Enlightenment

and its Legacy, Mar 10

Image List 12 Rationalism

In 18th century growing dissatisfaction with political system in Britain, France and
colonial America. This is going to bring about incredible changes to the world.

IN Britain the King’s prerogatives was gradually exercised by a cabinet responsible
to parliament. North America 13 colonies revolted against King George. Monarchy in
France overthrown in armed revolution.

Shift in political power from the crown to the nobility aristocrats and eventually to
middle class partially result of industrial revolution that brought new prosperity to
middle class

Shifts in political thought result of access to education and knowledge.

1. Rene Descartes – philosopher really influenced the enlightenment. I think,
therefore I am. Our concept of reality now. Not common knowledge at that
time. He started with disbelief, i.e. if everything is different now, if we can’t
trust superstition or what someone else tells us, can only trust myself. He
throws out everything he knows and asked what can I know is true. He was
sitting in front of a fireplace, looking at candles, how do I know what this
candle is, if I put near fire, it will change its form. I can take the candle and
smell of beeswax but its scent will disappear eventually. It changes its form,
scent, it disappears, what is it that I can know. Only thing I know is in my own
mind, through reason. Only thing I can know is that is changeable.

Essence of me if the essence of candle is that is changeable, what is the essence of
me. if I cant trust my senses how I perceive the world, what can I trust to offer me
truth. Only thing I can trust is in my own mind. Therefore, I think therefore I am.
Even if I doubt my own self, like dreaming, fact I can doubt proves I am thinking an
exists.

This becomes a circular argument: how can I know if I exist if I’m only in my own
mind and I’m dreaming. He has to prove someone other than himself. God exists
because he’s perfect and I have in my mind the concept of perfection, so what put it
in my mind, if nothing in world is perfect. God must have put that concept there
therefore god exists. This is called rationalism.

Only through rational thought I can know the world.

2. Joseph Wright, A Philosopher Giving a Lecture on an Orrery, 1763-65 – not only
children, young men, women, listening to a lecture on a machine that designs the
solar system. This image epitomizes belief of the Enlightenment, i.e. education to all.
It was a period of scientific enquiry. Enquiry into the natural world, human life and
society. Reason, became touchstone for evaluating nearly every civilized endeavor

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including philosophy, art and politics. by extension, nature thought embody reason.
Corroborates everything good and correct. Reasonable nature.

People were inherently reasonable and good. Different than Original Sin. New
system we are reasonable, we have ability to reason through problem and we are
generally good. Our first inclination is to community and to welfare, not evil and
sinning. These beliefs led culture theorists to call the 18th century the age of reason
or the age of enlightenment.

This painting is against the concept of rationalism. It certainly uses reason that we
can reason through difficulties. But it is based on observation, which goes back to
renaissance seeing is believing. In 18th century it’s called Empiricism (something is
empirical can be weighed, measured, perceived). This kind of knowledge can only be
gathered through experience.

George Barkley – to be is to be perceived, can only know the world or myself
through how other see me.

Rationalism school and Empiricism school are going to carry out through
Enlightenment period

Enlightenment absolute belief that humankind is good, intelligent and we can move
towards the perfection of human life, make world a better place through universal
education, everyone will know world through free education. Utopian ideal.

Ideals based in cult of the individual, also adds to it that there are individual rights.
Come out of the industrial revolution, middle class that demand more control own
lives – political, religious etc. they have freedom, right to private property, worship
religion or science. This movement coupled with classical liberalism.

Tied to movements of democracy, following Dutch republic, we the people decide
how to be governed. Hand in hand with capitalism. Development of nation state tied
to capitalism.

Acquiring of Knowledge
Power of Art

These Enlightenment thinkers - called Philosophs in France – recognized art had
power. Critique art of aristocracy, as decadent, immoral not putting forward
morality of middle class based on art and moving beyond.

3. Jan Van der Heyden, Cabinet of Curiosity, 1712 - Understanding of knowledge -
begins to be categorized into different disciplines. We need to be able to grasp this
wealth of knowledge (e.g. van der Heyden’s cabinet of curiosity 1712). We can only
grasp by specializing. Geography, astronomy, zoology, history etc. these new
disciplines are attempt to understand reasonable world of nature. Image is about

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things, objects and acquisition not only for themselves, but also objects of
knowledge of the globe.

4. Zoological drawing, ca 18-c – everything is categorized by their morphology, what
they look like. Empiricism. About seeing, and also about trying to understand the
meaning, truth behind nature as example of our own social reality, our public
persona, how we should act what’s best for the community.

5. Denis Diderot’s encyclopedia – he thought how to educate public at low cost. His
solution was to write a encyclopedia. He asked best minds, crafts people, merchants
to write their sections. This encyclopedia so important: 1) knowledge for public
even for though illiterate, over 3,000 illustrations. Even if you couldn’t read, can
look at pictures (e.g. loon), machinery or way to do things, you can learn how to do
ourselves.

Before the mid 18th century knowledge resides with the God, then the hierarchy of
Church and King. Encyclopedia challenged authority of church, based on empiricism
not absolute truth from God. This based on categorical information, not filtered
through theology. Because of that, the encyclopedia was outlawed, even tough
supported by Mme de Pompadour. It was published in Spain in folios and smuggled
into France and bound together piece by piece. 2) What made it so controversial
was the way it was formatted – alphabetically. Treasonable because king or church
wasn’t first. Most people could say the alphabet, allows them to go to encyclopedia
to get the right one for what they needed to learn. This was very revolutionary and
threatening.

6. Pages from Diderot’s encyclopedia

7. Jean Jacques Rousseau, The Social Contract – he was the other major
Enlightenment thinker. He wrote the Social Contract, read this. A social contract is:
- the agreement through which each person enters into civil society: down to each
individual
- the contract binds people into a community that exists for mutual preservation:
idea that community good comes above individual but as an individual I enter. Like
Dutch musketeers (one for all and all for one). ideas started in late 16th, 17 and 18th
century
- we sacrifice physical freedom to gain civil freedom (rational thought): speak
directly to coronavirus we are willing to sacrifice physical freedom for common
good, mutual preservation

Rousseau was first to write these ideas down into social contract

Administration: Two Parts
- sovereign – the voice of the law and absolute authority within the state. In
Rousseau’s words, the sovereign is “the people speaking together” (GENERAL
WILL) i.e. democracy we will come together and determine this

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 - Government – charged with application of the law toward particular matters
(PARTICULAR WILLS). The people speaking together on specific topics.

Bringing this knowledge think of knowledge, concept of individual as a civic subject
who is capable to make decisions for themselves and others is fundamental to
enlightenment thinking.

What brought this about was the Industrial Revolution: From Farming to Factories,
From Country to City
Image of farming to factories depicts Manchester the radical change during the
industrial revolution, especially in England, how they lived, and day-to-day lives.
How long we work, when we work, eat etc. previously the majority were farming
under feudalism or estates, but now into factories.

Moving to urban centres, incredible shift. Fueled by coal dust, made cities perhaps
not as nice as country

Automation – horse powered threshing machine – kernels off the shaft to get grain
used to be done by hand. Now we have machines horse powered. This is replacing
workers, production of food increases.

Cotton mills were polluted, cotton filled air and lungs with cotton balls until died of
lung disease

So much lint in air, spark will cause explosion. People will have bare feat could not
afford a spark from the boot. Also, workers primarily women and children in mills
because smaller fingers children can climb under machines to take out spools. Work
16 hours a day for a few cents a day. Exploited

“The road to dividends” image of fat owners and a girl laboring under a bale of
cotton

No minimum wage, taxation for rich, no unions. People dissatisfied with life.

Seam engine - keeps the factories working. Coal burned, heats the steam to cause
the pressure to keep the factories turning. Could be a train, factory.

People work in coalmines. Children and men died of pleurisy.

IR brings about dissatisfaction, urbanization under massive pollution. Coal dust
mixed with fog. In London 1957 2700 people died of pollution. Pollution until mid
20th century.

Slums developed in east London, several families to single room. When one family
went to work, other family sleeps in beds. With that kind of squalor, disease
rampant. TB, smallpox, typhoid, dysentery, run rampant.

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Shipping
Becomes a major industry. With IR it ramps up, with steam ships go faster and be
bigger. Build up because factories need raw materials

Cotton – first from Caribbean, then USA and Nile delta
Soap – palm oil – Indonesia or SEA

Shipping becomes a major industry just the building of ships.

Thousands of miles in British Isles. Locks allow horses to tow boats on bridges.

Efficient systems to keep machines turning 24/7

8. Adam Smith, The Wealth of Nations, 1776 – enlightenment thinker. Father of
economics. Book lays out economic system in a free market – marketplace to gather
as much profit as market can bear. If you are selling pillowcases and in competition
with 3 others, how do you get the customers? We have freedom to set prices. Up to
me to cover costs.

Market works for individuals but makes observation that even if you don’t know
consequences of actions, it will have good or bad consequences in all society. In
keeping with enlightenment principles of private property, rights, freedom and
democracy these are built into his free market theory. Libertarian view to
manipulate the market. No government or monarch should regulate this market.

9. Abraham Darby III/ Thomas Pritchard, iron bridge, Coalbrookdale, England,
1776-79 – good example of the IR. Not only because it is a bridge but because it
allowed goods to travel from one place to another.

It’s the first iron bridge ever made. Remarkable because all those pieces can be pre-
manufactured. They are repeated pieces. This saved labor, a symbol of future and
good of industry.

