The Scientific Revolution & Modernity
What major shift in thinking defined the Scientific Revolution and marked the beginning of modernity?
A paradigm shift toward empirical observation, experimentation, and rational thought as sources of knowledge.
What two major wars defined the 17th century in Europe?
The Thirty Years’ War (1618–1648) and the English Civil War (1642–1651).
What does Sakoku mean in the context of Japanese history?
“Closed country” — Japan’s policy of isolation from most foreign contact during the Edo period
What were the three key ideals of the Enlightenment?
Reason, Optimism, and Individual Rights
What did Descartes’ phrase “Cogito ergo sum” mean for the emerging “modern self”?
“I think, therefore I am” — the self is defined by conscious thought and individual awareness.
In contrast to the “Age of Faith,” what characterized the “Age of Reason”?
A move toward secularism, individual reasoning, and viewing society through a rational and critical lens rather than religion.
Who were the opposing sides in the English Civil War?
The Royalists (Cavaliers) vs. the Parliamentarians (Roundheads) led by Oliver Cromwell
What 1635 policy formally restricted Japanese people from leaving or re-entering Japan?
The Edict of 1635, which banned travel abroad and limited trade to the Dutch and Chinese at Nagasaki.
Which philosopher is most associated with rationalism and the idea of mind-body dualism?
René Descartes
What was a major cultural result of the Dutch Golden Age?
A flourishing of art and science supported by wealthy merchant patrons and religious tolerance.
How did the Scientific Revolution redefine humanity’s relationship to nature?
Nature was seen as a system governed by laws discoverable through mathematics and science, not divine mystery.
What event sparked the Thirty Years’ War in 1618?
The Defenestration of Prague, when Protestant nobles threw Catholic officials out of a castle window.
Despite isolation, how did Japan continue to engage with Western science and knowledge?
Through rangaku or “Dutch learning,” translating Western scientific and medical texts brought by Dutch traders.
What was Voltaire’s main critique of Enlightenment “optimism” in Candide?
He satirized Leibniz’s claim that this is “the best of all possible worlds,” exposing blind faith in reason and progress
Which European cities rose as centers of commerce during 1500–1800?
Venice, Antwerp, Genoa, Amsterdam, and London
What did “modernity” emphasize in both intellectual and institutional terms?
Intellectually: critical reflection and deductive reasoning;
institutionally: rule by law, bureaucracy, education, and free press.
How did Hobbes’ Leviathan reflect the turmoil of the English Civil War?
It portrayed the state of nature as a war of all against all and argued that peace required an absolute sovereign.
Name two core principles of Edo-period aesthetics and their meanings.
Irregularity (Wabi) – beauty in imperfection and simplicity
Perishability (Sabi) – aged, rustic beauty
Simplicity (shibui) - refined, richness, not flashy or plain
Suggestion (yugen) - mysterious, elegant
How did the “subject-object scheme” reflect the Enlightenment worldview?
It placed humans as knowing subjects and nature as an object to be studied and controlled by reason.
How did Rembrandt’s Anatomy Lessons reflect the modern mindset?
They embodied the spirit of empirical observation (“to see for myself”) and the search for knowledge through science and art.
What does the “epistemological shift” of modernity mean?
a fundamental change in the basis of knowledge—from divine revelation to empirical inquiry and reason.
How did Locke’s view of the state of nature differ from Hobbes’?
The state of nature was relatively peaceful and governed by natural law, and that people had the right to rebel against unjust rulers.
How did Edo aesthetics challenge Western notions of “art for art’s sake”?
By linking art to spiritual impermanence, moral reflection, and harmony with nature, not pure self-expression or beauty.
What is “extreme anthropocentrism,” and how does it relate to the Enlightenment?
The belief that humans are the center and measure of all things, emphasizing human reason’s dominance over nature and other beings.
what are the key features of the “modern self”?
Being inwardly focused, self-aware, self-determining, and expressive, defining identity through thought and choice rather than divine order.