【正文】 )1 The Age of Reason↘(times new Roman 小三號)1．1Political and Economic Background↘(times new Roman 四號)Although the intellectual movement called “The Enlightenment” is usually associated with the 18th century, its source in fact can be traced much further. Europe of the 17th century was dominated by dogma and fanaticism. Working hand in hand, both church and state repressed any voices against clericalism or feudal privilege. Slavery was widely practiced, especially in the colonial plantations of the western hemisphere, and its cruelties were frequently defended by leading religious figures. The despotism of monarchs exercising great powers than any medieval king was supported by the doctrine of the “divine right of kings,” and scripture quoted to show that revolution was detested by God. As witchhunts prevailed in society and organizations trying to challenge the twin authorities of church and state were banned, the conflict between rulers and people sharpened. Religious oppression being the mainstream, trade and merce still gained development. With the wealth brought back from Asia and the Americas, a new class of merchants gradually rose into prominence in the 18th century, as were later called the bourgeois class. Great fortunes were made　in every town and the wave of prosperity brought a greater degree of selfconfidence to them. They became increasingly powerful in politics as well as in economy. These merchants had their own ideas about the life they desired and the world in which they wanted to live. They believed that their earnings were the fruits of their own hard work, unlike the inherited wealth of the aristocracy. They were also aware that the aristocracy living on their paid taxes while contributing nothing of value to society was reluctant to share any power with them, the real creator of national wealth. They were dissatisfied with the feudal lords and longed for more power from the King so that they could have free development. Intellectual SettingAt the same time, natural science made accelerated progress in the late 17th and the 18th century. It rendered an ideological weapon to the vanguards of the Enlightenment. Many philosophers were trying to seek truth and reason from the newlyemerging natural science. Rene Descartes, famous for his analytical geometry, believed that the only way to know the world and acquire knowledge is mathematical reasoning。 equal they are also in despotic governments: in the former, because they are everything。 that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. That, to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed。 Bacon proposed an induction method from particular to general and from specific to abstract。 in the latter, because they are nothing.” The Spirit of Law,BK,VI,.. Noticing a unitary government will probably lead to corruption and power abuse, in drafting the Constitution the founding fathers followed Montesquieu’s political principles in order to avoid a tyrannical government.Another concept embodied though not explicitly stated in the Constitution is the rule of law. “Wherever law ends, tyranny begins” The Second Treaties of Government, . Obviously, a balanced government requires that it should abide by law and hold itself accountable to the public. This basic requirement bining with a democratic system forms the framework of the Constitution. Governmental activities and interactions between government and people are all carried out under this framework. Since the state power to govern is given by those governed, any interference from government in relation to personal liberty, or property, is outlawed. The Bill of Rights (1791) Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof。 that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights。 Newton’s discovery of cosmic law and gravitation supported the Copernican system and opened enormous new fields in astronomy and physics. Besides, notable achievements were scored in botany, geography and medicine, which made more and more people convinced of human’s ability to conquer the natu