During the Enlightenment there were many new philosophical ideas formed and advancements made. ... Voltaire is considered to be one of the most famous Enlightenment philosophers. ... Claude Adrien Helvetius was another French philosopher who developed theories during the Enlightenment. ... Jeremy Bentham, a British philosopher, masterfully combines Helvetius's blank slate theory with the blatant optimism of the Enlightenment creating a movement called Utilitarianism. ... Adam Smith became the father of modern economics during the Enlightenment. ...

• Word Count: 1343
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

Thomas Hobbes, a Philosopher Thomas Hobbes, one of the philosophers from the enlightenment period. ... Hobbes is one of the most influential philosophers of his time and in today's society. ... Thomas Hobbes is one of the most influential philosophers of his time and in today's society. ...

• Word Count: 1532
• Approx Pages: 6

From the times of ancient Greece, an era of thought and enlightenment emerged some of the greatest thinkers of all time, such as Socrates and Plato. ... Both philosophers put forth well-structured arguments with examples that seem to prove their case. ... Plato's vivid dialogues portray Socrates explaining that the "just man" is wise, that "he" is a philosopher, much like Plato and himself. ... I think that Plato's views may be a little biased in the context that the "just ruler" should be what he is, a philosopher. ... Plato will always remain one of the all time great philosoph...

• Word Count: 1528
• Approx Pages: 6
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

Rousseau was a contributor to the Encyclopedia and a major philosopher of the French Enlightenment. ... In fact, several great philosophers and authors rose to say that Hobbes and  Rousseau are not the philosophers that they pretended to be. ... Chapman, an American philosopher states in his study that Rousseau was a totalitarian (Rousseau, Totalitarian or Liberal Columbia University Press, 1956). ... Isaiah Berlin, a political philosopher, said that the enemies of liberty were some philosophers (among them Rousseau) because they defended an authoritarian conception of freedom. ...

• Word Count: 2015
• Approx Pages: 8

The term "state of nature" is used to describe and understand what the natural attributes and characteristics of human beings would have been like in the absence of civilization and enlightenment and how they would have interacted with one another in this state. This view of humans in their natural state is split between philosophers such as Hobbes and Spinoza who have a relatively pessimistic on the view of human nature, agreeing on themes such as the hazardous nature of man within the state of nature the need for a central sovereign figure but differ on their reasoning on how they come to ...

• Word Count: 2006
• Approx Pages: 8
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Graduate

Locke and Rousseau were two great philosophers of the Enlightenment. While both writers agreed that before civilized society man existed in a state of nature, that is, humans lacked society or structure, they disagreed on what constituted freedom. Differences in their opinion on freedom stems from t...

• Word Count: 2158
• Approx Pages: 9
• Grade Level: Undergraduate