Ch.18 Vocab

Review Questions

According to the Aristotelian view, a motionless earth was fixed at the center of the universe. Around it moved 10 separate transparent crystal spheres. In the first eight spheres were embedded, in turn, the moon, the sun, the five known planets, and the fixed stars. Then followed two spheres added during the Middle Ages to account for slight changes in the positions of the stars over the centuries. Beyond the tenth sphere was heaven, with the throne of God and the souls of the saved. Angels kept the spheres moving in perfect circles. In the 16th and 17th century, the views started to become more like the modern view of the universe. Copernicus published his On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres, which showed that the planets, including the Earth itself, revolved around the sun. After this, other scientists began to work off this theory. Kepler formulated three famous laws of planetary motion. First, he demonstrated that the orbits of the planets around the sun were elliptical rather than circular. Second, he demonstrated that the plants do not move at a uniform speed in their orbits. Third, he showed that the time a planet takes to make its complete orbit is precisely related to its distance from the sun. Galileo formulated the law of inertia, which stated that an object continues to move forever unless stopped by some external force. Aristotelian physics was in a shambles. Galileo also discovered the four moons of Jupiter, crushing any theory that Jupiter was imbedded in an impenetrable crystal sphere. Newton formulated the law of universal gravitation. According to this, every body in the universe attracts every other body in the universe in a precise mathematical relationship, whereby the force of attraction is proportional to the quantity of matter of the objects and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them. The whole universe, from Kepler’s elliptical orbits to Galileo’s experiments, was unified in one majestic system.

The new scientific theories and discoveries shook the grounds of religion greatly. Initially, a new view of the universe did not leave a place for God’s throne and the realm where the saved souls go to. Also, new physics and laws being introduced shook the foundation of which the church stood on, the Aristotelian physics. Furthermore, explanations of why planets and other things moved the way they did, made it so that a God was not required and that the universe was its own mechanism. Science came to dictate humanity’s concept of God.

The Copernican hypothesis had enormous scientific and religious implications, many of which the conservative Copernicus did not anticipate. First, it put the stars at rest, their apparent nightly movement simply a result of the earth’s rotation. Thus is destroyed the main reason for believing in crystal spheres capable of moving the tars around the earth. Second, Copernicus’s theory suggested a universe of staggering size. If in the course of a year the earth moved around the sun and yet the stars appeared to remain in the same place, then the universe was unthinkably large or even infinite. Finally, by characterizing the earth as just another planet, Copernicus destroyed the basic idea of Aristotelian physics, that the earthly world was quite different from the heavenly one. With this, there was no realm of perfection, or heaven, or even a place for God.

The scientific gained its momentum from internal and external sources. The discoveries and theories of scientists came off of the previous theories of past scientists. As Newton said, “If I have seen further than others, it is by standing on the shoulders of Giants.” Also, external factors affected the Scientific Revolution greatly. The long term contribution of medieval intellectual life and medieval universities to the scientific revolution were great. By the thirteenth century, permanent universities with professors and large student bodies had been established in Western Europe to train the lawyers, doctors, and church leaders that society required. Furthermore, the Renaissance helped bring back ancient knowledge that would help increase and reform European mathematics and science. Practical problems also helped. Navigation at sea and the mapping of the oceans were an impediment that was overcome by the close relationships between top naval officers and scientific minds. Better instruments, with which to study with also helped improve science. They helped develop better ways of obtaining knowledge about the world.

Bacon introduced the idea of inductive reasoning with his empiricism. He claimed that the empirical method would result not only in more knowledge but also in highly practical, useful knowledge. Descartes decided that it was necessary to doubt everything that could reasonably be doubted and then, as in geometry, to use deductive reasoning from self-evident principles to ascertain scientific laws. Bacon’s inductive experimentalism and Descartes’ deductive, mathematical reasoning are combined in the modern scientific method.

The Catholic and Protestant churches for the most part hindered the progress of science. However, in places where the religious authority was not strong and did not impose religious orthodoxy on scientific questions, science fostered. This is true in countries such as the Netherlands and Denmark, which became quite advanced scientifically. However, the case with Protestant England was the true giant. England, with its wealth and power, and for the most part religious diversity and tolerance, came to discuss “neutral” scientific questions and advanced itself quite far.

