Enlightenment and the British Society

Enlightenment and the British Society

Although the intellectual movement called "The Enlightenment" is usually associated with the 18th century, its roots in fact go back much further. But before we explore those roots, we need to define the term. This is one of those rare historical movements which in fact named itself. Certain thinkers and writers, primarily in London and Paris, believed that they were more enlightened than their compatriots and set out to enlighten them.

In the 14th and 15th century there emerged in Italy and France a group of thinkers known as the "humanists." The term did ...