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Essay / Research Paper Abstract
This 5 page paper examines Kant's "What is Enlightenment" as well as Voltaire's "Patrie". The two writings are compared and contrasted. Some quotes are included. No additional sources cited.
Page Count:
5 pages (~225 words per page)
File: RT13_SA506KaV.rtf
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Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
enlightened individuals. This idea must be viewed in historical context. The idea that people are not enlightened due to a fault of their own is implicit at a time when
religion was thrown out in favor of thought. It was a time of enlightenment. Yet, while Kant clearly supports the idea that people should be able to think on their
own, he still saw that there were human limitations. Although Kant clearly supported individual rights and promoted free thought, there was something that seemed to get in the way.
Kant (1784) writes: "Which restriction is an obstacle to enlightenment, and which is not an obstacle but a promoter of it? I answer: The public use of ones reason must
always be free, and it alone can bring about enlightenment among men. The private use of reason, on the other hand, may often be very narrowly restricted without particularly hindering
the progress of enlightenment. " There is a clear division between private and public reason. Yet, Kant would judge the reasoning ability of the public which he did not highly
regard. At least, he saw the general human mentality as being rather limited. Many people observe this phenomenon today and claim that the society has been "dumbed down." It does
seem true that the masses rarely think for themselves. They vote by sound bite and form their beliefs based on what one preacher says. Many people do not read books
and rather, they vie for the latest headline from the National Enquirer that sits on end caps of the supermarket aisle. This is the majority but there is a good
portion of highly educated adults in society who do think. Yet, this idea is not exactly what Kant embraces or at least it is not completely what he is saying.
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