CHAPTER 2: INTELLECTUAL REVOLUTION THAT DEFINED SOCIETY

The idea of intellectual revolution is claimed to have started in ideas, and they are as follows: 1) Nicolaus Copernicus, 2) Charles
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Europe after the Middle Ages in the early 16 -18 Century. The Darwin, and 3) Sigmund Freud.
booming intellectual activities at that time brought about by invention
A. Copernican Revolution
of printing machine led to massive flow of information and
communication among the scholars of various fields of study. It was a Back to the Ancient Times, humans questioned what created
period of enlightenment by the developments in the fields of day and night. They wanted to know and understand the heavenly
philosophy, mathematics, astronomy, biology, physics, and chemistry bodies, the creation of the stars, the moon, the sun, and the planets.
which transformed the views of society about natural phenomenon. Humans were more intrigued about the outer space. The invention of
These developments resulted to the emergence of Modern Science the telescope eventually allowed people a glimpse of the heavenly
which enabled people to reflect, rethink, re-examine their beliefs, bodies.
perceptions, and way of life.
Using the telescope, the Greek philosophers and intellectuals
Intellectual revolution is believed to be the Golden Age wrote more about the planets as an attempt to explain the movements
characterized by people dedicated to pursue a scholarly life in science. of the heavenly bodies and their effects on humans and the world.
For introducing new ideas, many radical individuals were condemned Many philosophers agreed that the planet moved around in a circular
or sentenced to death for their faith, religious beliefs, and theological motion, and these movements created day and night. According to
views. There were many rulers and religious leaders who did not Claudius Ptolemy, a famous philosopher and an astronomer, the
accept the works of the scientists. But the new scientists persisted to planets, the moon, and the sun moved in a circular motion around the
satisfy their curiosity of the natural and physical world. Earth. Such revolution explained the existence of day and night. He
believed that the Earth is the center- a concept known as
Intellectual revolution is significantly indispensable in the
“geocentrism”.However, Nicolaus Copernicus, a Polish
development of human beings, transformation of the society, and the
mathematician and an astronomer, challenged the Ptolemaic model.
articulation of scientific ideas. Such development improved the
He introduced a new concept known as “heliocentrism”, which
conduct of scientific inquiry, experiments, research, and observations.
suggested that the center of the Solar System was not the Earth but
There are prominent scientists who are known of their revolutionary
the sun. This idea was rejected by the people and opposed by the
church. Copernicus was then declared a heretic because his teachings because God is the greatest scientist, everything started with God and
were contrary to what was accepted by the people and religion. There everything ends with God.
were astronomers who studied further and realized that the
C. Freudian Revolution
Copernican model simplified the orbits of the planets, and there were
issues that cannot be explained by the geocentric model. Latter, there In the late 19th Century, Sigmund Freud changed the human
were works that supported the Copernican model and it was perception of psychology with his revolutionary Theory of
eventually accepted to be true, correct, and valid. It was eventually Psychoanalysis, a study that explains human behaviour. According to
accepted by people and was called the birth of modern astronomy. him, there are many conscious and unconscious factors that influence
behaviour and emotions, and that personality is a product of three
B. Darwinian Revolution
opposing elements such as; the id, ego, and superego. Scientists
Charles Darwin, an English naturalist, a biologist, and a believed that psychoanalysis was more of philosophical and
geologist, published his book entitled, “On the Origin of the Species”. supernatural not scientific because the theory had no scientific basis,
He introduced the Theory of Evolution which postulated that man no empirical or experimental data to support it. However, despite
passes through a process of natural selection in which only the fittest criticism Freud continued to refine his work and explained that
would survive. He stated that organisms have the ability to adapt with psychoanalysis is a method of treating mental disorders, and it is a
the environment and would gradually change into something that study of human mind. Sometime later, his method of psychoanalysis
would be more competitive to survive, a process known as evolution. was proven to be effective means to understand some neurological
This theory is not accepted till this time by biblical scholars. It is conditions that were not recognized in the field of medicine. The
perceived contrary to what is written in the Bible, contradictory to the psychoanalysis theory was accepted by the scientists, scholars, and
teachings of the churches, and unacceptable to believers of God. God became widely accepted by the people, and it was then that
is the creator of the Universe, and who created man in His likeness. psychology as a discipline was considered a science.
This theory created conflicts since atheists believe the theory of
These revolutionary theories are just among the many
evolution as the origin of life while the religious and the faithful strongly
scientific ideas that transformed and shaped societies, beliefs, and
refute it till this day. The Theory of Evolution posited by Darwin ignited
ideas. These transformations and modifications brought to the varying
a huge debate between science and religion. Such debateshowever
perspectives and perceptionsof society are evidences that science and
concluded that there is no conflict between science and religion
technology are linked to humanity.