Unit 1 Intro to Ideologies - Lesson 3: Enlightenment Philosophers

Summary

This script explores the philosophies of key Enlightenment thinkers, including Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, and Marx, examining their views on human nature, individual roles in society, and the purpose of government. It contrasts Hobbes' belief in strong leadership for societal safety with Locke's advocacy for individual rights and Rousseau's call for a social contract. Marx's critique of capitalism and call for collective ownership is also highlighted, alongside contributions from Voltaire, Montesquieu, Adam Smith, and John Stuart Mill, emphasizing the importance of free speech, checks and balances in government, capitalism, and social reform.

Takeaways

• 🕵️ Thomas Hobbes believed that life without a strong ruler is 'nasty, brutish, and short', advocating for a social contract where people give up freedom for safety.
• 🤴 Hobbes saw rulers gaining power through the submission of weaker groups, emphasizing the necessity of a strong leader to maintain order and prevent chaos.
• 🏰 John Locke disagreed with Hobbes, proposing that people are rational and should have the right to make decisions affecting their lives, with minimal government intervention to protect individual rights.
• 🗳️ Locke advocated for the separation of powers and the idea that the government should exist to serve the people, with the right to rebel if it fails to protect them.
• 🌳 Jean-Jacques Rousseau emphasized the natural goodness of humans and the importance of a social contract that reflects the 'general will' of the community, leading to a form of direct democracy.
• 🔗 Rousseau's philosophy contrasted with Locke's by focusing on communal norms rather than individual rights, influencing the collective behavior of society.
• 🏭 Karl Marx critiqued liberal democracy and capitalism, arguing that they perpetuate inequality and exploitation of the working class by the bourgeoisie.
• 👥 Marx envisioned a society based on equality and sharing, initially requiring a dictatorship to organize and indoctrinate people into communal living.
• 🗣️ Voltaire championed freedom of speech, famously stating that he would defend the right of others to express their views, even if he disagreed.
• 🏛️ Montesquieu introduced the concept of separating government powers to prevent abuse of authority, establishing the foundation for the executive, legislative, and judicial branches.
• 💼 Adam Smith, known as the father of capitalism, argued for economic growth through free markets and minimal government interference, as outlined in 'The Wealth of Nations'.
• 👥 John Stuart Mill built on the ideas of Locke and Smith, advocating for personal freedom with some government intervention to address social issues like women's suffrage and worker protection.

Q & A

Who was Thomas Hobbes and what was his view on human nature?

Thomas Hobbes was a philosopher who believed that human life is 'nasty, brutish, and short' because people are naturally selfish and violent. He argued that individuals must give up their freedoms to a strong leader to ensure communal security.

How did Hobbes' ideas justify the rule of strong leaders?

Hobbes argued that weaker groups give up their freedom to stronger rulers for protection, as individual freedom could lead to danger and violence. Thus, a strong leader ensures safety by ruling as they see fit.

What did John Locke believe about human nature and governance?

John Locke believed that people are rational and reasonable, and should make important decisions themselves as long as they respect others' rights. He opposed the divine right of kings and argued that government should protect life, liberty, and property.

How did Locke's ideas influence the American Revolution?

Locke's ideas about government power resting with the people and the right to rebel if the government fails to protect their interests influenced the American colonists to overthrow the British monarchy, exemplified by events like the Boston Tea Party.

What was Jean-Jacques Rousseau's view on society and democracy?

Jean-Jacques Rousseau believed that humans are naturally good but are corrupted by society. He advocated for a social contract where people agree on communal norms and a form of direct democracy to enforce the general will.

How did Rousseau view individualism and its effects?

Rousseau viewed individualism as leading to jealousy and corruption. He believed that collective norms and a social contract would help maintain peaceful coexistence and communal harmony.

What were Karl Marx's criticisms of liberal democracy and the free market?

Karl Marx criticized liberal democracy and the free market for favoring rich, white men and widening the gap between the rich and the poor. He saw the bourgeois exploiting the proletariat and advocated for a society based on equality and sharing.

What did Marx propose as a solution to social inequality?

Marx proposed a dictatorship of the proletariat to organize society and indoctrinate people into sharing and equality. Eventually, he envisioned a classless society with little need for government as people would rule themselves.

