Comparing The Great Awakening And Enlightenment In Colonial America

The Great Awakening unified the diverse colonies with the belief that colonists must shift their lives’ focus from worldly matters, such as accumulating land and wealth, back to faith and the church i n order to avoid condemnation by God. Ministers, such as the passionate George Whitefield, became very influential and powerful at the time by spreading this concept along with methods for earning salvation. For example, “at Philadelphia…, many thousands flock[ed] to hear him preach the Gospel, and great numbers were converted to Christ” (VOF 78). With a large following, Whitefield’s ideas “... encouraged many colonists to trust their own views rather than those of established elites” (GME 160).

The Great Awakening was a considerably dramatic event that took place in America in the 18th century. It is difficult to understand just how much of an impact it had on the American people at the time but it is probably comparable to the way that America felt on November 22, 1963 when JFK was assassinated. How England felt on September 6, 1997 when Princess Diana was laid to rest in her grave, or how the U.S responded on September 11, 2001. At the time of the Great Awakening, America had never experience anything so life changing. Everything that had been taught and raised to believe was changing right in front of them, so at first this new era had caused feelings of confusion, devastation, and disbelief, but after a while the colonist began

The main differences between the Great Awakening and the Enlightenment is that the Enlightenment was a movement started by the philosophers and scientists centered on scientific spirit and reasoning. However, the Great Awakening was a religious and spiritual movement. For example, Document A states, ”You have sown the harmful seeds of separation and disorder among us”. This shows that George Whitefield was a dangerous man and was spreading harmful ideas. Also, in Document A, the test explains “You have stopped the spread of the Gospel, and hurt the Peace and good Order”.

Davis Tolar The Great Awakening The Great Awakening was a religious revival that garnered much of its attention in the 1730s and 1740s. The American colonies would become affected by the actions of the Awakening, leaving a mark on religious and cultural history. This movement would have significant effects on individual lives and identities, promoting many to reevaluate their own lives and beliefs, through an emphasis on spirituality and the religious experience.

Chelsey Wells Susan Bamberg English 251 – 02 July 7, 2015 Benjamin Franklin and the Enlightenment In the words of Benjamin Franklin “If you would not be forgotten…either write things worth reading or do things worth writing.” (Elkins). By the early 18th century, scientists and philosophers had posed great challenges to the seventeenth-century beliefs, and the modern period…” (Baym, p 159).

During the creation of Colonial America, many early ideas and characteristics began to form. Backgrounds began to become more diverse and communities began to become more occupied. Earlier more successful governments, set strong precedents, and taught American Founders the ideal route. A time period that was most influential for the American government was the Enlightenment Period. The Enlightenment set a foundation that many founders referenced and created the United States in their footsteps.

When the American colonist won The American Revolutionary War against Britain our founding fathers created a democratic government. They used a set of beliefs called liberalism which had developed during the Scientific Revolution and Enlightenment period. These new views of life were influenced by the English political philosopher John Locke. Although there were other philosophers whom shared the idea of individual rights it was Locke’s writings that provided the foundation to our rights in America. He believed that individual right’s included life, liberty and property.

The Great Awakening also changed the way government was formed and carried out. Changing the government allowed the power not to be in one person’s hands but in the people’s

Sentiment about inequality motivated many bourgeoisies to believe in enlightenment principles and ideas. The enlightenment principles were the cornerstone of which was the belief that the application of human reason and experience was the way to human progress. The enlightenment movement was based of off reason observations and evident. At the heart of the enlightenment movement was the idea of social and class change. France had no representatives’ legislative assembly and o formal constitution.

People had both the right and the duty to make whatever changes were necessary to come up with a new government or new reforms to that government to better serve their needs. This is basically was the mindset of the people who believed that reform was need in society. The Second Great Awakening refers to a period of religious revivals at occurred in the United States in the 1830s. After this period, many reform movements took place to better serve society and the people in it.

The Second Great Awakening, beginning in about 1790, influenced a reform movement that encouraged mandatory, free, public education. In 1805, the New York Public School Society was created by wealthy businessmen and was intended to provide education for poor children. In 1817, a town meeting in Boston, Massachusetts called for establishment of free public primary schools. Many wage earners opposed this proposal. Josiah Quincy, mayor of Boston, supported the idea that education should be a priority by saying, “(By) 1820, an English classical school is established, having for its object to enable the mercantile and mechanical classes to obtain an education adapted for those children whom their parents wished to qualify for active life, and thus

During the 17th century and early 18th century there were many colonies being formed in the New World. During the colonization there was a different colonies being formed : Middle , Southern , and New England colonies. The colonies were living in different lifestyles. The Great Awakening resulted in unifying the colonies together. The similarities in the influence toward unity in the English colonies were due to political , religion , although the differences were social.

The Great Awakening and colonial forms of government provided the context for the roots of democracy in the colonial society. The Great Awakening provided a revival of religion and brought people together. The colonial forms of government provided a stepping stone for them to learn how to be political in their colonies. The Great Awakening provided an opening for new ideas.

The Second Great Awakening’s Impact on Abolitionism in the North The Second Great Awakening during the late 18th and 19th centuries sparked many reform movements in the United States. The new enlightenment age fostered scientific thought that often challenged traditional Christian practices. Principles of “Deism” and “Unitarianism” were religious philosophies that focused on free will, reason, and science.

To reform is to make changes in something, typically a social, political, or economic institution or practice in order to improve it. America has reformed itself in multiple ways throughout history. In the era surrounding the Second Great Awakening, America was undergoing a period of reform. This period of reformation included new and, at the time, radical ideas. Examples include: evangelists, tax-supported public education, and the advocation for women’s suffrage.