The rise of modern science had many consequences. First, there was a rise of a new social class, the international scientific community. Furthermore, the scientific revolution introduced not only new knowledge about nature but also a new and revolutionary way of obtaining knowledge, in the form of the scientific method. In addition to being both theoretical and experimental, this method was highly critical, and it differed profoundly from the old way of getting knowledge about nature. It refused to base its conclusions on tradition and established sources, on ancient authorities and sacred texts. Also, improvements in the techniques of navigation facilitated overseas trade and helped enrich leading merchants.

The most important and original idea of the Enlightenment was that the methods of natural science could and should be used to examine and understand all aspects of life. Everything was to be submitted to the rational, critical, scientific way of thinking. This rationalism often brought the enlightenment into a head-on conflict with established churches, which rested their beliefs on the special authority of the Bible and Christian theology. A second important Enlightenment concept was that the scientific method was capable of discovering the laws of human society as well as those of nature. Thus was social science born. Its birth led to the third key idea, that of progress. Armed with the proper method of discovering the laws of human existence, Enlightenment thinkers believed that it was at least possible for human beings to create better societies and better people. Their belief was strengthened by some modest improvements in economic and social life during the eighteenth century.

The philosophes were one of history’s most influential groups of intellectuals. They were the intellectuals who lectured and preached to their ignorant fellow peers in an Age of Enlightenment. They called for reform and progress. They criticized European practices with satires and double meanings because direct attacks would cause banning and their burning of their works.

Frederick of Prussia was an enlightened monarch because after his harsh times during wars, he turned to humane policies for his subjects, which strengthened the state. He tolerantly allowed his subjects to believe as they wished in religious and philosophical matters. He promoted the advancement of knowledge, improving his country’s schools and permitting scholars to publish their findings. Catherine of Russia was also an enlightened monarch. She worked hard to bring the sophisticated culture of Western Europe to backward Russia. To do so, she imported Western architects, sculptors, musicians, and intellectuals. She bought masterpieces of Western art in wholesale lots and patronized the philosophes. Second, she wanted domestic reform. Her reign began with sincere and ambitious projects. Better laws were a major concern. She appointed a special legislative commission to prepare a new law code. No new unified code was ever produced, but Catherine did restrict the practice of torture and allowed limited religious toleration. However, a serf rebellion led by Pugachev stopped all domestic reform from occurring henceforth.

Frederick tried to improve the lives of his subjects directly. The legal system and the bureaucracy were Frederick’s primary tools. Prussia’s laws were simplified, torture of prisoners was abolished, and judges decided cases quickly and impartially. Prussian officials because famous for their hard work and honesty. Frederick justified monarch in terms of practical results and said nothing of the divine right of kings.

Catherine’s reign westernized the thinking of the Russian nobility. This intellectual ruler, who wrote plays and loved good talk, set the tone for the entire Russian nobility. The serfs were also affected. When Catherine first came to power, she opposed serfdom abstractly. However, Pugachev led a serf rebellion against Catherine, and called himself the true tsar. He killed landlords and officials. Upon crushing this rebellion, Catherine realized that the serfs were dangerous and needed to be suppressed. Serfdom became more oppressive. With many of her initial reforms and policies such as uncensoring what western leaders were censoring, she grew in favor of the philosophes. She won good press in the West for herself and her country.

The power struggle between the aristocrats and Louis XV originated from economic problems. The wars that France had endured had pummeled them into a financial crisis. Louis XV and his new finance minister started to issue taxes to all classes, and the tax exempt nobles fought against them. Louis XV gave up and recalled the tax. This happened again after the Seven Years’ War when Louis XV tried to keep the emergency tax even after the War ended. Once again, the monarch backs down.

