychological depth and moral
dilemmas.
qPamela tells the story of a servant girl’s virtue and
social rise.
qClarissa is a tragic novel exploring gender, power,
and personal agency.
Jonathan Swift (1667–1745)
qSwift was a satirist who attacked political
corruption and human irrationality.
qGulliver’s Travels is a satirical adventure
novel that critiques politics, science, and
human pride.
qA Modest Proposal is a darkly ironic essay
that mocks British policies toward the Irish.
Henry Fielding (1707–1754)
qFielding wrote comic, picaresque novels full
of adventure and satire.
qTom Jones is a lively, humorous novel that
critiques class and morality.
Laurence Sterne (1713–1768)
qSterne’s novel broke literary conventions with
digressions, irony, and self-awareness.
qTristram Shandy is a playful and experimental work that
questions storytelling itself.

John Milton
qJohn Milton was one of the greatest English poets and
intellectuals of the 17th century.
qHe is best known for his epic poem Paradise Lost
(1667), which explores themes of sin, free will, and
redemption.
qMilton was also a political thinker, pamphleteer, and
supporter of the English Republic, advocating for
freedom of speech, press, and religion.
PARADISE LOST: BY JOHN MILTON
 SUMMARY OF PARADISE LOST

qParadise Lost (1667) is an epic poem by John Milton, written

in blank verse (unrhymed iambic pentameter). It tells the
biblical story of the fall of man, focusing on Satan’s
rebellion, Adam and Eve’s disobedience, and their expulsion
from Eden. The poem explores themes of free will, justice,
pride, obedience, and redemption.
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