Unit 4: "What is Enlightenment?"

Author Bio: Immanuel Kant was born on April 22, 1724 and passed away on February 12, 1804. Hometown of Konigsberg Germany. He attended the university of Konigsberg at the age of 16. He Is considered to be one of the central figures of modern philosophy and took part in the scientific enlightenment. He created Kantian Philosophy in which He focused mainly on ethics. His most famous book is the critique of pure reason. It is considered to be one of the most influential works in the history of philosophy. One of his popular beliefs was the rightness or wrongness of actions does not depend on their consequences but on whether they fulfill our duty as human beings.

Date/Context: In this time period Kant believed that man needed to be released from their intellectual chains which were laziness and cowardice according to Kant. During this time period there were many more enlightened thinkers such as Rousseau and Newton. This was a time of intellectual growth and many new thoughts and ideas were brought about. 

Summary: According to Immanuel Kant, enlightenment was man’s release from “self-incurred tutelage.” The enlightenment was a time in which man could release themselves from intellectual bondage. He wanted people to be enlightened in order to excel in the world.  Tutelage occurs because of two things, laziness and cowardice. Cowardice is fed by the laziness so they work together. The general public feared to use their reason because they were not willing to venture in to uncharted waters. Kant presents the requirements for enlightenment. The foremost requirement is freedom. He believes that freedom to express oneself honestly is paramount for enlightenment. This is important because when a man is allowed to freely express his thoughts and opinions without penalization, he will offer ideas without fear and restriction.

Key Quotations:

• "Enlightenment is man's release from his self-incurred tutelage."
• "Laziness and cowardice are the reasons why so great a portion of mankind, after nature has long since discharged them from external direction, nevertheless remains under lifelong tutelage, and why it is so easy for others to set themselves up as their guardians."