Madame du Chatelet was an intellectually gifted woman from the high aristocracy with a passion for science. She studied physics and mathematics and published scientific articles and translations. She translated Newton’s Principia into French for the first and only time. She explained Newton’s complex mathematical proofs to Europe’s foremost philosophe, and had no doubt that women’s limited scientific contributions in the past were due to limited and unequal education. Madame Geoffrin was a patron of the creators of the Encyclopedia. She saved the encyclopedists from financial crisis with her inheritance from her dead husband. She held twice weekly salons that counted Fontenelle and Montesquieu among its regular guests. The salons seem to have functioned as informal schools where established hostesses bonded with younger women and passed skills on to them.

Define the following key concepts and terms.

Copernican hypothesis- The Copernican hypothesis stated that the earth was not the center of the universe. Instead, the earth was just one planet in a system with the other planets as they revolved around the sun.

Cartesian absolutism- decided it was necessary to doubt everything that could reasonably be doubted and used deductive reasoning to ascertain scientific laws

Law of inertia- This law, formulated by Galileo, and stated that the natural state of an object was motion, until an outside force stopped it.

Aristotelian world-view- Based off of the Greek philosopher Aristotle’s observations, this was a basic concept to grasp and therefore widely used. He stated that the universe was composed of 10 spheres rotating the earth composed of a 5th essence. The first 4 essences, earth, air, water, and fire composed the earth and could be changed by people.

Empirical method- Created by Sir Francis Bacon, this was a method of inductive reasoning. Bacon claimed that the empirical method would result not only in more knowledge but also in highly practical useful knowledge.

Deductive reasoning- Descartes’ main achieve, he decided it was necessary to doubt everything that could reasonable be doubted and then use deductive reasoning from self-evident principles to ascertain scientific laws.

Rationalism- Idea that the methods of natural science could and should be used to examine and understand all aspects of life. Nothing was to be accepted on faith. Everything was to be submitted to the rational, critical, scientific way of thinking.

General will- the common interests of all the people, who have displaced the monarch as the holder of sovereign power, which according to Rousseau is absolute and sacred

Secular- Worldly; for the benefit of the community now, not for religious or afterlife concepts

Skepticism- Idea stressed by Bayle that nothing could ever be known beyond all doubt

Tabula rasa- Idea of John Locke that the mind, at birth, was a blank slate, ready to be influenced by society

Parlement of Paris- The high courts of France, which were given the right to evaluate royal decrees publicly in writing before they were registered and given the force of law by the Duke of Orleans in 1715. They were run by the nobility of France, giving more fuel to the aristocrat vs. monarch fight.

Enlightenment- Age of Reason, most important intellectual movement of the 18th century; it stressed progress and individual freedom

Enlightened absolutism- Absolute monarchs tried to become enlightened so that they could form a better society in their country. However, while many monarchs did allow reform, they did not let themselves lose any of their power.

Philosophes- intellectual philosophers who are radical reformists against abuses of the Old Regime

Identify and explain the significance of each of the following people.

Diderot- partnered with d’Alembert to make the Encyclopedia, which was a collection of hundreds of thousands of articles about many different subjects, which caused it to be banned and placed on the Church’s Index. It summed up the new world view of the enlightenment.

Bayle- famous French Huguenot who was a skeptic. Demonstrating that human beliefs had been extremely varied and very often mistaken, Bayle concluded that nothing can ever be known beyond all doubt.

Kepler- Assistant of Brahe who formulated three famous laws of planetary motion. The first law stated that the planets moved in elliptical orbits. The second stated that the planets do not move at a uniform speed. The last law stated that the time a planet takes to make its complete orbit is precisely related to its distance from the sun.

Galileo- Famous Florentine who formulated the law of inertia, stating that rest was not the natural state of objects. He also discovered the first four moons of Jupiter, crushing more of the Aristotelian views.

Bacon- English politician and writer who created the empiricist method; this was a method of inductive reasoning. Bacon claimed that the empirical method would result not only in more knowledge but also in highly practical useful knowledge.

Descartes- French philosopher who decided it was necessary to doubt everything that could reasonably be doubted and then use deductive reasoning from self evident principles to ascertain scientific laws.

