Students’ Questions about History Page 24

A gentleman is someone who is virtuous and honorable. Confucius redefined the term gentleman to mean someone who is virtuous, honorable, and has a strong sense of propriety.

Lao Tzu believed in the power of the individual to create change and in the importance of living in harmony with the natural world.

Lao Tzu’s philosophy is based on the idea that the world is constantly changing and that people should go with the flow instead of resisting it.

John Locke disagreed with Hobbes social contract because he believed that people were born with natural rights and that the government should protect these rights.

Enlightenment was the precondition for Kant’s philosophy. Kant believed that enlightenment was the process of coming out of one’s own self-incurred immaturity.

Aristotle is known for being a renowned philosopher and scientist. He is also known for his work in ethics and politics.

In his 1795 essay toward perpetual peace, philosopher Immanuel Kant makes the observation that wars are not caused by a lack of love of one’s country, but by a love of one’s own country more than that of others.

John Locke believed in Pantheism, which is the belief that God is present in everything and that everything is a part of God.

Rene Descartes discovered that the mind and body were two separate entities. He also believed that the mind was a nonphysical substance that interacted with the physical body.

Confucius believed that people should follow the principles of ren and yi.