Research on the Lasting “Legacies” of Enlightenment: A Double-edged Sword to Modern Society
Abstract
It is already common sense that the Enlightenment has brought huge improvement to human society both ideologically and physically and numerous scholars have discussed it before. However, the main aim of this article is to discover the real contributions of the Enlightenment and explore its limitations to our modern life. Think about what can be learned from the Enlightenment and what needs to be avoided in future political movements. The article will discuss the ‘lasting legacies’ of Enlightenment in three aspects: Arts, Economics, and Women's Rights and then focus on the negative sides of Enlightenment at the end. This essay may not cover all the political philosophers during the Enlightenment, so there are some limitations to the conclusions. Moreover, since political movements have developed differently in different eras, some of these conclusions may not apply to today’s society, but it can provide some references for scholars to study.
References
- Han, Xiaorui. Comparison of French Neoclassical and Romantic art. Comparison of French Neoclassical and Romantic Art (accessed August 22, 2023).
- Hou, Qibei. “A Brief analysis of the French Art schools after the Enlightenment " https://www.docin.com/p-2884064349.html.
- Wang, Rui. “French Modern and Contemporary Art (II): From Romanticism to Realism. Chinese Art 05 (2015): 142-48.” Accesseddoi:P142-149 0256-212X.
- Baetjer, Katharine. “Jean-Baptiste Greuze (1725–1805).” Jean-Baptiste Greuze (1725–1805). http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/grze/hd_grze.htm (accessed August 22, 2023).
- Han, Xiaorui. A Study of Imagination and Reality -- An appreciation of Delacroix's Liberty Leading the People https://wenku.baidu.com/view/b48f9391a36925c52cc58bd63186bceb18e8ed4c.html?fr=income7-docsearch&_wkts_=1692641639578 (accessed August 22, 2023).
- Voltaire, “Philosophical Dictionary”, translated by Jianguo Xu, 94-117. Beijing Publishing House, 2008.
- De Montesquieu, Charles, and Thomas Nugent. The Spirit of the Laws. 2023. Reprint, Lavergne, Tn? Digireads, 2010.
- Hite, Mathew. “The Enlightenment.” British Library. Accessed August 21, 2023. https://www.bl.uk/restoration-18th-century-literature/articles/the-enlightenment.
- Robertson, John. “The Enlightenment: A Very Short Introduction.” Amazon, 2015. https://www.amazon.com/Enlightenment-Very-Short-Introduction-Introductions/dp/0199591784.
- Study Corgi. "Adam Smith and The Age of Enlightenment." November 8, 2021. https://studycorgi.com/adam-smith-and-the-age-of-enlightenment/.
- King, Gene A, and JR. “The Development of Free Trade in Europe.” Hillsdale College, June 11, 2019. https://www.hillsdale.edu/educational-outreach/free-market-forum/2008-archive/the-development-of-free-trade-in-europe/.
- Mokyr, Joel. “Mercantilism, the Enlightenment, and the Industrial Revolution.” Northwestern University, 2003. https://faculty.wcas.northwestern.edu/jmokyr/stockholm.PDF.
- Smith, Adam. The Wealth of Nations. Lexington, KY: Seven Treasures Publications, 2009.
- Horwitz, Steven. “Adam Smith on the Labor Theory of Value.” Adam Smith Works, September 19, 2019. https://www.adamsmithworks.org/documents/steven-horwitz-adam-smith-on-the-labor-theory-of-value.
- McLean, John. “History of Western Civilization II.” The Enlightenment | History of Western Civilization II. Accessed August 21, 2023. https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-hccc-worldhistory2/chapter/the-enlightenment/#:~:text=The%20Enlightenment%20brought%20political%20modernization,age%20of%20intolerant%20religious%20war.
- Stiglitz, Joseph E. The Price of Inequality. New York: W.W. Norton, 2012.
- Katherine B. Clinton. “Femme et Philosophe: Enlightenment Origins of Feminism.” Eighteenth-Century Studies 8, no. 3 (1975): 283–99. https://doi.org/10.2307/2737750.
- British Library Learning. “British Library.” Bl.uk, February 6, 2018. https://www.bl.uk/votes-for-women/articles/the-campaign-for-womens-suffrage-an-introduction.
- Berg, Maxine Dr. “Women’s Work and the Industrial Revolution.” ReFresh, no.12 (1991): 1-4
- Rousseau, Jean-Jacques. Emile: Or, Treatise on Education. United States: Appleton, 1905.
- Bennett, Jonathan. “A Vindication of the Rights of Woman with Strictures on Political And ...” earlymoderntexts, April 2010. https://www.earlymoderntexts.com/assets/pdfs/wollstonecraft1792.pdf.
- David Hume, Essays, Moral, Political, and Literary, Part II, Essay II (1742).
- The Age of Enlightenment | History of Western Civilization II. “The Age of Enlightenment | History of Western Civilization II,” n.d. https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-hccc-worldhistory2/chapter/the-age-of-enlightenment/.
- IAI TV - Changing how the world thinks. “Blinded by the Enlightenment | Spencer Critchley,” November 27, 2020. https://iai.tv/articles/blinded-by-the-enlightenment-auid-1705.
- Bunk. “He Wants to Save Classics From Whiteness. Can the Field Survive?,” February 2, 2021. https://www.bunkhistory.org/resources/he-wants-to-save-classics-from-whiteness-can-the-field-survive.
- Admin, and Leila Faghfouri Azar. “Hannah Arendt: The Right to Have Rights.” Critical Legal Thinking, July 12, 2019. https://criticallegalthinking.com/2019/07/12/hannah-arendt-right-to-have-rights/.
- “Why the Enlightenment Was Not the Age of Reason | Aeon Ideas,” November 16, 2018. https://aeon.co/ideas/why-the-enlightenment-was-not-the-age-of-reason.
- The Impact of Enlightenment in Europe [ushistory.org]. “The Impact of Enlightenment in Europe [Ushistory.Org],” n.d. https://www.ushistory.org/us/7a.asp.
- Arendt Center, The Hannah. “Rethinking Liberalism and the Enlightenment.” Rethinking Liberalism and the Enlightenment, n.d. https://hac.bard.edu/amor-mundi/rethinking-liberalism-and-the-enlightenment-2021-02-25.
- The Failure of the Enlightenment | Ethics Defined. “The Failure of the Enlightenment | Ethics Defined,” January 4, 2017. https://ethicsdefined.org/opinion/the-failure-of-the-enlightenment/.