D’Holbach- He was a German philosophe that argued that human beings were machines completely determined by outside forces. Free will, God, and immortality of the soul were foolish myths.

Newton- He was an English mathematical genius who formulated the law of universal gravitation. According to this law, every body in the universe attracts every other body in the universe in a precise mathematical relationship, whereby the force of attraction is proportional to the quantity of matter of the objects and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them.

Montesquieu- He was born from a French noble family. He criticized the French government and Western European practices with satire. He also applied scientific method to practical problems such as government and resulted in a complex comparative study of republics, monarchies, and despotisms. He focused on the conditions that would promote liberty and prevent tyranny.

Voltaire- He was born from a middle class family and wrong more than seventy witty volumes, about kings and queens, and died a millionaire because of shrewd business speculations. He was imprisoned by insulting the Regent, and after agreeing to leave the country, he was freed. He went to England and upon his return; he was threatened with prison again. Then he went to live with Madame du Chatelet. Voltaire mixed the glorification of science and reason wtith an appeal for better individuals and institutions.

Copernicus- He theorized a heliocentric solar system, but did not publish his works until the year of his death fearing ridicule.

Brahe- He was a Danish astronomer who, with the help of the King of Denmark in the form of grants, built a famous observatory. He believed that all the planets revolved around the sun and that the entire group of sun and planets revolved in turn around the earth-moon system.

Madame du Chatelet- She was an intelligent women who worked diligently in science. She translated Newton’s Principia to French and helped spread ideas of other scientists.

Madame Geoffrin- She was a patron of the Encyclopedia. She held 2 salons a week, where philosophes came to discuss matters in the world.

Catherine the Great- She became the Russian tsar when her husband Peter died. She worked hard to bring the sophisticated culture of Western Europe to Russia. She tried to reform Russia’s domestic policies. She also tried to expand territorially. Her armies subjugated the last descendants of the Mongols, the Crimean Tartars, and began the conquest of the Caucasus.

Frederick the Great- Monarch of Prussia who tried to improve the lives of his subjects. He promoted the advancement of knowledge, improving his country’s schools and permitting scholars to publish their findings. He modified the legal system and the bureaucracy. Frederick’s government energetically promoted the reconstruction of agriculture and industry in his war torn country.

Maria Theresa- Maria and her closest ministers were determined to introduce reforms that would make the state stronger and more efficient. Maria introduced measures aimed at limited the papacy’s political influence in her realm. A whole series of administrative reforms strengthened the central bureaucracy, smoothed out some provincial differences, and revamped the tax system, taxing even the lands of nobles without special exemptions. The government sought to improve the lot of agricultural population, cautiously reducing the power of lords over their hereditary serfs and their partially free peasant tenants.

Louis XV- He was the monarch of France who followed the Sun King. He was in constant conflict with his nobility class. Taxes were introduced and recalled many times during his reign. In the end, Louis XV fought back by appointing a tough officer as chancellor and ordered him to crush the judicial opposition. However, Louis XV died before he was truly back in complete power.

Joseph II- He inherited the crown from Maria Theresa when she died. He controlled the established Catholic Church even more closely in an attempt to ensure that it produced better citizens. He granted religious toleration and civic rights to Protestants and Jews. He even abolished serfdom. When he died however, the Habsburg Empire was in shambles by all these radical new reforms.

Explain the new ideas of each of the following books. What were some of the consequences of these ideas?

On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres- Written by Copernicus, it introduced the concept of a heliocentric solar system. It crushed the Aristotelian view of the universe and the church went against this.

New Astronomy or Celestial Physics-

Two New Sciences- Written by Galileo, it presented to the public the law of Inertia, once again destroying Aristotelian physics and view on the earth. He proved that rest was not the natural state of objects.

Principia- Written by Newton, it showed the laws of certain motions, and powers or forces, which chiefly have respect to philosophy.

Conversations on the Plurality of Worlds of 1686- Written by Bernard de Fontenelle, it was about two elegant figures walking in the gather shadows of a large park. One is a woman, a sophisticated aristocrat, and the other is her friend, perhaps her lover. They gaze at the stars and their talk turns to a passionate discussion of astronomy. It tries to make people enthusiastic about change instead of despairing at the dismissal of traditional understanding.

