Unit Essential Question: What is the most effective means to bringing political, economic, and social change?Aim: To what extent did Enlightenment ideas bring political and social changes?

Democracy!Ancient Greece and Rome are often considered the birthplace

of democracy. But Democracy as it is practiced today is different from the Greek and Roman models. The most famous democracy today is the United States. The type of government the United States uses is called a federal republic. “Federal” means power is divided between the national and state governments. In a republic, the people vote for their representatives. Many of the ideas contained in the U.S. Declaration of Independence and the Constitution are built on the ideas of Enlightenment thinkers.

Directions: The chart below lists excerpts from the U.S. Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution. (1) Identify the Enlightenment idea and the philosophe that each excerpt drew inspiration from. (2) Then answer the questions below the chart.

Enlightenment Philosopher and Idea

U.S. Declaration of Independence / Constitution

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness- That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, -That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government…” - The U.S. Declaration of Independence“Article I. All legislative powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States…“Article II. The executive power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America…“Article III. The judicial power of the United States, shall be vested in one supreme Court, and in such inferior courts as the Congress may…establish….The judicial power shall extend to all cases, in law and equity, arising under this Constitution…” - The Constitution of the United States of America“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press…” - The Constitution of the United States of America“The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two Senators from each state, [who are] elected by the people…for six years.”

Unit Essential Question: What is the most effective means to bringing political, economic, and social change?Aim: To what extent did Enlightenment ideas bring political and social changes?

- The Constitution of the United States of America

AP WORLD HISTORICAL THINKING SKILLS:1. CAUSATION: What were the long and short time causes of the Enlightenment?

2. ANALYSIS/COMPARISON: What is the relationship between the ideas of the Enlightenment and the American Revolution (1776) and the French Revolution (1989)?

The Legacy of the Enlightenment

I. Five concepts formed the core beliefs of the Enlightenment:(1)Reason: Enlightened thinkers believed truth could be discovered through reason or logical

thinking.(2)Nature: Scientific reasoning and observation was emphasized, and new scientific findings

challenged those previously held by the classical societies of Greece and Rome. What was natural was also good and reasonable.

(3)Happiness: People should seek well-being on earth.(4)Progress: Society and humankind could improve.(5)Liberty: Philosophers called for the liberties that the English people had won in their Glorious

Revolution and Bill of Rights.

II. Belief in ProgressIII. A More Secular OutlookIV. Importance of the IndividualV. Enlightened Despots: Absolute monarchs who used the ideas of the Enlightenment to

strengthen their rule and govern more effectively.

Examples: Catherine the Great of RussiaJoseph II of AustriaFrederick of Prussia

VI. Arguably the most significant legacy of the Enlightenment lay in the Age of Revolutions of the 18th and 18th centuries inspired by Enlightenment ideals.

Unit Essential Question: What is the most effective means to bringing political, economic, and social change?Aim: To what extent did Enlightenment ideas bring political and social changes?