Contents introduction Chapter I. The Age of Enlightenment

2.2. The Process of Human Enlightening
This course explores the roots of philosophy from the Greeks to modern Western philosophers and highlights the major contributions of humanity to the enlightenment process. The word "enlightenment" in this article refers not only to the Western Enlightenment movement of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, but also to "Princeton Education." This article will then be a brief note on man’s efforts to expand and strengthen his understanding of himself and the universe. Enlightenment, according to Kant, is the emergence of man from the state of maturity imposed on him by himself. Maturity is the inability to use one’s own understanding without the guidance of others. This maturity arises spontaneously, if not because of misunderstanding, but because of a lack of determination and courage to use it without outside guidance. Minesweeper Od! [Dare to know] "Have the courage to use your understanding!" is the motto of enlightenment. With this definition of enlightenment, one can find philosophers who have tried to put their ideas into practice, rather than traveling through history and accepting established truths as simple. In this way, we can trace the development of human enlightenment in history. The evolution of human knowledge is long and spread all over the world. The term “philosophy”, which is associated with many other basic concepts such as art, reality, normalcy, etc., does not include a single definition. Until recently, theology and philosophy were not considered two different sciences. Even when we include names like Aristotle, Newton, and Michelangelo in the history of philosophy, philosophy seems to be the mother of all knowledge (Martin Oliver), not just one branch of knowledge. The concept, while seemingly vague, is not far from reality. The history of philosophy is essentially a history of ideas. Thus, philosophy is a source of inspiration for man to study the essence of physical and metaphysical objects, so that no field of knowledge goes beyond it. This article focuses on Western philosophy. From the Greeks onwards, it encompasses the remarkable works of Western philosophers. In addition to considering major philosophical moments such as the Renaissance, the Reformation, the Enlightenment, the Anti-Enlightenment, Romanticism, and others, he emphasizes the influence of philosophical concepts on various religious and social moments in the West. It also gives an idea of ​​the great contribution of philosophers to every movement and period.¹
In the 17th century, the growing conflict between religion and science gave philosophy the task of removing man's destiny from the hands of religion and leaving it to the will of man. An important contribution of Galileo (Italy 1564-1642) helped to dispel the influence of religious beliefs, logic, and Aristotle physics on scientific teachings. Galileo developed the Copernican theory that the Sun revolves around the Earth, not static. Thanks to the work of Newton (1642-1727), the path of scientific research rose to a new level. His lectures on physics and mathematics are the spirit of enlightenment. Writers and artists, as well as philosophers and scientists, spread the word of enlightenment. The role of French intellectuals in this regard is characteristic. The tradition of Greek storytelling (Homer) returned with Shakespeare’s plays and Voltaire’s philosophical tales. Descartes (1596-1650) is the father of modern philosophy. He repeated the difference between Plato and Aristotle between perception and reason. For Descartes, experience is questionable (his famous story is questionable demons), so innate ideas must be in the mind before the experience. The beginning of his philosophical work is based on a logical affirmation to prove accuracy: "I think, so I am." Aristotle, Plato, and even Descartes' theory of substance was challenged by Spinoza (Holland 1632-77), who suggested that there was only one substance in the world - God. In addition to this theological philosophy, Spinoza emphasized that self-preservation is the main motive of every action and therefore of human morality. Moreover, human self-preservation is never completely dependent on the state, and the control / power of the state must be limited. The Enlightenment faced the dilemma of free will and reconciliation of the existence of a supreme deity. G.W. Leibniz (1646 - 1716), who argued that the world should have enough reason to be so, tried to solve this riddle.
As you can see, conservation has been a major source of criticism for the Enlightenment, especially in the religious and cultural spheres. However, Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778) was the first to question the age of the mind without religious teachings. It is clear from his famous quote, "Man is free and born everywhere in xviii chains," that Rousseau was originally a critic of civic and scientific progress. The idea that human salvation is in the state of nature is common among modern philosophers. William Godwin (1756-1836) went even further, emphasizing that the state was in any case evil and that society should be based on love and truth, not on laws and regulations. In the late 18th and 19th centuries, philosophers and poets revolted against the glorification of the mind as a fundamental element of human existence. There was a great deal of diversity among the legends of this period, with the exception of the general point of the question of enlightenment. The moment, in a broader sense, is called romance. The Romantics found human nature in perfect harmony with natural conditions and focused on emotions as a potential basis for human existence. While promoting aesthetics, the Romantics argued that the element of being could not be expressed through a rational and systematic approach. Nietzsche's (1844-90) philosophical skepticism about the truth also called into question the foundations of enlightenment.¹