The 18th century is referred to as the "Age of Enlightenment". Trends in thought and letters from Europe to the American colonies brought new light and attention to humanity. This new movement described an era in Western philosophy and cultural life in which reason was upheld as the primary source and legitimation of authority. “Understanding the natural world and man's place in it solely on the basis of reason and without recourse to religious faith was the goal of the vast intellectual movement” (Hackett). In the heart of this era, a conflict began between religion and the inquiring mind that wanted to know and understand through reason based on evidence and evidence rather than faith based on faith alone. Many scholars believed that this was primarily a French movement because French culture dominated Europe and their ideas were expressed in the Parisian salon environment. In my opinion, this movement was even more influential in the world because it was primarily a middle class movement. These pioneers worked for man in general and for humanity. This was also an era in which public readings by scholars and philosophers arose due to increased literacy. These philosophers, however, lived a very precarious life because they did not know whether they would be imprisoned or courted for their public performances. The analytical methods of Newtonian physics left their mark in the era of the Enlightenment. Order and regularity derived from the analysis of the observed facts. The new ideal of knowledge was simply a further development of 17th century logic and science with a new emphasis on; 1. The particular rather than the general. 2. Observable facts rather than principles. 3. Experience ra...... middle of paper ...... because humans are more willing to question their belief systems now and that's thanks to the Age of Enlightenment. I believe the most important issues involving the Enlightenment period was the recognition of the middle class. Most of the influential people of the period were from the working class. Increased literacy has given the middle class more opportunities to spread their wings and become an influential voice in society. References Copestone, Frederick., A History of Philosophy. London. Research, 1946.Print.Roman, Chris. A world of ideas. New York. Palatine. 1999.PrintThackeray, Frank. Events that changed the world in the 18th century. Westport. Greenwood Press.1998. Print.World History Project. World History International. 1995-2006. Network. December 19, 2010Rempel, Gerhard, Western New England College. 2007.Web. December 19th 2010