As we can see here, modernity is quite a broad term. It captures progress from scientific endeavours and industry to more abstract examples of progression towards individual enlightenment and reason.
In Understanding Postmodernism (2017), Stewart E. Kelly and James K. Dew Jr identify five core beliefs of modernism as follows:
- ‘Modernist thought had a high level of confidence in human reason and in the human ability to know reality with certainty.
- Many central Enlightenment thinkers were committed to the widespread progress they thought science made possible.
- Numerous Enlightenment figures such as John Locke rejected the idea of original sin (the idea that Adam’s sin results in all humans being born with a sinful nature) and argued that it conflicted with human reason. Enlightenment thinkers believed humans were capable of morality with the right guidance.
- European culture was seen as the ‘pinnacle of modern civilization’ and ‘saw themselves as rational, educated, cultured, decent, and scientifically advanced’.
- ‘Many Enlightenment figures either rejected or radically modified traditional Christianity’ on the grounds of it being ‘for the morally weak (Nietzche)… the psychologically unhealthy (Freud), was a tool of oppression (Marx), or was scientifically unsupported (Darwin)’.
Phases of Modernity
The period of modernity is quite broad, however, it can be divided into three distinct phases: early modernity and the Enlightenment, (classical) modernity and late modernity. It is worth noting that these dates may differ from alternative readings and these phases are categorised in numerous ways across historical and philosophical scholarship. The exact period itself is debated and some scholars, as this guide goes on to discuss, believe modernity is a process, one we are still part of.
1.) Early modernity (c. 1500 -1789)
As Brian Trainor argues, the modern period began with a ‘radical rupture with medievalism’ (1998, 133). The early modern period saw ‘the rise of urban commercial classes, religious revival and reform, rural unrest and rebellion, and the decline of nomads’ (Jerry H. Bentley, 2007, 19). Within this period, a movement known as The Enlightenment cemented the values of modernity.
The Enlightenment
The Enlightenment, also known as the Age of Reason, was a philosophical movement of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries in Europe. It is a distinct component of the early modernity era. The Enlightenment marked a movement away from religion in favour of science and reductionism; it challenged the established order and, as such, was seen as a threat to the rulings of the church and the monarchy. The core principles of the Enlightenment were progress, rationality, tolerance and a search for knowledge. The key figures in this period include René Descartes, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Immanuel Kant, John Locke, Baruch Spinoza and Voltaire.
The work of French philosopher, René Descartes, was the foundation upon which the Enlightenment was based. In his work, Discourse on Method (1637), Descartes provided a moral code which all should seek to live by. Here, he outlines four maxims:
- Obey laws and customs of both country and religion
- Be decisive – make decisions and stick to them.
- Change your desires rather than attempting to change the world.
- Devote your life to discovering truth and knowledge.
(2015 [1637])
Descartes’ first maxim appears contradictory to Enlightenment values which suggested that humans should abide by their own moral compass rather than passively following the guidance of religious figures. Descartes, however, further elaborates upon this maxim arguing that he seeks the guidance of ‘the most judicious’ in order to examine his own opinions (Descartes, 2015 [1637]).
The Enlightenment was, in part, a reaction to religious conflict in the previous century in Europe such as the Thirty Years’ War (1618- 48). Such events resulted in the church’s dogmatic teachings being met with healthy curiosity and scepticism. Enlightenment thinkers believed that continuing as before would lead inevitably to further religious intolerance and violence. As such, we can see in this period the beginnings of deism (a belief in God, but rejection of religious figures being a source of divine revelation) and atheism. In The Treatise of Tolerance (1763), Enlightenment thinker and deist, Voltaire, wrote of the need for religious tolerance in order to create a peaceful nation.
Freedom to speak and think as one chooses was central to Enlightenment philosophy as Immanuel Kant argues in his essay ‘An Answer to the Question: “What Is Enlightenment?”’ (1784). Here, he argues that ‘Enlightenment is man’s release from his self-incurred tutelage’ (2017 [1784]). This tutelage he explains as such: