The 18th century saw a number of enormous developments that have had monumental impacts on society to the present day. When discussing the 'most important' developments one needs to be quite critical about their importance, to do this different criteria need to be taken into account: whether the development has had a significant impact over the century; whether it inspired various other events; whether it was a one-off development; whether it impacted multiple demographics; and whether other developments were of greater importance. Based on this criterion, it is clear that, although of great importance, the Haitian Revolution was not the most important political transformation of the 18th century. If something is a "transformation", the political climate would be completely different from what it was before the event occurred, and although the Haitian Revolution had this effect, it was not until the 19th century that its influence was fully felt and in this “Haitian transformation”. revolution”, the causes of it are defined. The Enlightenment fulfills both aspects of the statement: not only was the Haitian Revolution a byproduct of the Enlightenment, but it also inspired other revolutions and gave birth to the modern feminist movement - completely changing the way the society considered power and completely changing the political climate in the world. 18th century. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Scholar Valentina Pegeuro argues that “the significance of the Haitian Revolution is that it is considered the first successful slave revolt in modern times.” Pegeuro's view has a lot of credence, although, regarding this statement, the revolt did not end until 1804, which means that its significance is mainly limited to the 19th century, which goes to against its weight in the 18th century. Therefore, we already eliminate the criterion of whether it had a significant impact over the century. Clearly, the Enlightenment constitutes the most important "political transformation," an argument supported by Jonathon Israel who asserts that "the roots of anticolonialism itself, as well as the modern idea of ​​racial, ethnic, and sexual equality » are found among the writers of the Enlightenment. . The ideas that inspired the Haitian Revolution were formulated and disseminated during the Age of Enlightenment. The most important events of the 18th century all have deep roots in the Age of Enlightenment. Not only did they have a huge impact throughout the century, but they inspired many other events, they had a huge impact on multiple demographics, and overall they had a much bigger impact on in the 18th century as the Haitian revolution. To prove it, the influence of the Enlightenment in inspiring revolutions and the birth of a new movement will be discussed. First, the Enlightenment inspired a major contender for the title of “most important political transformation,” namely the American Revolution of 1775–1783. . This revolution represents a physical form of the ideas of the Enlightenment which reached their peak in the 18th century. Without this ideology, it is difficult to know whether the revolution would ever have had the success it did or whether it would have happened in the first place. . Bernard Bailyn argues that “the greatest achievement of the revolution was of course the rejection of this state authority and the transfer of power to the popular legislatures. No one will deny that this action was taken in accordance with the highest principles.highest points of Enlightenment theory. In this, Bailyn attributes the success of the Revolution to the Enlightenment, a valuable argument, we can see how the works of Enlightenment writers had a profound impact on the revolt and the product of the United States of America. An example of this is the work of Baron De Montesquieu in The Spirit of Laws, a man who contributed much to enlightenment in his examination of the greater type of government between monarchy, republics and despotism. In doing so, Montesquieu formulated a new way of thinking, a new, more critical look at politics, allowing individuals to question their own state and form their own opinions about their government. The following quote from The Spirit of Laws was particularly threatening to the British colonial power in America: "It is better to say that the government most conformable to nature is that which best accords with the mood and dispositions of the people in favor of which he is in favor. established ". Here, Montesquieu suggests that colonial power is unnatural and that the best form of government is found in a democratic republic. It also implies that other forms of government are not suitable for the people they govern. The idea that the state should be like the people, with a similar “humor and disposition,” established the idea of ​​representative government and formed a great anticolonial sentiment – ​​a huge threat to the colonial forces in America. Thus, this is further demonstrated in what follows: "For it is clear that in a monarchy, where he who commands the execution of the laws generally believes himself above them, there is less need for virtue than in a government popular, where the one who is responsible for the execution of the laws is sensitive to virtue. he is subject to their direction.” Montesquieu here highlights the inequality within the monarchy and the lack of control over the power of the monarch, they are above the law, and therefore it is an injustice to the people. So, to take his previous argument further, the need for representative government, those in power, to represent the people, should be subject to the same law as the people. This enlightened ideology “fed” the American population, and the anticolonial and republican ideology “fed” the American population. sentiment grew, resulting in the American Revolution. We can see the extent of the influence of Enlightenment ideas on the leaders of the revolution in the product of the revolt, the American Constitution (ratified in 1787). A legislative branch, all directly elected by the people, with a body even called the "House of Representatives", was created in Article I – clearly responding to the idea of ​​representative government established by Montesquieu. The executive branch, the president, also directly elected, was also created in Article II - responding to the need for the ruler to serve the people, he is directly responsible to the population. The Supreme Court was created in Article III, to check the power of the president and the legislature, ensuring that their power remained bound in accordance with the constitution, achieving another key aspect of Montesquieu's writings, a check on the state power which He claims is necessary to prevent abuse of power. It is therefore very clear how the Enlightenment was embodied by the American Revolution, as Bailyn says "in the name of Enlightenment liberalism, revolutionary leaders undertook to complete, formalize, systematize and symbolize what previously had only been partially realized, the facts were confused and disputed.” In other words, the American