They believed that reason could understand the natural laws of the universe, and could apply these to figure out the natural rights of people as they live in societies; mainly in the growing cities.
We have considered humanism before; generally the belief that humans could progress through their own efforts and are able to achieve great things. In the Age of Reason a new ideal comes to the foreground: Humanitarianism. This is a new concept: people who had more should take care of those less fortunate.
Scientific achievements stimulated these secular ideas regarding human intellect and abilities. Copernicus, Galilleo, Sir Isaac Newton used scientific methods to propose reasons for natural laws. Galileo used a telescope to examine the way planets move and saw that the earth is not the center of the universe with the sun and planets spinning around it. Newton was the scientist who discovered the magnetic pull we call gravity.
People studied humanity, recognised their dependance on one another, their need for cooperation and mutual respect, as they moved away from farms, into the growing cities.
How were these people different from us?
1. There was a sense of obligation to society as the age of kings comes to an end in France and America.
2. Codes of behavior became a way of regulating social encounters. People upheld manners and proper ways to behave in groups as a way of preserving society's moral standards.
3. People wanted to be smart, to have useful knowledge.
Literature was largely nonfiction and realistic. Pamphlets and papers were about human rights, what a government should be like, practical knowledge. Diderot, one of the Philosophe's compiled the first encyclopedia and contributed articles himself such how to sew a hem for a curtain. Many articles were inflammatory against the government and the magazine was closed down for as time.
Neoclassical Architecture. in the United States.
Throughout the Eastern states, where colonists settled, there are homes and statehouses, courthouses and post offices modeled on the principles of Classical balance, harmony and restrains. The columns, balanced proportions and sections, clean, simple lines and lack of ornamented detail reflect back to Classical Greece and Rome, and are well defined in the home Thomas Jefferson constructed in Virginia: Monticello. Jefferson, an architect, had visited the ancient ruins at Pompeii and returned to Virginia with these principles in mind.
Monticello
Music: Larger orchestras, more complex structure.
The symphony orchestra is expanded and musical compositions are much longer and more complex than Baroque forms. In class we will study the first movement of Mozart's Symphony #40 as we follow the listening guide. Each bit of musc introduced is repeated by a different group of instruments, and each section is also repeated. On the Listening Guide page there is a link to a website where you can listen for free. Mozart Listening Guide
Art: Classical music, in structure, generally reflects the philosophical preference of philosophy in the repetitions, the balance harmony and pairing we heard in the Symphony #40. Art makes this preference visible. We will examine two paintings by one artist, Jaques-Louis David at Olga's Gallery
The Death of Socrates
The Oath of Horatii
Next: The Romantic Era