Similarities Between The Renaissance And The Enlightenment

Most people today will probably say the world is mostly free. But this will differ from where and who you ask. The U.S. laws and rights were inspired by Enlightenment ideas such as the John’s Locke, Voltaire, and Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Although the Enlightenment brought a new way of thinking, the age of Imperialism ripped away the freedom many people had. Throughout the decades, the world has become freer, but many countries are still fighting for their freedom against a government who are hungry for power.
Before the start of the Renaissance and the Enlightenment, Europe went through a time of depression called the Dark Ages. The Dark ages was a time where the desire to learn and discover was nonexisting. After the Dark Ages, the Renaissance

This form of government had a king as the head of the government but claimed that his power came from God. When scientist such as Galileo started to question the church, the people had its own doubts. This became known as the Enlightenment. By questioning the church, people started to also question their government's authority. This became an issue for the government and the church. During the Enlightenment, people were looking for freedom and to part ways from the church. Enlightenment philosophers John Locke and Rousseau were important influences that lead to the French Revolution and the “Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen”. John Locke believed that everyone was born equal and that people can improve. He also believed that the people gave the government that power. He said that if the government ever abused that power, the people had the right to overthrow it. Jean-Jacques Rousseau had a similar idea but it was called the social contract. A social contract is an agreement with someone (in this case the government), that you will do what you are supposed to do if they do their part. These ideas were first used to initiate the American Revolution and are still seen in our modern day government. After the success of the American Revolution, France was inspired to apply these enlightenment ideas for their own

The French had three estates or classes. At the top of the estate was the Church; they did not pay any taxes. The second estate had the king which also did not pay any taxes; but 95% of the population was in the third estate, which meant that they had to pay all the taxes. In 1789, the French Revolution began with the breaking the social contract and starting the National Assembly. The National Assembly was formed in a hot and sweaty gym and was called the “Tennis Court Oath”. The National Assembly “believed that the ignorance, neglect, or contempt of the rights of man are the sole cause” of the failure of a government, with this, the “Declaration of Rights of Man and Citizen” was born. This document was the first step to freedom for the French. For example, in the “Declaration of Rights of Man and Citizen”, it says, “Every citizen may, accordingly, speak, write, and print with freedom, but shall be responsible for such abuses of this freedom as shall be defined by law.” It also expressed that all men are born free and with equal rights. Although this document brought freedom to the people, it did not do a good job at protecting its people. This document was only a way for the people to express their rights but it was not a stable government, which meant that people were left unprotected and with no food. Chaos took over France and left its people starving. France experienced three government over the course of five years and ended