Unit Nine – Europe and the Americas in the 17th and 18th Centuries: Enlightenment and Changing Political Ideas
The 17th and 18th Centuries were a time of changing ideas in a number of areas. Few fields of European thought changed more in this period than their views on politics. These changed attitudes continue to shape and challenge the world today.
Essential Question (This is the essential question we’ll answer in the unit. You should be able to write a good essay on the concept by the end of the unit):
How did the Enlightenment and the revolutions associated with this period change the way people viewed their relationships to their governments and society? What changes do you note in the literature and its content?
Key Concepts (Can you answer these questions in short answer or multiple choice formats?):
What were the characteristics of Europe’s absolute monarchs of the 17th and 18th
centuries?
What significant political changes came out of the English Civil War and Glorious
Revolution?
What ideas did the philosophes of the Enlightenment make popular in the Western World?
How was the American Revolution tied to the Enlightenment?
How did Enlightenment ideas influence the French Revolution?
What characteristics of the French Revolution made it more radical and violent than
the American Revolution?
Why are satire and paradox such an important part of the literature of the period?
Key Terms (Can you identify these in a matching or multiple choice question?):
Divine Right English Bill of Rights (1688) Declaration of the Rights of Man (1789)
Constitution Social Contract Sans-culottes
Levellers Laissez faire Estates General
Enlightened Despots Paradox Satire
Baroque Neo-Classicism
Key People
Louis XIV Thomas Hobbes Rousseau Napoleon Bonaparte
Elizabeth I John Locke Adam Smith Moliere
The Hapsburgs Voltaire Maximilien Robespierre Jonathan Swift
Peter the Great Oliver Cromwell George Washington
Pascal Georg Hegel Cervantes
Unit Assignments
Required Assignments:
_____ 9A Read the excerpt from Bossuet on Absolutism (handout) and read 828-845 background, excerpt,
and follow-up to Don Quixote
_____ 9B. Tartuffe As we read the play, take note of the characters and how they represent the voice of
reason – or otherwise. At the end of each Act, you will write a brief summary of the Act in which
you will:
1. Summarize the action of the play, carefully noting and analyzing the characters that appear
2. Note page numbers that contain significant passages to which you will return later for your
essay
3 points per act
These summary notes represent the pre-write that you will be doing for a short paper on this play. After we have read the last Act, read back through your notes and see if you notice any particular patterns you would like to talk about. You are welcome to choose your own topic, but I need to know the topic before you write your paper. You can also choose from one we have listed below.
You will be writing a 500 word essay (2 typed pages) based on the play. (25 Points)
You may choose from the following topics:
The Voice of Reason in Moliere’s Tartuffe
Hypocrisy and Moliere’s Tartuffe
Reason and Moderation in Moliere’s Tartuffe
Moliere’s View on Religion as Evidenced in Tartuffe
Rubric
Title
Thesis Statement and introduction
Paragraphs of at least 5 sentences each
Topic sentences in your paragraph
Specific support to back up what you say
MLA in-text documentation
Conclusion
Here is an example of what we mean by support:
Cleante represents the voice of reason when he argues with Orgon and claims that "piety has its hypocrites" (I.v.327). He believes that Tartuffe is such a hypocrite.
In the above example, I have made a claim, used a quote, and made a connection between my claim and the quote. I call this method of support – the three pronged support.
_____ 9C. Read the handouts on Hobbes and Locke. Some very important concepts for assignment 9F are
in these writings.
_____ 9D. Based on your readings of Moliere, Swift, and Voltaire, choose one of the following:; all should
be one type-written double-spaced page of 12 pt. font. A is most challenging; C is least
challenging.
Write a short satirical piece (warning - this is very difficult and is a challenge!)
Find 3 satirical cartoons and write about the issues that are satirized – you may also choose to draw your own, but you must still accompany them with an explanation.
Find an article that is satirical and write an analysis of it
_____ 9E. Read Chapter 20 - Section Five – The American Revolution
_____ 9F. Due _____ Essay: 40 points, 2-3 pages
Prompt: How did ideas about the best form of government and peoples’ relationship with government change during the time covered by this unit?
Be sure to include a clear thesis statement in the introduction that actually answers the prompt (it can be in a general way).
Be sure your paper has a coherent structure. A chronological approach is probably easiest, but it isn’t the only way to do it.
Be sure to include specific ideas and the thinkers that proposed them. You don’t need to cite but make sure you mention the writers or include their names in parentheses.
Also include the political consequences of these ideas.
Do not write a paper that just chronicles historical events we have covered. The paper is about how the ideas changed, and how that was reflected in changes in actual governments.
The paper is NOT about Hegel! But his model may be useful for giving your paper some structure.
_____ 9G. Unit Test (no essay on the test)