Why did the enlightenment influence the founding fathers?

Answer 1

The era which brought into being the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution is often referred to as the "New Enlightenment" because it so realized and reflected the values and beliefs of the European Englightenement or Age of Reason as it is alternately called. There are two things that can be said without equivocation about the men who declared our land's independence from England, who breathed life into a new nation, who shaped and formed its constition. The first is that they were the heirs of this Age of Reason, they were rational men who created a rational system of government which allowed for the free and unfettered development of what they perceived to be a rational economic system. There are those who might argue to the contrary,who would have us believe that they were Christians who sought to establish a Christian state based on faith in The Bible. But the fact of the matter is that our Founding Fathers did not turn to the Bible but rather to the great works of Englightenment philosophy when the time came for them to write the constitution. They turned to Hobbes who in his Leviathan argued that man in the state of nature existed in a "war of all against all." This view of man as constantly in a state of struggle with his fellows is balanced by a view of him as an essentially rational creature, for this war of all against all is brought to an end by the rational judgment of the men who war against each other. They elect one from amongst them to stand above them and be their sovereign, whose task it is to ensure that the war of all against all is held within acceptable limits and constraints. Human beings thus, as a rational act, elect their ruler. This view of man as both rational and competitive is conjoined with Locke's view of man as a creature possessed of certain natural and inherent rights which it is the duty of government to ensure. In addition to the thought of Hobbes and Locke the Founding Father's were influenced as well by the writings of Adam Smith, who believed that there was an invisible hand guiding the economic development of society which was best left to function independently. At the core of his belief as well, was the view of man as an essentially rational creature who was able to identify and pursue his needs. We might add to the list other Enlightenemnt thinkers such as Rousseau and Diderot, but suffice it to say the ideas of these men are reflected in the thoughts of our founding fathers and in the doctuments which they wrote. The statement "We hold these truths to be self evident...." implies that man is able to grasp truths, and beyond this, that all men are equally rational and thus equally able to pursue live their lives, pursue their happinesses, and live freely. The heart that beats in the body of democracy is reason, for only beings who are inherently free and rational are able to live in a democracy...or rather, democracy is a system of governemtn which was created to correspond to human nature, which is inherently free and rationa. Freedom without rationality gives us terror, anarchy and fear. Reason without freedom leads, as our founding father's demonstrated, to rebellion and revolution. But democracy is the raimement of a free and rational people. This is the primary influence which the Enlightenment had on our founding fathers.

The second thing that can be said of the men who shaped our nation, is that they did so without and doubt as to their right to do so. They were by and large educated men, mostly lawyers, they were men who had led and governed this nation before it was a nation, they were the economic and political and educational elite of this country. As such they established a nation which best suited their political and economic and personal class interests. In this way too they reflected Enlightenement values in the sense that the Enlightenement was a turning away from the values and social and political structures of a feudal and aristocratic society. The thinkers of the Enlightenment were the spokesmen of a new and rising class, a class of educated and wealthy merchants and businessmen. It was this class as well, to which the majority of our founding fathers belonged and whose interests they upheld and spoke for (See James Beard's work on the economic foundations of the Constitution.

In conclusion, both philosophically and actually, the founding fathers were representative of the Enlightenment and the Age of Reason.

While it maybe said that our Founding Fathers "did not turn to the Bible," they were influenced by its contents. Refer to Thanksgiving Proclaimation.

Answer 2

People were being influenced all the time back then ,but they were inspired because they did not like the British Parliment and needed to revolt against them to get what they deserved, their freedom.

Answer 3

god

can this be a little shorter