Portrait of Lord Melvyn Bragg, host of In Our Time

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People of the Age of Enlightenment

The Age of Enlightenment or the Enlightenment was an intellectual and philosophical movement that dominated Europe in the 17th and 18th centuries with global influences and effects. The Enlightenment included a range of ideas centered on the value of human happiness, the pursuit of knowledge obtained by means of reason and the evidence of the senses, and ideals such as natural law, liberty, progress, toleration, fraternity, constitutional government, and separation of church and state.The Enlightenment was preceded by the Scientific Revolution and the work of Francis Bacon, John Locke, among others.

3 episodes

Episodes in this category also belong to the following categories:

HistoryPhilosophyOntologistsSocial philosophersPhilosophy writersPhilosophers of literaturePhilosophers of mindTheorists on Western civilizationPhilosophers of historyWriters about activism and social changeMetaphysiciansPhilosophers of culturePhilosophers of religionPhilosophers of scienceEnlightenment philosophersEpistemologistsCritics of the Catholic ChurchWriters about religion and scienceAge of EnlightenmentGerman male non-fiction writersPhilosophers of educationPhilosophers of lawPhilosophers of social science18th-century philosophers19th-century German male writers19th-century German philosophersJewish philosophersMetaphilosophersPantheistsGerman LutheransGerman male essayistsGerman philosophers of historyGerman political philosophersLogiciansNatural law ethicistsNatural philosophersPhilosophers of logicPhilosophers of sexualityGerman philosophers of artGerman philosophers of culture19th-century German essayistsGerman philosophers of education, German ethicistsTheoretical historians17th-century writers in Latin18th-century German male writersGerman philosophers of scienceMembers of the Prussian Academy of SciencesPhilosophers of warRationalists18th-century German philosophers, 18th-century essayists18th-century classical composers19th-century German non-fiction writersCritics of JudaismGerman critics of ChristianityGerman philosophers of mind, German philosophers of religion18th-century German composers18th-century German writersDeterministsGerman FreemasonsGerman agnosticsGerman classical composersGerman epistemologistsGerman idealistsGerman nationalistsGerman opera librettistsHumor researchersIdealistsLecturersRoyal reburials18th-century German LGBTQ people18th-century male musicians19th-century Prussian peopleBaruch SpinozaGerman art collectors, Recipients of the Order of the White Eagle (Poland), People of the War of the Bavarian Succession, 18th-century art collectorsGerman logicians, Kantian philosophersGerman male classical composersGerman military writersJewish translators of the BibleKantianismPeople of the Silesian WarsWriters from Berlin

  1. Frederick the Great

    Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Frederick II, king of Prussia from 1740 to 1786.

    2 July 2015

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    Featuring: Tim Blanning, Katrin Kohl, Thomas Biskup

    wikipedia article ↗
     
    History18th-century classical composersGerman critics of ChristianityGerman opera librettists18th-century German composersGerman classical composersPeople of the Age of EnlightenmentRoyal reburialsGerman FreemasonsWriters from BerlinGerman male classical composersPeople of the Silesian Wars18th-century male musicians18th-century German LGBTQ peopleGerman military writersGerman art collectors, Recipients of the Order of the White Eagle (Poland), People of the War of the Bavarian Succession, 18th-century art collectors

  2. Kant's Copernican Revolution

    Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Kant's ideas on how the world depends on us, on the limits of human knowledge and why we are bound to ask questions we cannot answer.

    3 June 2021

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    Featuring: Fiona Hughes, Anil Gomes, John Callanan

    wikipedia article ↗
     
    PhilosophyOntologistsPhilosophy writersPhilosophers of literatureTheorists on Western civilizationWriters about activism and social changeEnlightenment philosophersWriters about religion and scienceAge of EnlightenmentGerman male non-fiction writersPhilosophers of lawPhilosophers of social science18th-century philosophers19th-century German male writers19th-century German philosophersMetaphilosophersGerman LutheransGerman male essayistsGerman political philosophersGerman philosophers of historyLogiciansNatural law ethicistsNatural philosophersPhilosophers of logicPhilosophers of sexualityGerman philosophers of artGerman philosophers of cultureTheoretical historians19th-century German essayistsRationalistsMembers of the Prussian Academy of Sciences18th-century German male writersGerman philosophers of sciencePhilosophers of war19th-century German non-fiction writersGerman agnostics18th-century German writersGerman idealistsIdealistsGerman epistemologistsGerman nationalistsHumor researchersLecturersPeople of the Age of Enlightenment19th-century Prussian peopleKantianismGerman philosophers of education, German ethicists18th-century German philosophers, 18th-century essayistsGerman philosophers of mind, German philosophers of religionGerman logicians, Kantian philosophers

  3. Spinoza

    Melvyn Bragg discusses the philosopher Spinoza whose profound and complex ideas about God had him celebrated as an atheist in the 18th century.

    3 May 2007

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    Featuring: Jonathan Rée, Sarah Hutton, John Cottingham

    wikipedia article ↗
     
    PhilosophySocial philosophersOntologistsPhilosophy writersPhilosophers of mindPhilosophers of historyPhilosophers of religionMetaphysiciansPhilosophers of culturePhilosophers of scienceEnlightenment philosophersEpistemologistsCritics of the Catholic ChurchAge of EnlightenmentPhilosophers of educationPantheistsJewish philosophersMetaphilosophersRationalists17th-century writers in LatinCritics of JudaismPeople of the Age of EnlightenmentDeterministsJewish translators of the BibleBaruch Spinoza