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Social Contract
The social contract is an idea in philosophy that at some real or hypothetical point in the past, humans left the state of nature to join together and form societies by mutually agreeing which rights they would enjoy and how they would be...
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Skadi & Njord
Artist's depiction of the Norse goddess Skadi and her husband, the god Njord, on their way to Njord's home of Nóatún. Although Skadi enjoys the mountains where she hunts and skis and Njord likes his dark, damp cave by the water, they try...
Definition
State of Nature
The state of nature is an idea which became especially popular with certain philosophers during the Enlightenment, notably Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679), John Locke (1632-1704), and Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778). It refers to a state of existence...
Definition
Utilitarianism
Utilitarianism is a philosophy founded by Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832) and then extended by other thinkers, notably John Stuart Mill (1806-1873). Utilitarianism involves the greatest happiness principle, which holds that a law or action is...
Definition
Jeremy Bentham
Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832) was an English philosopher and liberal social reformer best known as the founder of utilitarianism based on the greatest happiness principle, that is, rationally judging the success of a law by considering how many...
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Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Portrait
A c. 1700 portrait of Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz (1646-1716), the German polymath. Painted by Johann Friedrich Wentzel (1670–1729).
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Castle Philippsruhe
The Philippsruhe Castle on the Main is the oldest baroque castle east of the Rhine, built according to the French model. The construction of the main building began in 1701 on behalf of Count Philipp Reinhard. The castle complex is based...
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Coronation of Charlemagne
The Coronation of Charlemagne, 1861 CE, by Friedrich Kaulbach (1822-1903 CE). The painting depicts the crowning of Charlemange (742-814 CE) as Holy Roman Emperor by Pope Leo III (r. 795-816 CE) on 25 December 800 CE. From the collection...
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Martin Luther
Portrait of Martin Luther (l. 1483-1546 CE) by Lucas Cranach The Elder, 1529 CE
The painting hangs in the choir of St. Anne's Church, Augsburg, next to a portrait of the Elector Johann Friedrich of Saxony.
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The Return of the Crusader
The Return of the Crusader by Karl Friedrich Lessing, 1808–1880 CE. (Rheinisches Landesmuseum Bonn, Germany)