Revolution proved that Enlightenment ideas could bebrought to fruition and gave the example of revolution as a method to achieve this. By force you could obtain freedom. Overall, the American Revolution as a solitary event can be considered of great importance, although it cannot be considered the most important political turning point because its entire foundations rest on the Enlightenment and ideology established in the Enlightenment. its main value was to provide a physical representation of these ideas and create an example that others could imitate. This emulation is evident in the French and Haitian revolutions, in what can be described as the butterfly effect of the Enlightenment. These revolutions for freedom, the overthrow of monarchical colonial powers and their replacement by a republic appear to be frequent phenomena in the 18th century and, as Robin Blackburn argues, "must be seen as disinterconnected, each [revolution] helping to radicalize the next ". Immediately the arguments that the Haitian Revolution is the most important political transformation are undermined, it drew its influence from two previous revolutions and used the well established and influential Enlightenment ideology - it was not very unique and it did not generate new ideas. in the 18th century. Blackburn argues that the Haitian Revolution played a role in "the total overhaul of slavery in the early 19th century." In the context of the new century, its importance increases significantly, because at this point the new republic, the first black republic, was already established. It was an enormous transformation that set the tone for the rest of the century, inspiring many other colonies to revolt, ultimately leading to the end of slavery - although in the 18th century, without the title of the first black republic, the revolution Haitian revolution was just one of many revolutions occurring at the time. These revolutions can be seen as a product of the Enlightenment, political thought was completely transformed in the 18th century, criticism of old world powers and the search for freedom, key characteristics of the Enlightenment, became a broader and more popular practice, critical thinking has become a common thing. , and a general disquiet with the old order began to arise. This took shape not only in revolutions, as mentioned earlier, but also in new movements. One of these new movements is the modern feminist movement, born as another byproduct of the Enlightenment. Many Enlightenment thinkers, such as John Locke, neglected women as rational beings in their investigations of human nature. This chauvinistic approach was strongly questioned in the late 18th century, the liberal ideas of the Enlightenment, freedom and equal opportunity were not applied to women and, as Katherine Clinton also argues, "the arguments that 'they presented and the solutions they proposed became the basis of modern feminist logic.' The “women’s question” became a major issue and highlighted the mistreatment of women. We thus see how the Enlightenment not only led to a questioning of physical structures, but also of societal structures. One of the Enlightenment thinkers who challenged the patriarchal system was Mary Wollstonecraft, who is often credited as "the mother of English-language feminism" and who truly brought the issue of female inequality to the fore in her "A Vindication for the Rights of the Woman. ". This is demonstrated in the following quote: “Consider, I address you as a legislator, if, when men fight for their freedom and to be able tojudging their own happiness for themselves, would it not be inconsistent and unfair to subjugate women, even if you firmly believe that you are acting in the way best calculated to promote their happiness? Who made man the exclusive judge, if woman shares with him the gift of reason? » Here, Wollstonecraft uses the Enlightenment ideology of "freedom" and man's "gift of reason" to highlight double standards in the treatment of men over women. Terminology used to describe an oppressive state such as "subdue" in conjunction with a later quote "tyranny of man", presents the idea that patriarchy must be overthrown just like monarchical and colonial states - proving the influence of the Enlightenment and world revolutions. century. Wollstonecraft also maintains the following: “My main argument rests on this simple principle, that if education be not prepared to become the companion of man, it will check the progress of knowledge and virtue; for the truth must be common to all, otherwise it will be ineffective in its influence on general practice. And how can a woman be expected to cooperate if she doesn't know why she should be virtuous? Wollstonecraft emphasizes the importance of women's right to education, alluding to the fact that women may not be equipped with the knowledge necessary to be virtuous or to help their husbands be virtuous. From a modern perspective, a woman receiving education primarily to become a better wife is clearly a problematic ideal, leading critics to accuse Wollstonecraft of being misogynistic, although it is important to note that even this was incredibly radical for the 18th century. By highlighting these inequalities and the oppression of women, Wollstonecraft laid the foundation for feminism today, and the context of the Enlightenment and the political climate created by the Enlightenment made this possible. Keep in mind: this is just a sample. Get a custom article now from our expert writers.Get a custom essayTo conclude, it is clear from the revolutions and movements born in the 18th century that the Enlightenment was the most important political transformation, not the Haitian Revolution. Israel claims that "the most vital aspects of modernity have recently emerged much more clearly and definitively as products of the Enlightenment", an extremely valuable argument and, as previously mentioned, for it to be a "political transformation ”, one would expect it to be a “political transformation”. development to completely change the political climate and political thinking. The Haitian revolution does not have this quality, especially in the context of the 18th century, where revolutions had already taken place. Rather, the Enlightenment had this impact, the ideas it implied fostered the critical thinking that took shape in the revolutions and movements, like feminism, that we see arising in the 18th century. Reflecting on the criteria established in the introduction to this essay, it is clear that not only did the Enlightenment have a butterfly effect throughout the century and beyond, but it inspired various other events and reached into multiple categories demographics (women, upper classes, lower classes and ethnic minorities). Although the Haitian Revolution was undeniably important, it cannot be considered the most important political transformation because it was not particularly unique and did not inspire other events throughout the century, let alone that its basis is rooted in Enlightenment ideology. . It is therefore undeniably clear that the assertion that “the Haitian Revolution, 1792)