A Brief History of Humanity: From Ancient Times to the 21st Century

Chapter 27 The Revolution of Thought
The British Revolution that broke out in the 17th century replaced the autocratic system with aristocratic rule and ended the conflict between the Anglican Church and the opposing Protestantism. The American Revolution that broke out in the eighteenth century created a new nation and laid new foundations for experiments in political democracy and religious tolerance.

During the two centuries of revolution in England and America, the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, legions of scholars and those of thought in all Christian quarters were striving to convey and develop new ideas.These ideas have a profound impact on us today, and it can be said that they are the baptism of an ideological revolution.

A gradual movement thought revolution grows gradually.It originated from several early changes in thought; (1) Europe expanded outwards from the 14th century to the 17th century, making people learn more about people or things far away and aroused great interest; (2) When business continued to develop, Europeans hired cheap labor in Asia, Africa, and the Americas, which increased the wealth of the European aristocrats and middle classes, so they had spare time to learn and pursue knowledge; (3) The transformation of the concept of the universe was the general study of the Copernican theory in the 16th century (4) the resistance to the stubbornness and intolerance caused by the strong religious conflicts since the 16th and 17th centuries; Painful fight.

17世纪、18世纪的思想革命涵盖：（1）十分注重自然科学的重要性；（2）基督教怀疑论和“自然宗教”的崛起；（3）“进步”观念的兴盛；（4）将批判精神运用到政治、经济、宗教和教育等方方面面。

[-]. Modern Science

Method The method advocated and confirmed in science by René Descartes and Francis Bacon in the 17th century was widely used by scientists in the subsequent 18th century.Subtle observation and patient experimentation became the rule, with great success.

In the history of physics, the most outstanding figure is the British Sir Isaac Newton in the late 17th and early 18th centuries.He did many jaw-dropping things, most famously discovering the law of gravitation, the "force" that allows every object to attract every other object: Apples fall from trees to the ground, and at the same time the earth falls toward the sun.Both Newton and the German Leibniz applied mathematics to the study of physics.American Franklin and Italian Giavani are also famous physicists.The former reminds us of lightning rods, the latter's name is left on the "Jaffani" accumulator.There is also a famous Italian physicist Volt who also created a "Volt" battery.

Thermometers and barometers, which were commonly used by people before, were made more accurate in the 18th century and applied to real life.

Biology Biology has delved into both animals and plants and made some important discoveries. In the 17th century, William Harvey, an outstanding British surgeon, discovered and described the blood circulation of the human body, allowing doctors in the 18th century to treat various diseases more effectively.Albrecht von Haller, a Swiss scientist (and poet) of the same era as Benjamin Franklin, won the honor of "Founder of Modern Physiology".The Frenchman Buffon and the Swedish Linnai, who were also contemporary with Franklin, made extensive research on plants and animals, and accelerated the pace of development of the two new disciplines of zoology and botany.A generation or two later, the British doctor Edward Jenner proved that the dreaded smallpox could be prevented by vaccination.

Chemistry In the 18th century, Joseph Priestley, Antoine Lavoisier, and Henry Cavendish laid the foundations for modern chemistry.Priestley and Cavendish are both from England, while Lavoisier is from France.The discovery of oxygen, water can be decomposed into two elements, and modern scientific terms began to be used in the field of chemistry.

Science is popular The main reason why natural science developed rapidly in the 18th century was the strong support of the ruling class.The king gave many year-end bonuses to scientists; British ministers offered them high-paying positions;Almost all European countries use public funds to build observatories with very large telescopes.Everywhere large numbers of educated and cultured people assembled in societies or "academies of sciences." The Royal Society, founded in London in 1662, heard reports on the latest achievements in mathematics, astronomy and physics.The year-end bonuses of the members of the French Academy of Sciences are paid by Louis XIV.Newton is a famous academician of this academy.

