5.3 Nationalism, Revolution, and Reform

Hey guys. So, now we jump into key concept 5.3, which gets a little more interesting. Rebellions and reforms occured to make everything into what it is today. We see the rise of countries and what it means to be a citizen of a country. This is the rise of Nationalism. Nationalism really developes the idea of a country. There are new governments, boarders, and a common culture. People began to feel a deep pride in where they came from. This did have some positive and negative effects. A negative one is that some people felt that they were superior over all others. But, Nationalism had mostly positive effects, like serving one's country and a sense of unity. 

5.3 I: The rise and diffusion of Enlightenment thought that questioned established traditions in all areas of life often proceded rovolutions and rebellions against existing governments. This basically means that Enlightenment thought made people think "Why do I have to submit to something unfair and that doesn't treat me the way I want?" This often made people mad, so they rebelled against the things they found unfair. 

    A: Enlightenment philosophers applied new ways of understanding the natural world to human relationships, encouraging observation and inference in all spheres of life; they also critiqued the role that religion played in public life, insisting on the importance of reason as opposed to revelation. Other Enlightenment philosophers developed new political ideas about the individual, natural rights, and the social contract.

       1) One of these philosophers was Voltaire. His ideas were that there should be freedom and respect for all. He was against religions that were too strict and didn't respect others. Another one of his ideas was that society should be based on merit, not who your family was.

       2) Another philosopher was Baron de Montesquieu. (Wait, was Baron his first name or did he have a super long last name?) He had a lot of interesting ideas about government. He believed that the government should be broken up into different sections. He also proposed the seperation of power systems. However, each branch should have control over each other. Checks and Balances. Sound familiar?

       3) John Locke is also a famous philosopher. Thomas Jefferson liked using him when he wrote the Declaration of Independence. John Locke believed in a constitutional monarchy, meaning more representation. He also promoted freedom of religion and believed that all humans were given natural rights.

       4) Finally, we have Jean-Jacques Rousseau. This philosopher had many interesting ideas. He believed in freedom of opportunity, meaning that the poor and rich should have the same opportunities as each other. He also thought that the government should listen to the majority of people. Another one of his ideas was about life. People should be able to experience and explore life. Children should express themselves.

    B: The ideas of Enlightenment philosophers, as reflected in revolutionary documents-including the American Declaration of Independence, the French Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen, and Bolivar's Jamaica Letter-influenced resistance to existing political authority. 

       1) This means that the Enlightenment thinkers influenced resistance to existing authority, especially political. These ideas are reflected in those listed documents. The Declaration of Independance had many ideas of Locke and Montesquieu. 

       2) The French Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen was influenced by Enlightenment principles. It announced the basic rights of each citizen, including the rights to free speech, to own property, and to be safe from arbitrary acts of the state. 

       3) Bolivar's Jamaica Letter was written by Simon Bolivar to an Englishman, most likely the governor of Jamaica. In this letter, he expresses his strong feelings about the Venezualen independence movement. He also taps into the teachings of the Enlightenment thinkers by telling of a new government that they all should operate under. Soon, Bolivar began to implement these ideas.

    C: Enlightenment ideas influenced many people to challenge existing notions of social relations, which contributed to the expansion of rights as seen in expanded suffrage, the abolition of slavery, and the end of serfdom.

       1) Expanded suffrage was an organization across the world as women fought to have the same rights as men in their country. Their goal was no longer to be an outsider to the nation by gaining full insider rights.

       2) The abolition of slavery called for an end for the slave trade and even to an end of slavery. It was led by white religious leaders and blacks who invoked Christian morality and the ideas of natural rights. 

       3) In Russia, the serfs rebelled, plundering estates of nobles and killing them. This rebellion was crushed, but it did lead to the end of serfdom. 

5.3 II: Beginning in the 18th century, peoples around the world developed a new sense of commonality based on language, religion, social customs, and territory. These newly imagined national communties linked this identity with the boarders of the state, while governments used this idea to unite diverse populations.

    A: This is basically just nationalism. For example, this led to German nationalism, or what it means to be German. Being German means that you have this culture that is unique to Germany. This also led to Italian nationalism, or what it means to be Italian. Being Italian means that sometimes, they like to cook a lot of food. (yum, Italian food) This also led to Fillipino nationalism, or what it means to be Fillipino. And, this led to Argentinian nationalism, or what it means to be Argentinian.

That's all for now. I'll see you next time, when we finish 5.3. See you then!