What are some ideas of enlightenment?

In this lesson, we will identify the major themes associated with the Enlightenment. We will also explore the ... While the Enlightenment was a tremendously broad movement, there are several core themes that were characteristic of it. One was reason. ... But with the Age of Enlightenment, this idea began to lose its credibility. read more

Some of the major ideas that originated during the Age of Enlightenment, also known as the Age of Reason, were confidence in humanity's intellectual powers, a much lesser degree of trust in the older forms of traditional authority and the belief that rational and scientific thought will lead to an improved human existence. read more

Not all, but some of America's Founding Fathers were deists, most notably, Thomas Jefferson. Going along with reason is another Enlightenment theme, which is skepticism. By skepticism, we're talking about skepticism of religious dogma, the institutionalized church, government authority, and even skepticism of the nature of reality. read more