Throughout the Enlightenment, there were dramatic revolutions in science, philosophy, and politics. There were also major achievements for women's rights which have contributed to the rights we have now. The Enlightenment was inspired from ideas that the Scientific Revolution put forth. The Enlightenment promoted a new intellectual movement that stressed reason and thought and the power of individuals to create solutions. Humanity can see from scholars and philosophers questioning old notions that it is important to keep learning and keep questioning your ideas, to keep up with the world views. It is important to realize that we can always improve, and therefore settling for old ideas while society is developing and changing, is not going to keep you successful. Next, we can see that the Enlightenment's two main creators were Thomas Hobbes and John Locke. Hobbe's introduced the social contract, which was an agreement by which people created their own government. I learned from Hobbe's that humanity acts in their selfish ways, meaning that a ruler needs to control the government, but the people decide what the rules and rights will be. Locke argues that people could learn from experience and improve themselves. He believed we had natural ability to govern our own affairs, and adored the idea of self-government. Locke also argued that all people are born free and with 3 natural rights, including life, liberty and property. Personally, I whole heartedly agree with Locke's view on society. I learned that we have the power and the heart to govern ourselves, because we truly know what's best for us as human beings. I have learned that Locke is the fundamental to the U.S. Declaration of Independence as well. Learning about the Philosophes taught me the importance of the value of reason, nature, happiness, progress, and liberty in our lives. One of the most important quotes to me was argued by Voltaire, who said "I do not agree with a word you say but will defend to the death your right to say it." Voltaire fought for the freedom of thought and expression, which I believe is a right we take for granted now. Voltaire argues that no matter what you have to argue, you deserve the right to argue it with your words. I learned that Beccaria fought for the abolishment of torture. Without these philosophes, we may not know be blessed with the rights and freedoms we have. A big change from the Enlightenment, was the movement of women acquiring more rights. Mary Wollstonecraft was an extremely persuasive women who published an essay that disagreed with Rousseau's idea that women's education should be secondary to men. Women helped spread Enlightenment ideas to Paris and other European cities through salon gatherings. Without these important figures questioning why women do not have the same rights as men, the way women would be treated now would be a lot different. I learned that even though we, as women, still fight for our rights, we have made huge accomplishments in where we used to be. The most important part of The Enlightenment is the changes that took place inside the hearts and minds of the people. During this time, people began to question their religious beliefs and the teachings of the church. As people began to turn away from the church and royalty for guidance, they looked to themselves and found answers within. This encouraged people to use their own ability in order to judge what was right or wrong. The biggest impact of the Enlightenment was the reason that took control in people's lives.