The Enlightenment was known as the Age of Reason, for the strong interest in using the scientific method for all problem solving.
This weeks article begins our look at the Enlightenment. Not the sexiest history topic (that would be the Renaissance) but still worthy of mention. When I was teaching high school world history, I always talked to my students about the importance of the "big picture." In the case of the Enlightenment, it is important to understand both Medieval and Renaissance thinking, as well as the events of the Scientific Revolution, without which there would have been no Age of Reason. Another part of the “big picture” is what comes after the Enlightenment, the Romantic Movement. The Romantics (their name alone challenges the Renaissance for sexiest history topic) were rebellious bohemians who threw off their powdered wigs and left their faces brazenly unshaven. They composed music, poetry and great epics, like the Hunchback of Notre Dame and helped shape philosophy and thought during the late 18th and early 19th Centuries.
First, however, is the Age of Reason, a time when many educated thinkers firmly believed all problems could be solved using the Scientific Method, including social improvements.