What contributions did Voltaire and Montesquieu make to political thought?

Voltaire is known for his advocacy of freedom of speech, famously stating, 'I may not agree with what you say but I will fight to the death your right to say it.' Montesquieu introduced the idea of separating government powers into different branches to prevent abuse of power.

Who was Adam Smith and what was his main economic idea?

Adam Smith, known as the father of capitalism, wrote 'The Wealth of Nations,' advocating for minimal government interference in the economy. He believed that free markets would naturally regulate themselves and lead to economic growth.

What were John Stuart Mill's views on individual freedom and government intervention?

John Stuart Mill supported individual freedom as long as it didn't harm others. He also recognized the need for some government intervention, advocating for women's suffrage and worker protections against capitalist abuses.

Outlines

00:00

🏰 Philosophical Foundations of Governance

This paragraph introduces the political philosophies of Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, and Jean-Jacques Rousseau, set against the backdrop of the formation of nation-states in Europe. Hobbes is depicted as viewing human nature as inherently violent and selfish, advocating for a strong ruler to maintain order and prevent chaos. Locke, in contrast, believed in the rationality of people and the importance of individual rights, suggesting that governments should protect life, liberty, and property, with the people retaining the right to rebel if these are not upheld. Rousseau's ideas centered around a social contract and direct democracy, emphasizing communal norms over individual rights. The paragraph also touches on the influence of these philosophers on historical events such as the American Revolution and the Enlightenment movement.

05:00

🌐 The Evolution of Political Thought

The second paragraph delves into the critiques and extensions of the aforementioned philosophers' ideas, introducing new thinkers like Voltaire, Montesquieu, Adam Smith, and John Stuart Mill. It highlights Voltaire's famous stance on freedom of speech, Montesquieu's concept of separating government powers, and Adam Smith's foundational capitalist ideas as presented in 'The Wealth of Nations.' The paragraph also discusses Mill's advocacy for greater personal freedoms, including women's suffrage and worker protections, reflecting a nuanced approach to liberalism that incorporates elements of government intervention to ensure social equity.

Keywords

💡Philosophers

Philosophers are individuals who engage in the study, development, and communication of ideas concerning general truths, existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. In the context of the video, philosophers like Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, and Marx are discussed to understand their perspectives on human nature, society, and governance, which are central to the video's theme of exploring political philosophy.

💡Thomas Hobbes

Thomas Hobbes was an English philosopher who is known for his work on political philosophy. He theorized that life in a state of nature would be 'nasty, brutish, and short' due to human selfishness and violence. The video script uses Hobbes to illustrate the idea that people may willingly give up some freedoms for protection, leading to the establishment of a strong ruler or government.

💡Social Contract

The social contract is a term used in political philosophy that refers to the implicit or explicit agreements that individuals make with each other to form a society or a state. In the video, Rousseau's concept of a social contract is highlighted, where people collectively agree on norms and behaviors for peaceful coexistence, contrasting with Hobbes' view on the necessity of a strong ruler.

💡John Locke

John Locke was an English philosopher whose ideas on natural rights and the role of government were influential in the development of liberalism. The script mentions Locke's belief in the importance of individual rights, such as life, liberty, and property, and the people's right to rebel against a government that fails to protect these rights, as exemplified by the American Revolution.

💡Rousseau

Jean-Jacques Rousseau was a Genevan philosopher whose political philosophy emphasized the general will and the idea that humans are born free but live in chains due to societal constraints. The video discusses Rousseau's view on democracy and the collective norms, which are seen as a form of direct democracy that enforces communal living standards.

💡Collectivism

Collectivism is the philosophical and political position that prioritizes the goals, desires, and well-being of the group over the individual. The video contrasts collectivist ideas, such as those of Rousseau, with individualist philosophies, illustrating the debate over whether society should be organized around communal norms or individual rights.

💡Carl Marx

Karl Marx was a German philosopher, economist, and revolutionary socialist whose ideas formed the basis of communist theory. The script describes Marx's critique of liberal democracy and capitalism, arguing that they perpetuate class divisions and exploitation of the proletariat by the bourgeoisie. Marx envisioned a society where communal ownership and sharing of resources would eliminate class distinctions.

