The Enlightenment has made an everlasting impact on society. The Enlightenment, also known as the Age of Reason, is a movement that took place during the late 1700s to the 1800s. It was a continuation of the scientific revolution and was all about reason and individualism. The Enlightenment led to the shaping of society in aspects of governmental structures, moral codes, and economics. If it had not been for the Enlightenment, society would not be the way it is today. To begin with, the Enlightenment has highly influenced governmental structures. An example of this would be the U.S. three branch system. This system was the idea of Charles-Louis de Secondat, baron de la Brede et Montesquieu. He was an important advocator during the Enlightenment who theorized separation of power to create checks and balances. With this intention in mind, he wanted to encourage order and equality. And so the three branch system today promotes both order and equality, as it was intended to do so. Overall, the …show more content…
Take, for example, the Bill of Rights and Declaration of Independence. Enlightenment principles can be found in both of these important documents. This is due to the fact that contributors of these documents, such as Thomas Jefferson and James Madison, were influenced by writers of the Enlightenment. For instance, in the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson got his ideas from George III to demand the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. When it came to the Bill of Rights, James Madison took a page from the Enlightenment playbook when promoting personal liberties such as the right to freedom of speech, assembly, and religion. These different principles help promote and maintain a well-stabilized society. These are some of the most important governmental documents that were influenced by the Enlightenment, which in turn has made a crucial impact in the shaping of