Never before has there been such a great interest in science, and there have never been such good opportunities to learn.At this time, printing technology has made good progress, and various academic research groups often publish reports in their professional fields.Encyclopedias of all kinds were published, claiming to adequately report every new scientific discovery.It has become fashionable to be a scientist, a philosopher, or a scholar of a certain subject, or to know a little chemistry, or to use one's skills and knowledge to show off in front of friends.

Leisure and scholarly books are still very expensive for ordinary people, but nobles and middle-class people can buy books.The increasing wealth, accompanied by the continual development of trade and industry, brought leisure and learning as well as luxury.

[-]. Skepticism and Natural Religion

One of the most obvious features of the 18th century was that it produced many Christian skeptics.The exploration of natural science makes many people tend to pursue a kind of religious "nature", that is, it is based on human understanding of nature, rather than the Bible or other historically authoritative religions.This attitude somewhat puts people at odds with the Bible and Christianity, since religion recognizes the supernatural and is primarily attached to history.

The history of the Christian church is full of reformers who attacked certain doctrines or vices, but, apart from the Italian humanists of the fifteenth century, there have never been so many influential people who had the courage to attack the true nature of the Christian faith .In the last quarter of the seventeenth century, some English philosophers, inspired by the laws of natural discovery, applied the new scientific method to religion.They only recognize the rules that science can prove, and attribute many things in the Christian faith to "superstition".They agree to live in accordance with the "law of nature", but what this law of nature is depends on everyone's understanding.

Deists People who share this view are called deists.They are not atheists because they claim to recognize God, as the name Deist implies.But as a religion, what they believe in and what they teach are vague.On the other hand, it is relatively clear what they are questioning and what they are attacking.In the eyes of many people, deism quickly became a representative of the culture of not believing in the Bible and denying Christianity.

From England to France Deism was spread from France to England, and its importance is manifested in the following ways, especially in France. (1) It deprived most of the upper classes of worship of the Church, opening the way for religious experimentation in the French Revolution; (2) It inspired philosophers to develop new systems and formulate new "laws"; When a particular religion is in doubt, it advocates adopting a tolerant attitude to deal with it; (3) It should take responsibility for people's increasingly indifferent religious attitude.For those who are too lazy or ignorant to study deism, but to use its superficial theory to justify their indifference.

The core literary representative of Voltaire's deism and rationalism in the 18th century was François Arrouet.He was born in Paris in 1694 and died in Paris in 1778.He is famous for using the pen name Voltaire.

Harsh language and a sarcastic tone were the reasons why Voltaire often got burned.He was imprisoned for a year for libel in the most ancient and grim fortress, the Bastille (the Bastille symbolized the tyranny of the Bourbon dynasty); sometimes he was the object of Parisian worship.In Germany he was always in the favor of Kaiser Friedrich, until his sharp tongue hurt the king deeply.He had met Empress Catherine of Russia.

He also lived in Switzerland for a while.He wrote articles under various titles, and like all the "philosophers" of his time, he played with science.

During his three years in England, Voltaire became familiar with British rationalism and highly admired it.Around 3, he wrote the English Correspondence, which expounded the philosophy of deism and violently attacked the church and society.

Voltaire was not a sharp and unique thinker, but he was the most omniscient and intelligent writer of his time.When he returned to his hometown at the age of 84, the ladies called him a funny old cynic.He was indeed a cynic, for his life's work was sarcasm.But he was the tyrant of European thought.

As we will see below, Voltaire was not alone in his work of expressing dissatisfaction, and many intellectual precursors followed.

[-]. The concept of progress
Prominent among the intellectual revolutions of the eighteenth century was the idea of ​​progress.In an age of achievements everywhere, this is a matter of course.The scientific discoveries following the new discoveries of geography led to a kind of faith - optimism.Industry and invention, wealth and expansion, all go the same way, at least for the relatively fortunate classes.

With the dawn of the golden age, the human mind seems to have finally woken up from centuries of slumber, and is ready to conquer the world, explore the mysteries of life, and find all the secrets of the universe.It was believed that a little thought could free the world from sin, ignorance, and superstition.So philosophers began boldly attacking annoying religious and moral issues, refuting the state, society and church, and pointing the way to a new paradise on earth.

