Nov
28
Skepticism throughout the Enlightenment
November 28, 2013 | | Comments Off on Skepticism throughout the Enlightenment
Skepticism was common in Enlightenment philosophy. Being skeptical meant that a person was able to able to think critically and methodically. Be able to think methodically lead to the creation of science. Not only scientific thinking was created, philosophical thinking was more rationalized by the renounced philosopher Rene Descartes. In his book Meditations on First Philosophy (1641), Descartes explores skepticism on a radical level that target ideas that were derived from learning and experiences of the Enlightenment. Doctrines from the Enlightenment, introduced a negative conation because of its concept of critical thinking and suspicions. Because of this, modern enlightenment thinkers display this kind of connation in their writings which attack the schemes of science, religion and mathematics.
Descartes: Meditation on First Philosophy
How Religion was portrayed in the Enlightenment
Religion was often as the devil in the Enlightenment. Various features of religion were often deemed bizarre to the enlightenment thinkers. Religion aspects such as superstitions, religious fantasies and supernaturalism were condemned in the era. In fact, there were several attempts to purify religion and make it a clear and natural form of Religion. Voltaire, a critic of the Enlightenment period has made several comments pertaining to Christianity and its role with churches in this time period. Voltaire personally attacks the Catholic Church in France, and blames the church’s actions. He makes his statements pertaining to the church itself, not the religion because the Christian beliefs are misinterpreted by different sects that it creates a series of bloody wars in modern Europe at that time. These wars also replace and take effect in the intellectual arenas of the Enlightenment.
If one was to discuss a true form of religion that took place during the Enlightenment. Religion during that time had four basic principles. Religion in turn, Deism, Religion of the heart, and Fideism and Atheism
Modified and rework: Karim Mian and Domingo Alvarez
http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/enlightenment/#SkeEnl
http://www.uri.edu/personal/szunjic/philos/dedicatory.htm
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