The modern era has given us many powerful theories that continue to shape science, philosophy, religion, and our understanding of the world. It’s in this time that we also see the birth of new political ideas that influence society even today.
This period, beginning around the 17th century, marks a dramatic shift from medieval thinking—where religion and tradition defined the human experience—to what we now call the Scientific Revolution. This revolution challenged old ways of thinking, focusing instead on observation, experimentation, and reason to understand the world. This new way of thinking changed how we see nature, the universe, and our own roles as individuals.
The Modern Era begins with a belief in Reason—the idea that logic, science, and progress can explain the world and improve human life. But over time, this belief came under question. The rise of existentialism (Kierkegaard, Nietzsche), Freud’s theories of the unconscious, and non-rationalist philosophies all challenged the Enlightenment’s optimism. This shift marks the transition to what we now call postmodernity.
Some historians place the border at 1914, with World War I shattering the faith in reason and progress that had defined modernity.
The Scientific Revolution
To understand the essence of the Scientific Revolution, one concept stands out: the laws of nature.These laws govern both the natural world and human existence, entirely independent of human will or divine influence. They arise from the nature of the world itself and reflect a materialistic outlook, meaning people can understand them through observation and reason. The world no longer follows the whims of gods or the dictates of tradition. Instead, the laws of nature are universal, rational, and apply to everything, from the movements of the stars to the actions of humans.
René Descartes introduced the concept of the laws of nature, arguing that people could understand the world through reason and mathematical principles.Descartes’ emphasis on doubt and methodical thinking laid the groundwork for a more scientific approach to understanding reality. Alongside him, Francis Bacon played a key role in developing the empirical method, a way of acquiring knowledge based on observation and experimentation, rather than relying on established beliefs or dogma.
Together, these thinkers marked the beginning of what we call early modern philosophy. Their works helped move philosophy away from medieval traditions and towards a more systematic and scientific way of thinking. It was with the contributions of Descartes and Bacon that the modern approach to knowledge, centered on reason and evidence, truly began to take shape.
Before the 17th century, the idea of natural law was already present in the works of earlier philosophers like Thomas Aquinas and St. Augustine. However, they viewed natural law as closely linked to God’s eternal laws, believing it reflected the divine order of the universe. It was more about recognizing patterns and regularities in nature—such as the sun rising each morning or bees making honey—rather than discovering universal, independent laws governing the physical world.
n contrast, thinkers like Descartes and Newton transformed this idea. They saw the laws of nature not as divine rules but as mathematical and mechanical principles that operated independently of human or divine will. This shift—from a theological to a scientific interpretation of natural law—was one of the key intellectual breakthroughs of the modern era.
In Bertrand Russell’s History of Western Philosophy, he discusses the transition from the medieval period to the modern era, highlighting two significant changes: the decline of the Church’s authority and the rise of science. He notes that secular elements began to dominate culture, with states increasingly replacing the Church as the primary governing bodies influencing cultural matters. Kings initially held the reins of power, but over time—much like in ancient Greece—democracies or tyrannies gradually replaced them.
Science
The revolutionary work of Copernicus, Kepler, Galileo, and Newton shaped modern science.
One of the driving forces behind the growth of astronomy in the 16th century was the expansion of sea travel. As sailors navigated the world, they began to gather more precise information about the stars and the planets. This new, observational knowledge played a crucial role in shaping modern astronomy.
It was Nicolaus Copernicus (1473-1543) who revolutionized our understanding of the cosmos. In contrast to the medieval view, which placed the Earth at the center of the universe, Copernicus boldly proposed that the Earth orbits the Sun. This heliocentric model, as opposed to the geocentric one that had dominated for centuries, laid the foundation for modern astronomy.
Copernicus’ most important work, “De revolutionibus orbium coelestium” (On the Revolutions of the Celestial Spheres), published in 1543, outlined his theories about the motion of celestial bodies. His ideas, although controversial at the time, eventually changed the way people understood their place in the universe and were critical in launching the scientific revolution in astronomy.
