What Was the Enlightenment's Most Important Contribution to the Age of Atlantic Revolution?

What was the Enlightenment's most important contribution to the age of Atlantic Revolution?

* The establishment of reason, logic, and rationality in society was the Enlightenment's most important contribution to both the age of Atlantic Revolution and to the future of society as a whole.

o This is not to say that people of reason and logic did not previously exist; however, due to religious superstition, controlling governments, socioeconomic rank, poverty, and prejudice, society was not conducive to the development of new ideas, especially those that promoted change.

o Many philosophers believed that reason alone could reveal archetypical truths about the world and life.

 This led to the explosion of using science (thus logic and reason) to try to explain natural phenomena.

* This implies that people went against the belief that the supernatural and godly works are solely responsible for every aspect of life (and outcomes of decisions)

o Thus came the idea that we, as humans, can control our own destiny with our own decisions, and that we might not have a set, predestined life.

o Atheism becomes an important aspect to the Enlightenment

 God's role becomes reduced in the minds of many people - from the ultimate controller of absolutely everything to an idle watcher of events and determiner of afterlife

o Reason and logic also led to a literary explosion

 Filled with novel ideas coming to life via dissertations, books, journals, pamphlets, booklets, and more.

o With the literary explosion, this leads to the interest and expansion of education (importance of becoming literate)

 Without educated and literate people, the Enlightenment would not have been possible. The Enlightenment needed people to write their ideas, and also needed people with the ability to comprehend those ideas, read for themselves, and make up their minds about their own personal beliefs. Thus, the Enlightenment was based on individuals all making a commitment to educating themselves in order to reach a state where they could use reason, logic, and rationality in their own lives.

o Reason and logic was not just a factor for men anymore. During the Enlightenment, a large number of women writers and thinkers emerged, and this set the stage for women becoming more educated, literate, and thus, rational human beings.

o Finally comes freedom of speech's role in the development of reason

 Society now turned into a place very conducive of free thought

* Households engaged in friendly discussions and debates

* It