Pride and contempt for new achievements and new ideas lead to contempt for the past, eulogy for the present and planning for future prospects.

This critical fervor of rationalism is often called "rationalism" because its proponents demand that everything must be reasonable or rational. From 1675 to 1725, some representatives of rationalism appeared in Britain, but their ideas had a far-reaching influence in France, far surpassing the influence in Britain, which was the credit of Voltaire and related people.

[-]. Universal use of the critical spirit
As explained earlier, rationalism, the critical optimism born in the 18th century, is applied to all aspects of life.Let's describe its application in detail.

In religion, "doing good" is far more concerned than faith.The humanitarian spirit of Catholics and Protestants flourished, criticizing slavery, calling for prison reform, increasing religious tolerance, and reducing religious persecution.

On politics In politics, it has the right to criticize the authoritarian system and call for personal freedom, for example, some works of John Milton; there are also the British Petition for Power (1628), the American Declaration of Independence (1776) and some famous documents in which substantial developments concerning liberty are recorded.

Locke, Montesquieu and Rousseau Among those who rebelled against the king and spoke for the people, the most famous are the Englishman John Locke and the Frenchman Charles Montesquieu and Jean Jacques Rousseau.Montesquieu and Rousseau both wrote in the 18th century, and both were influenced by Locke, who lived and wrote in the 17th century.One of Locke's core assertions is that the existence or existence of any government requires the consent of the governed.

Montesquieu advocated that all governments should be based on meeting the personalities and needs of the governed people.He believes that the government can best protect freedom only by separating powers, that is, no group or individual is allowed to enjoy the three powers of judiciary, legislation and administration at the same time.For this he extolled the British government, where he believed the three powers could easily be separated.His motto is moderation.

Rousseau was very radical.His private life was disorganized, but his views were revolutionary and radical.Like Locke, he advocated that government should be based on the social contract, that is, the support of the governed.His "social contract" theory is widely circulated.He felt that a republic is the best form of government because it best meets the needs of the people.

Rousseau was identified as a deist, but compared with many deists, he felt that God was more reasonable and loving.Although Rousseau has some shortcomings, he also has good character.He loved nature at a time when others were only exploring it.He has a realm of "great holy commandments", he believes that "love God above all else, love your neighbor as you love yourself, this is the holy commandment of induction".But his motto is not so much moderation as revolution.Napoleon Bonaparte claimed in his later years that without Rousseau, there would be no French Revolution.

Alongside his cries of liberty, Rousseau joined others in advocating nationalism.In education, Rousseau's theory also has no small influence.

Many theories about education put forward in the eighteenth century were also revolutionary in nature.People criticize missionary schools and want to implement more universal education through state schools.Thomas Jefferson was a famous man from America, and his views on these matters were similar to those of the Europeans.

The long-accepted mercantilism of commerce, wealth, and the state by economic people also became an object of critique in the eighteenth century.A group of French Physiocrats attacked mercantilism and sought to shift the focus from commerce and the "balance of trade" to agriculture and mining.They disapproved of protective tariffs and trade barriers for other countries, and advocated more freedom.They feel that everyone has the right to conduct his own business and work as long as he does not interfere with other people's rights similar to his own.

Adam Smith Scotsman Adam Smith advocated a new kind of free economy in his masterpiece The Wealth of Nations, published in 1776, the year of American independence.Smith's book became industry's Declaration of Independence.He felt that every employee, every salesperson should be free, and that the country should "let nature take its course."The country should be led by an "invisible hand" to achieve a win-win situation.Only in this way can the wealth of a country really grow.

The Wealth of Nations favored the middle class, and as a result the wealth of the nation became the wealth of the bourgeoisie.The life of the lower class is poorer than before.At the same time, mercantilism collapsed.Smith's famous book fueled the theory of "natural law" and "natural rights".

(End of this chapter)