In the medieval period, most scholars accepted the idea that the Earth was the center of the universe, a view deeply rooted in the teachings of Aristotle and the Church. Religious and philosophical beliefs supported this view, and few challenged it until Copernicus introduced his groundbreaking work.
Isaac Newton was the author of the groundbreaking work Philosophia Naturalis Principia Mathematica (1687), in which he formulated the laws of motion and the law of universal gravitation. These principles shaped the dominant scientific worldview for centuries, remaining unchallenged until the advent of Einstein’s general theory of relativity in the 20th century.
This makes Newton a defining figure of the Modern Era, whose mechanistic understanding of the universe influenced not only physics but also philosophy, ethics, and political thought.
The 17th century stood out not only for its scientific discoveries but also for the rise of scientific institutions that actively promoted research and experimentation.Among the most important were:
- The Royal Society of London (founded in 1660), one of the world’s first scientific academies. Its motto, “Nullius in verba”, meaning “Take nobody’s word for it”, perfectly captured the spirit of the Scientific Revolution—relying on experiments and evidence rather than authority or tradition.
- The French Academy of Sciences (Académie des sciences), founded in 1666 by King Louis XIV, also played a key role in advancing scientific inquiry in Europe.
These institutions provided scientists with a platform to exchange ideas, conduct experiments, and publish their findings, which helped establish the scientific method as the foundation of modern research.
Russell highlights the invention of scientific instruments during this period. The compound microscope emerged around 1590, and in 1608, the Dutchman Lippershey invented the telescope, which Galileo later utilized extensively for scientific purposes. Galileo also invented the thermometer, and his pupil Torricelli later developed the barometer. Guericke (1602–1686) invented the air pump. Clocks, though not new, saw significant improvements in the 17th century, largely due to Galileo’s work. These inventions greatly enhanced the precision and scope of scientific observations.
Scientists in the 17th century made significant advances not only in astronomy and dynamics but also across many other scientific fields. William Gilbert (1540-1603) published his influential work on magnetism in 1600. William Harvey (1578-1657) discovered the circulation of blood, publishing his groundbreaking findings in 1628. Antonie van Leeuwenhoek (1632–1723) discovered sperm cells, though some evidence suggests that Stefan Gäm may have observed them slightly earlier. Leeuwenhoek also made major contributions to microbiology by identifying protozoa and bacteria.
In chemistry, Robert Boyle (1627-1691) became known as the “father of chemistry” for his work, particularly Boyle’s law, which states that at a constant temperature, the pressure of a gas is inversely proportional to its volume.
I’ve yet to mention the remarkable achievements in pure mathematics, which were crucial to the development of the physical sciences. In 1614, John Napier published his invention of logarithms. The field of analytical geometry emerged from the work of several mathematicians during the 17th century, with René Descartes contributing the most significant insights. Isaac Newton and Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz independently invented differential and integral calculus, which became a central tool for nearly all advanced mathematics.
These were some of the major breakthroughs in pure mathematics, but many other discoveries were equally important.
The consequences of these scientific advancements were far-reaching, completely changing the way educated people viewed the world. At the beginning of the century, Thomas Browne participated in witch trials; by the end of the century, such events would be utterly unthinkable. In Shakespeare’s time, people still viewed comets as mysterious omens. But after Newton published Principia in 1687, scientists recognized that comets, like planets, followed predictable orbits governed by the same laws of gravity. The power of the scientific laws took hold, rendering beliefs like magic and witchcraft unbelievable. By 1700, educated people had adopted a thoroughly modern worldview. In contrast, in 1600, most still viewed the world through a medieval lens—except for a few forward-thinking individuals.
Image: Galileo Facing the Roman Inquisition (1857)
Artist: Cristiano Banti
Source: Wikimedia Commons
License: Public domain
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