Neoclassicism:
New classics. See classical revival since Renaissance. With the

10. View of Pompeii, discovered 1738 - With the discovery of Herculean and
Pompeii (roman cities covered by volcano) encountered in early and mid 18th
century. Excavations begin in 1798. Roman city in situ. Create incredible fashion for
classical antiquity.

Not of imperial Rome (Julius Caesar) but of Republican Rome. This idea math is the
basis of truth, classical antiquity created democracy, CA created first free market.

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11. Interior view of a house in Pompeii– photo of a room in Pompeii, style quite
restrained different from Rococo and Baroque. This, along with new discoveries
from Pompeii added to interest in classicism. Developed into neoclassical style.

12. Robert Adam, Etruscan Room, from Osterley Park House, Middlesex, England,
1761 – Adam was a young architect. Osterley house was a grand house of wealthy
industrialist (not necessarily aristocratic). Etruscans were early Romans, they were
separate from Romans but Romans developed out of the Etruscans. Relates to early
republican period of the empire. Restrained, symmetrical, math loving, rational.
Supports enlightenment ideals. Still decorative but restrained. Hotel de Soubise
decorative style was still the rage at that time.

13. Princess room, Hotel de Soubise, 1737-40 - The Etruscan room appeals to the
rational enlightenment ideals rather than Hotel de Soubise’s decadence, Louis XV
style.

Taking up of neo-classicism as democratic, ideal is more than just of style, its way of
thinking about oneself in relation to the world.

14. Etienne-Louis Boullee, Cenotaph for Isaac Newton, 1784 – cenotaph is a
testament to someone (not a mausoleum). Newton’s theory of optics, the white light
we perceive can be broken up into a spectrum. If you use a prism, you can see
spectrum of light from ultraviolet to ultra red, and light to travel in straight line.

Other great theory is 3 laws of motion (about mechanics):
1) An object at rest will stay at rest unless a force moves it
2) An object at motion will stay in motion at same speed unless there is
resistance or an opposite force
3) For every force there is an equal and opposite force
This is Newton’s deep understanding of nature

Nature is model for reasonable man, way we are in world

3rd biggy was gravity. Gravity is a force acting on objects

All this rationality belief in science are combined in this design for cenotaph. Uses
sphere, cylinder, platonic forms his universal forms. Unlike Plato, not about
metaphysical realm, it’s about actual realm of nature.

Inside the building it is a perfect sphere reminds of pantheon, roman architectural
form of sphere.

Inside no light except holes made through ceiling in dome, let in sunlight like stars.
Because Newton’s theory of light and theory of principles of universe are all
combined here.

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Cenotaph was rational neoclassical enlightenment take on antiquity

15. Angelica Kauffman, Cornelia Presenting Her Children as Her Treasures, ca 1785
– Neoclassicism has an effect on painting too. This Swiss artist studied in Swiss and
moved to Italy then Britain where she was painting for new neoclassic rooms.

Her paintings very moral, sentimental. Like the Gainsborough painting of rosy cheek
woman, this one has a purity.

Subject is a republican Roman story. Cornelia is surrounded by her children, left is
daughter; the right are two sons Tiberius and Gius Gracus (they were two senators
that try to reform Roman republic). They are holding a book and scroll, they are
learned.

The young girl distracted by jewels. Cautionary tale. Woman seated is a friend,
suggests to Cornelia to look at her jewelry. Cornelia points to her sons as her
treasures. That is participation in social body is more important than one’s own
adornments or entertainment.

16. Fragonard, The Swing, 1766 - The philosophes are going to critique art of
aristocracy like The Swing as decadent, immoral, only caring of lust, fashion,
frivolity, not fitting with middle class. Not what middle class think is part of social
contract.

17. Richard Boyle and William Kent, Chiswick House, near London 1725 – this
neoclassicism will impact architecture – it uses the new Palladian style that came to
England by early 18th century. Go back to Venice and look at Andrea Palladio’s
church San Giorgio Maggiore

Very austere. Also uses pediment, paired down roman style, dome in behind.
Bilateral symmetry. Palladian style put forward new ideas of Enlightenment of

Science, balance, truth, freedom etc.


18. Andrea Palladio, San Giorgio Maggiore, Venice, 1610 – a roman façade to a
standard basilica. His style spread throughout Europe

19. Josiah Wedgewood, Vase, Staffordshire, England, 1786 – Mme de Pompadour’s
support of Severe’s ceramic studio, elaborate pot pourri vessels with cherubs.

Very different than Wedgewood. He was looking for a formula for porcelain and he
invents it. His design is fully neo-classical

Grecian urn with relief in white figures in horizontal pattern around urn. 18th
century take on Greek ceramics. It is still produced today.