Historical and Critical Dictionary- Written by Bayle, it was critically examining the religious beliefs and persecutions of the past. He concluded that nothing can ever be known beyond all doubt. In religious as in philosophy, humanity’s best hope was open minded toleration.

The Spirit of the Laws- Written by Montesquieu in an attempt to apply the critical method of physical sciences to the problem of government, which resulted in a complex comparative study of republics, monarchies, and despotisms.

Essay Concerning Human Understanding- Written by Locke, this essay showed how he believed that at birth, the human mind is a blank slate, ready to be influenced by the environment in forms of beliefs and understanding

Philosophical Dictionary- Written by Voltaire, the Philosophical Dictionary was a series of essays on topics ranging from Adam to Zoroaster, from certainty to circumcisions. It was denounced by religious leaders as a threat to the Christian community and was burned in Geneva and Paris.

Encyclopedia: The Rational Dictionary of the Sciences, the Arts, and the Crafts- Published in part by Diderot, it was a collection of articles written by the great thinkers of the time, giving information on various things from Atheism to Scientific theories.

The Social Contract- Written by Rousseau, it discussed two fundamental concepts the general will and popular sovereignty. According to Rousseau, the general will is sacred and absolute, reflecting the common interests of all the people who have displaced the monarch as the holder of sovereign power.

Test your understanding of the chapter by providing the correct answers.

1) According to Aristotle, the sublunar world was made up of four elements: air, fire, water, and earth. 2) Copernicus did not attempt to disprove the existence of God. 3) Galileo claimed that motion was the natural state of all objects. 4) The key feature in Newton’s synthesis was the law of universal gravitation. 5) In the medieval universities, science emerged as a branch of philosophy. 6) The method of finding latitude came out of study and experimentation in the country of Portugal. 7) The idea of “progress” was not widespread in the Middle Ages. 8) In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries a close link between pure (theoretical) science and applied technology did not exist. 9) A skeptic is one who believes that nothing can ever be known beyond all doubt. 10) Voltaire believed that Newton was history’s greatest man because he used his genius to benefit humanity. 11) Overall, Joseph II of Austria failed as an enlightened monarch.

Place the following ideas in correct chronological order.

-Aristotle’s view of a motionless earth at the center of the universe (4th century BC) -Copernicus’s idea that the sun is the center of the universe. (1543) -Newton’s law of universal gravitation (1687) -Montesquieu’s theory of the separation of powers (1748) -D’Holbach’s theory that human beings are machines (1770)

Major Political Ideas

Enlightened absolutism was the philosophes’ compromise. When they tried to educate the public, they found that the public did not care or want to become enlightened. Therefore, they focused on the monarch. If the monarch could become enlightened, his actions can influence the country and therefore enlighten the country, making it a better place to live. The monarchs allowed this and reform as long as they did not lose any of their power. In some situations this worked, such as with Catherine the Great, but in others it did not, such as the case of Joseph II of Austria.

Secular means that the people did what they did to benefit their worldly needs. It was to further man himself, not for some religion or afterlife. He did it for his current state and to excel himself and his mind. It helped scientists focus on the world itself and not what the church dictates. This helped advance many things such as new theories and experimenting with nature itself.

Interpretation of Visual Sources

The print of Descartes’ visit with Queen Christina of Sweden shows the Queen at a table as the philosophe shows her various things on the table. Queen Christina of Sweden encouraged art and science, and she invited many foreign artists and scholars to visit her court. The scientific revolution helped the monarch run his state because it helped cause a rift between the people and the church. Also, the picture shows many navigational tools which I believe the Queen would use to plot the seas, expand trade, and help enrich her country or perhaps even expand.

Geography

Poland was partitioned between Russia, Austria, and Prussia as the three countries fought on its land instead of their own. Land that belonged to Poland came into one of the country’s power until eventually Poland disappeared from the map! It benefited the countries who took Poland because they expanded and according to the monarch’s thought, the largest nation is the most powerful nation.