This course examines the Enlightenment from the particular angle of its relationship to the cultivation of democratic ideals and the emergence of modern democracies. It thus examines issues such as toleration, the rights and responsibilities of the individual, the importance of reason, and the role of religion in society.· Segment 1: The EnlightenmentThis segment naturally has a strong philosophical component, examining such thinkers as Benedict de Spinoza (and other ‘free-thinkers’), John Locke on toleration, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Immanuel Kant, and Mary Wollstonecraft. This is something different, however, from a course on modern philosophy. It also explores how the Enlightenment motto “Dare to Know!” reverberated in many areas of society and in many different places and how it was expressed through a variety of genres.· Segment 2: The American RevolutionThrough a variety of genres, this segment explores the revolutionary period in America: the revolutionary promise as experienced and articulated on many levels of society, the impact of the revolution on various levels of society, and the ideals laid out in the Constitution.· Segment 3: The French Revolution This segment reflects on debates about the origin of the French Revolution; it follows the course of the revolution itself, including Revolutionary politics, the collapse of the monarchy, and the reign of terror; in considering the aftermath of the revolution, it also treats responses by those in other countries and so anticipates the nineteenth century.