The Age of Enlightenment (17th -18th Centuries in Europe and American)
Enlightenment: a movement of the 18th centuries that stressed the belief that science and logic give people more knowledge and understanding than tradition and religion (Merriam-Webster)
Insight, understanding, awareness, wisdom, education, learning and knowledge
“Cogito Ergo Sum” Or “I think therefore I am” – Rene Descartes, 1637
Why this so important?
- “Individual” thinking and not myth or religion that take over your mind
- You are not just a person but what make you a person
- “Think” mean analysis; try to find the trust and “reason”. A point of view by the experience that one have
“On life’s vast ocean diversely we sail, reason the card, but passion is the gale” –Alexander Pope, Essay on Man, 1733
- Life is like ocean because an ocean is wide and large
- Ocean can be a rocky journey, just like life
- We all experience thing differently (culture, who we met, class, race, gender and etc.)
What is a gale?
Very strong high wind. A factor to moves the boat. A boat will not move without wind. -> Life need factor to move further. We can’t live without passion or reason; we need both without we cannot move further
Universal Human Right
“Liberty”, everyone should have liberty because we are human but in the 17 centuries, human is only based on rich white men
Disadvantage
People who are not consider human like slave and women
Example: During colonel expeditions, they will steal, kill, take to get what they wanted. They will only kill people that are not white men
Scientific Methods
Enlightenment thinkers believed that the advances of science and industry heralded a new age of progress for humankind.
Sciences and mathematics
Deism
(Merriam- Webster) a movement or system of thought advocating natural religion, emphasizing morality, and in the 18th century denying the interference of the Creator with the laws of the universe
(Class) creator of the world and he just walk away from his creation
Candide By Voltaire
The book is full of violence and guilty, Not really reality and not realistic
Candide is a very unlucky, native (he went on the journey even if it have a lot of mishap just to find his love), innocent
His think in a circle (“ it’s because it’s”)
He allows thing to happen to him because he believe thing happen and it happen and don’t take control
Pangloss
- Teacher of Candide -> homeless, nose have fall off (“deformed beggar”)
- “Sufficient reason” = sex
- Pangloss’s nose fall off because he have syphilis because he is sleeping around
- He have irrational reasoning -> he believe that thing are not avoidable; “we should have neither chocolate nor cochineal”- he accept that he is dying because they have chocolate
Dominant Culture
- The dominant culture in a society is the group whose members are in the majority or who wield more power than other groups.
- What is for the best? (For the people)
- But really is for the high class benefit
The land of Eldorado
- Gold and jewels
- Happy
- Utopian country – advanced scientific knowledge, no religious conflict, no court system and place no value, plentiful gold and jewels
- Candide is not happy because Cunegonde is not there
The Last Part
- Candide, Cunégonde, Cacambo, Pangloss, and the old woman settle into a comfortable life on the farm but
- Candide’s idea now don’t follow Pangloss’s idea
- Candide take control of his life (his garden)
- He can control thing within his control
- Thinking, active, reasoning -> garden (take care of it) understand people’s limit