Answer: The natural rights governing human behavior and society.

Enlightenment thinkers wanted to improve human conditions on earth rather than concern themselves with religion and the afterlife. These thinkers valued reason, science, religious tolerance, and what they called “natural rights”—life, liberty, and property.

Answer Expert Verified Two such terms would be “inalienable rights” or “universal rights” since this says that natural rights (which every person is born with) cannot be taken away by any government.

The philosophers of the enlightenment sought to understand the natural rights governing individual behavior and society. Further Explanation: The Enlightenment era was also known as “Age of reason”. It was based on the principle ‘use of reason’ as the main objective was to attain freedom.

The Enlightenment, a philosophical movement that dominated in Europe during the 18th century, was centered around the idea that reason is the primary source of authority and legitimacy, and advocated such ideals as liberty, progress, tolerance, fraternity, constitutional government, and separation of church and state.

How did Enlightenment ideas influence society and culture? It influenced society and culture by the belief that emotions were paramount to human development. It also brought ideas like the end of slavery and women’s rights to the populace which was easier spread by the printing press.

The Enlightenment brought political modernization to the west, in terms of focusing on democratic values and institutions and the creation of modern, liberal democracies. Enlightenment thinkers sought to curtail the political power of organized religion, and thereby prevent another age of intolerant religious war.

Enlightenment thinkers paved the way for modern democracy. Montesquieu’s three branches of government helped frame the US constitution. Voltaire’s literature helped illustrate the importance of freedom of speech. Montesquieu studied governments from all over the world to later write The Spirit of Laws.

Why was the Enlightenment a turning point in history? It used logic and reason to explain the world. Enlightenment ideas completely changed the way nations are governed and how people viewed religion. People began to believe life should be enjoyed and that the world can be improved.

The French Revolution was greatly inspired by the Enlightenment. The Enlightenment changed the ideal of what political structures should be. The devine right of kings would no longer be believed. The Enlightenment changed the world by changing the way that people thought.

The Age of Enlightenment. From the late 1600s to the early 1800s, philosophers such as John Locke, Thomas Hobbes, and Voltaire shared their thoughts on how a legitimate government should look. In addition, some of them looked at a ‘state of nature’ where there was no government or no rules.

John Locke (29 August 1632 – 28 October 1704) was an English philosopher and physician regarded as one of the most influential of Enlightenment thinkers, especially concerning the development of political philosophy.

John Locke

The English philosopher and political theorist John Locke (1632-1704) laid much of the groundwork for the Enlightenment and made central contributions to the development of liberalism. Trained in medicine, he was a key advocate of the empirical approaches of the Scientific Revolution.