The Enlightenment was a major turning point in European society because it changed the whole outcome of all of Europe. In the beginning, before the Enlightenment, nobody thought for themselves, and it was the monarchy and/or the Catholic Church's job to tell people what to think and do. The Enlightenment resulted in people beginning to think for themselves and start to form their own opinions and beliefs that go against the Church and the monarchy.
The Enlightenment thinkers used science and philosophical theories to express what they believed in and used the new thoughts to help them solve their problems. Many philosophers believed that the government had too much power over the people and they began to work to change that. For example, John Locke believed that people should have natural rights such as life, liberty, and property and that the government should not take away these rights and instead should protect them. If the government did not protect these rights the people could overthrow the government. This idea changed everything because in the end it influenced the English to use this idea in their Declaration of Independence to break away from Britain. Montesquieu was another philosopher who helped make the Enlightenment a turning point. He helped by
…show more content…
Due to the Enlightenment, the English were inspired to break away from Britain. This resulted in the American colonies in creating a limited democracy where the people have a say in what the government does instead of the government being despotic. Another outcome that changed because of the Enlightenment was now the Church didn’t have as much control over the government or the people because the people believed they had the right to express their beliefs freely. After the Enlightenment, people were no longer afraid to speak up for they believed in and for their