💡Proletariat

The proletariat refers to the working class in a capitalist society who must sell their labor to survive and do not own the means of production. In the video, Marx's reference to the proletariat highlights the exploited class in capitalist systems, who he believed should rise against the bourgeoisie to establish a classless society.

💡Bourgeoisie

The bourgeoisie is the social class that owns the means of production and employs the proletariat in a capitalist society. The video script uses the term to describe the wealthy class that Marx argued exploits workers and benefits disproportionately from the economic system.

💡Voltaire

Voltaire was a French Enlightenment writer, historian, and philosopher famous for his wit, his criticism of Christianity, especially the Roman Catholic Church, and his advocacy of freedom of speech and separation of church and state. The video mentions Voltaire's famous quote on freedom of speech, emphasizing the importance of protecting even disagreeable opinions in a free society.

💡Montesquieu

Montesquieu was a French judge, man of letters, and political philosopher who is best known for his theory of the separation of powers within government. The script credits Montesquieu with the idea of dividing government into executive, legislative, and judicial branches to prevent the concentration of power and protect the rule of law.

💡Adam Smith

Adam Smith was a Scottish economist and philosopher, known as the father of modern capitalism. His book 'The Wealth of Nations' is highlighted in the video as a foundational text for capitalist economic theory, advocating for free markets with minimal government intervention to promote economic growth.

💡John Stuart Mill

John Stuart Mill was a British philosopher, political economist, and civil servant. The video script notes Mill's support for liberal ideas of individual freedom, as long as actions do not harm others, and his advocacy for government intervention in areas such as women's suffrage and worker protection, reflecting a balance between individual liberty and social responsibility.

Highlights

Thomas Hobbes' view on human nature as inherently selfish and violent, leading to the necessity of a strong ruler for societal order.

Hobbes' belief that people must surrender freedoms for protection, contrasting with the idea of individual liberty.

John Locke's disagreement with Hobbes, advocating for the rationality of people and the importance of individual rights.

Locke's concept of government existing to protect life, liberty, and property, with the people's right to rebel if these are not upheld.

The influence of Locke's ideas on the American Revolution and the Boston Tea Party.

Jean-Jacques Rousseau's perspective on natural human freedom and the repression caused by societal norms.

Rousseau's advocacy for a social contract and direct democracy to create communal norms for peaceful living.

Rousseau's admiration for Aboriginal societies and the concept of 'Noble Savages'.

Carl Marx's critique of liberal democracy and capitalism, highlighting the exploitation of the working class.

Marx's vision of a society based on equality and sharing, with an initial period of dictatorship to establish communal values.

The potential pitfalls of Marx's communist ideology, including the permanence and ruthlessness of the dictatorship.

Voltaire's famous quote on freedom of speech and his stance on the importance of dissenting voices.

Montesquieu's contribution to the separation of powers within government to prevent abuse of power.

Adam Smith's foundational work on capitalism and the benefits of free markets for economic growth.

John Stuart Mill's extension of liberal ideas, advocating for government intervention in areas such as women's suffrage and worker protection.

Mill's synthesis of individual freedom with the need for societal progress and protection of the vulnerable.

