THEMES: Deism - Deism is a religious belief system that emphasizes morality, virtuous living, and the perception of a creative but uninvolved God. Deists believe in God but reject the supernatural, including the New Testament miracles and resurrection of Christ. They reject the idea that God is active in people’s daily lives, instead claiming that God created the world but is now distant.
- This view of God directly contradicts the view of Catholic and Protestant religions. The philosophers were particularly incensed by the Roman Catholic Church, which they perceived as too restrictive and dominant.
- The period is marked by the rise of Deism, intellectual backlash against earlier Puritanism and American’s revolution against England.
THEMES: Deism - As deists, the philosophers were uninterested in life after death. They maintained that people should spend their time and energy improving this life, and they advocated pursuing worldly happiness and contentment. Diderot addresses these ideas in the Encyclopedia, and they are implied in the Preamble to the Declaration of Independence, which states that among a person’s unalienable rights are ‘‘life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.’’
STYLE: Rhetoric - Over the course of the Enlightenment, there existed two clearly opposing schools of thought concerning rhetoric. The traditions of the Renaissance, largely influenced by the works of Peter Ramus, held over into the early part of the movement. Ramus attacked Aristotle’s view that rhetoric and dialect should be integrated, indicating that, though they may have been used in conjunction in the past, they should be disengaged. Ramus advocated a linear style, bereft of embellishment, so that scientific and philosophical writings might be better representations of truth. This straightforward approach adhered naturally to the rational thought and methodical observation promoted by the Enlightenment. However, while this rhetorical convention was becoming less popular, another was quickly gaining ground.
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