2. Immanuel Kant
Immanuel Kant (1724- 1804)
was one of the most important
philosophers of the modern era.
His critical project
revolutionized philosophy, and
has remained a touchstone
(positive and negative) for
philosophers up to the present.
It's not widely recognized, but
Kant was the first person to use
the term 'race' in the way which
we use it today.
3. Immanuel Kant What is
Enlightenment? (1784)
▸ As Immanuel Kant said "Do we live in an Enlightened
Age? NO! We live in an age of enlightenment
▸ This was a time of Optimism but it existed with the
realization that human existed in a sad state and major
change was needed.
▸ It was an age that focused on progress
freedom, human rights, justice and equality
‣ Scientists, philosophers and social thinkers believed that
the human condition could be improved through the
implementation of logic
▸ We could become masters of the universe!
4. ▸ It was a time when people challenged the political and social
structures of the day.
It was a time when scientists were developing natural laws about
the world and the creatures within it.
-when social thinkers developed secular ideologies with the goal
of transforming society.
‣ It was a time when traditions were challenged
▸ when people thought about what could be rather than what is.
‣ It was the AGE OF REASON
▸ It was a time that was full of great ideas but little action
5. Summary
▸ The Enlightenment is an Age where
people wrote about applying logic to the
human condition to improve it
▸ People thought that logic was a path
to paradise
▸ The Enlightenment was a lot of talk
but little action
▸ Satire was the common language of
the Philosophes