Transcripts

ah philosophers those men who had time

to sit around and think about things all

right let's start with Thomas Hobs Hobbs

lived during a time of amazing upheaval

as all the minor kingdoms throughout

Europe were Waging War against each

other a bid to create the nation states

we know today when he observed the

various rulers of these kingdoms he saw

that the way they got to rule was

because weaker groups were willing to

give up their freedom in order to be

protected by a stronger ruler to prevent

further violence in hobb's mind the life

of a man is nasty brutish and short

because people are selfish and violent

if you let men be free everyone is in

danger in other words the interests of a

single indiv individual can risk the

security of the majority therefore

people must give up their freedoms to a

leader who will get to rule as he sees

fit in order to keep them safe hob saw

that words on their own are weak and you

must be willing to use violence we can

see an example of this in the League of

Nations who failed to prevent the

expansion of Japan into China and Italy

into abisinia which is now known as

Ethiopia because they refused to use for

many dictators would use the arguments

of Hobbs to support the lack of freedom

in their country because without control

there would be

Anarchy half a century later and there's

more stability in Europe with the

establishment of nation states not to

say these nation states didn't pick

fights with each other all the time Lo

disagreed with Hobbs and said overall

people are rational and reasonable he

felt people should rely on themselves to

make important decisions as long as your

decisions don't take away the rights of

someone else during locks like lifetime

most decisions were being made by the

Monarch Lo disagreed with the idea of

the divine right of kings which monarchs

were using to justify why they had the

job Lo argued that real power rests with

the people of a nation state and the

government should exist to protect life

liberty and property people will have to

give up some freedoms in order to have

this protection but overall individual

rights are the focus instead of communal

security and if the government fails to

protect their people or their interests

then the people have the right to Rebel

the colonists in the Americas took this

literally and overthrew the British

Monarchy over dispute regarding the

taxation of tea okay it was more than

that but the Boston Tea Party and the

subsequent Revolution was based on the

ideas of

L ah Russo now here's an interesting

character now while Russo didn't

necessarily promote the ideas of

democracy the way lock did with the

focus on individual rights Russo did

want a type of democracy this

philosopher looked at the laws of nature

and felt that we as humans were

repressing our natural character in the

name of good behavior he's famous for

saying man is Born Free but everywhere

is in Chains okay that doesn't mean

Russo felt everyone should be able to do

whatever they want in fact he felt

individualism leads to jealousy and

Corruption as people become more selfish

so he recommended that people should

come together and create a social

contract an agreement of how to behave

and live peacefully together these rules

would be created by the group that means

it's a form of direct democracy but then

the enforcement of the general will of

the people would be imposed on everyone

this is not the same idea as lock had of

a society setup to protect the rights of

the individual instead it's enforcing

communal Norms Russo really respected

the Aboriginal Societies in North

America that were based on these ideas

of collective norms and called the

native peoples Noble Savages which at

the time was actually a

compliment Hobbs lock and rouso are seen

as the essential enlightenment

philosophers but there are those that

disagreed with them the most famous

would be Carl Marx Mark saw what was

happening to the societies that followed

those liberal ideas of democracy and the

free market he saw that democracy really

just means political power for rich

white men and the free market only

increases the gap between the rich and

the poor because the rich Factory owners

he called them the Bourgeois took

advantage of the workers referred to by

Marx as the proletarian Marx felt people

needed to work together to benefit the

group but he knew humans would naturally

be selfish so they're going to have to

be taught okay indoctrinated to learn

how to share at first there would need

to be a dictatorship to get everything

organized get everyone on the same page

but after a while everyone would agree

that creating a society based on

equality and sharing is better so

there'd be very little need for

government because the people would rule

themselves now we're going to look at

these communist ideas in more detail

later and you're going to find that

while on paper there's some good ideas

there that temporary dictatorship

becomes pretty permanent and pretty

ruthless so now to review think about

what each philosopher said about the

nature of human beings what they think

should be the role of an individual in

society what they think the role of

government should be in a society and by

their ideas can you tell if they're more

indiv idual or more

collectivist did you think we were done

not yet I just wanted to introduce you

to a few other philosophers who've

influenced our society voler his most

famous quote regarding freedom of speech

is I may not agree with what you say but

I will fight to the death you're right

to say it monu he is the one that we say

gave us the idea of breaking government

into different pieces so that the rulers

of a Nation can't abuse their power it

protects r rule of law so thank him for

needing to know the purpose of the

executive legislative and judicial

branches of

government Adam Smith he's known as the

father of capitalism no not some crazy

name for his kid instead his book The

Wealth of Nations is considered

everything you need to know to be a

successful capitalist essentially his

idea is that if people are free to buy

and sell Goods without the government

getting in the way the economy will grow

we're going to look at his ideas in more

detail in a future life Lon John Stewart

Mill Mill loved the ideas of Lock and

Smith the ideas that people should be

free to do as they wish as long as

they're not hurting anyone else but he

also saw that we needed some government

intervention for one he wanted women to

have the right to vote and he felt

workers should have some protection

against the worst abuses of

capitalism okay now I'm

done