1. The Limits of Reason (ca. 1700–1800)
Chapter 25
The Limits of Reason
(ca. 1700–1800)

2. The Industrial Revolution
The invention of new mechanical devices worked to transform Europe’s agrarian and handicraft-dominated economy into one dominated by the technology of mass production
The steam engine, the technology of cast iron, and the factory system had major effects on social and economic life, the most immediate of which involved the exploitation of labor
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3. The Transatlantic Slave Trade
The failure of the Enlightenment promise of social justice and reform was nowhere better illustrated than in the inhumane activities of the transatlantic slave trade.
Olaudah Equiano’s autobiography protested the trade in African slaves that persisted throughout the eighteenth century
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4. Satire: Weapon of the Enlightenment
In England, keenest critic of Enlightenment idealism was Jonathan Swift
Classic satires Gulliver’s Travels and A Modest Proposal attack moral pettiness and inhumanity of humankind
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5. Satire: Weapon of the Enlightenment (continued)
European masters of satire found East Asian counterpart in Li Ruzhen
Outspoken and witty critic of outmoded Chinese traditions
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6. Satire: Weapon of the Enlightenment (continued)
In France, acerbic writings of Voltaire described human folly as a universal condition
Candide remains the classic statement of comic skepticism in Western literature
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7. Rousseau’s Revolt against Reason
Questioning the value of reason for the advancement of the human condition, Jean-Jacques Rousseau argued society itself corrupted humankind
Rejected artificiality of culture in which he lived; championed “man in his primitive state”
Treatises on social history, government, and education explored ways in which individuals might retain natural goodness, remain free and self-determining
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8. Kant’s Mind/World Revolution
In Germany, the philosopher Immanuel Kant examined the limits of the mind in the process of knowing
Argued that human beings have knowledge of the world through certain innate capabilities of mind
Kant appealed to “good will” as basis for moral action
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9. The Revolutions of the Late Eighteenth Century
While Enlightenment ideals fueled armed revolt in both America and France, revolutions themselves blazed with antirational sentiment
French intellectuals followed the events of the American Revolution closely; French government secretly aided American cause and eventually joined in the war against Britain
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10. The Revolutions of the Late Eighteenth Century (continued)
In France, on July 14, 1789, crowds stormed the Bastille and destroyed the visible symbol of the old French regime. Less than one month later, the National Assembly was formed. Following a Reign of Terror, in 1794, the French established a governing legislative system and executive directory.
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11. The Revolutions of the Late Eighteenth Century (continued)
Those who fired the cannons of revolt found reason inadequate to the task of effecting social and political reform. Operating according to the dictates of their passions and their will, they gave dramatic evidence of the limits of reason to create a heaven on earth.
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