The Age of Enlightenment
Sapere aude — dare to know. A guide to the thinkers, ideas, and revolutions of the Age of Reason, the eighteenth-century movement that built the modern world.
Essential Guides
All guides →Ten in-depth guides covering the whole movement — its origins, its philosophy, and its legacy across Europe and the Americas.
- Guide
The Enlightenment
An overview of the Enlightenment, the 18th-century intellectual movement that reshaped philosophy, politics, and science.
- Guide
Key Thinkers of the Enlightenment
An in-depth guide to the major philosophers, writers, and scientists of the Enlightenment, and their lasting contributions.
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The Scientific Revolution and the Enlightenment
The relationship between the Scientific Revolution and the Enlightenment, from Copernicus and Newton to modern science.
- Guide
Enlightenment Political Philosophy
Enlightenment political philosophy: social contract theory, separation of powers, natural rights, and the revolutions they inspired.
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Religion and the Enlightenment
The relationship between religion and the Enlightenment, including deism, toleration, biblical criticism, and the rise of secularism.
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The Enlightenment and the Americas
The Enlightenment's influence in the Americas, from the American Revolution to Latin American independence movements.
- Guide
The Enlightenment in France
The French Enlightenment: the great philosophes, the Encyclopédie project, the salons, and the origins of the French Revolution.
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The Enlightenment in Britain
The British and Scottish Enlightenment: the great philosophers of liberty, the rise of empiricism, and its lasting influence.
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The Enlightenment in Germany and the Nordic Countries
The German Aufklärung and Nordic Enlightenment: Kant, Lessing, Mendelssohn, German Idealism, and the cultural transformation of the North.
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The Legacy of the Enlightenment in the Modern World
The lasting influence of the Enlightenment on modern politics, science, education, human rights, and contemporary debates.
Enlightenment Thinkers
All thinkers →Biographies and guides to the philosophers, writers, and scientists of the Enlightenment — from Locke and Voltaire to Kant and Wollstonecraft.
- Thinkers
Adam Smith
Adam Smith's life and work: The Wealth of Nations, The Theory of Moral Sentiments, and the invisible hand.
- Thinkers
Baruch Spinoza
Baruch Spinoza's philosophy: pantheism, political thought, critique of organized religion, and lasting influence on modern thought.
- Thinkers
Benjamin Franklin
Benjamin Franklin: his life, experiments, political philosophy, diplomacy, and lasting legacy as an American Enlightenment figure.
- Thinkers
Cesare Beccaria
Cesare Beccaria, his life and work, On Crimes and Punishments, the reform of criminal law, and the legacy for modern justice.
- Thinkers
David Hume
David Hume's philosophy: empiricism, skepticism about causation and miracles, moral sentimentalism, and lasting influence.
- Thinkers
Denis Diderot
Denis Diderot: principal editor of the Encyclopédie, novelist, art critic, and materialist philosopher of the French Enlightenment.
- Thinkers
Gotthold Ephraim Lessing
Lessing's life and work: Nathan the Wise, his philosophy of religion, and his influence on German literature and Enlightenment thought.
- Thinkers
Immanuel Kant
Immanuel Kant's philosophy: the Critiques, practical reason, aesthetic judgment, and his lasting influence on modern thought.
- Thinkers
Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Jean-Jacques Rousseau, the controversial philosopher whose ideas on the social contract, general will, and education shaped modern thought.
- Thinkers
John Locke
John Locke's life, philosophy, and political thought: empiricism, natural rights, government by consent, and religious toleration.
- Thinkers
Mary Wollstonecraft
Mary Wollstonecraft's life and works, including A Vindication of the Rights of Woman and her lasting influence on feminism.
- Thinkers
Montesquieu
Montesquieu's life, philosophy, and contributions: The Spirit of the Laws, separation of powers, and comparative politics.
- Thinkers
Thomas Hobbes
Thomas Hobbes (1588–1679): the founder of modern political philosophy, his theory of sovereignty, his materialism, and his influence on the Enlightenment.
- Thinkers
Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson's life, ideas, and political achievements, including the Declaration of Independence and his complex legacy.
- Thinkers
Thomas Paine
Thomas Paine's life and works: Common Sense, Rights of Man, The Age of Reason, and his lasting influence on radical thought.
- Thinkers
Voltaire
Voltaire, the prolific writer, wit, and champion of religious toleration who became the public face of the French Enlightenment.
Enlightenment Ideas
All ideas →The core concepts of the Age of Reason: natural rights, the social contract, separation of powers, toleration, empiricism, and more.
- Ideas
Deism
Deism in the Enlightenment: its key thinkers, principles, critiques of organized religion, and lasting influence on modern secularism.
- Ideas
Empiricism
Empiricism from Bacon and Locke to Hume: its central principles, methods, and lasting influence on modern science and philosophy.
- Ideas
Freedom of Speech and the Press
A comprehensive guide to the Enlightenment defence of freedom of speech and the press, from Milton and Locke to modern principles of free expression.
- Ideas
Natural Rights and Human Rights
The theory of natural rights, its development in the Enlightenment, and its evolution into the modern doctrine of universal human rights.
- Ideas
Religious Toleration
The Enlightenment defence of religious toleration, from Locke and Voltaire to the modern principles of religious freedom.
- Ideas
Republicanism and Liberalism
Republicanism and liberalism in the Enlightenment: their development, key thinkers, and lasting influence on modern political thought.
- Ideas
The General Will
A comprehensive guide to Rousseau's concept of the general will, its role in his political philosophy, and its contested legacy in modern democratic thought.
- Ideas
The Idea of Progress
The Enlightenment idea of progress: its origins, key thinkers, major critiques, and lasting influence on modern thought.
- Ideas
The Separation of Powers
The doctrine of the separation of powers, from Montesquieu to the American Constitution and modern constitutional government.
- Ideas
The Social Contract Theory
Social contract theory from Hobbes and Locke to Rousseau and Kant, and its influence on modern political thought.
Movements & Events
All movements →The salons, encyclopedias, revolutions, and reform movements through which Enlightenment ideas changed the world.
- Movements
The American Revolution and the Enlightenment
The American Revolution as the political culmination of Enlightenment ideas, from its causes to the founding documents.
- Movements
The Encyclopédie
The Encyclopédie, the great collaborative project of the French Enlightenment, and its lasting influence on modern thought.
- Movements
The Enlightenment and Education
Enlightenment theories of education, the great educational reformers, and their lasting influence on modern pedagogy.
- Movements
The Enlightenment Salons
The salons of the Enlightenment: their role in eighteenth-century intellectual life and lasting influence on modern culture.
- Movements
The French Revolution and the Enlightenment
The French Revolution as the political culmination of the French Enlightenment: causes, key events, and lasting influence.