All SAT II World History Resources
Example Questions
Example Question #6 : Historic Figures Of The Enlightenment Era
How did the writings of Charles de Montesquieu in The Spirit of Laws impact the formation of the government of the United States?
None of these answers is correct; the Founding Fathers rejected the arguments found in The Spirit of Laws.
He argued in favor of strong and centralized government and his work encouraged the rejection of the Articles of Confederation.
He believed in federalism and the division of powers between a national and regional governments.
He advocated for the separation of powers within government and inspired the three branches of the United States' government.
He believed in inalienable rights for all citizens and inspired the Bill of Rights.
He advocated for the separation of powers within government and inspired the three branches of the United States' government.
Montesquieu is a famous Enlightenment philosopher who wrote in his seminal work The Spirit of Laws that, to protect against tyranny, a democratic government should be divided into separate branches: an executive branch to enforce the laws, a legislative branch to pass the laws, and a judicial branch to challenge the laws.
Example Question #7 : Historic Figures Of The Enlightenment Era
Which of these European leaders was considered an enlightened despot?
William Pitt the Elder
William Pitt the Younger
Napoleon Bonaparte
Catherine the Great
Giuseppe Garibaldi
Catherine the Great
Enlightened despotism (also called enlightened absolutism) was a form of absolute monarchy that existed in the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. The rulers, or enlightened despots, were heavily influenced by the ideas and theories spread by the Enlightenment thinkers of the time, particularly ideas concerning rationalism, freedom, and sponsorship of the arts and sciences. Of the European leaders listed in the answer choices, only Catherine the Great was considered an enlightened despot.
Example Question #8 : Historic Figures Of The Enlightenment Era
The Russian inventor Dmitri Mendeleev is most famous for __________.
inventing the system of calculus
turning lead into gold
his work on the periodic table
splitting the atom
his theory of relativity
his work on the periodic table
Mendeleev is most famous for his work in "perfecting" the periodic table of elements. His work allowed people to understand similarities and differences between chemical elements with greater clarity. The theory of relativity was an idea of Albert Einstein's, and Newton invented the system of calculus. Alchemy, the practice of trying to turn materials into precious metals, was very popular during the Scientific Revolution.
Example Question #9 : Historic Figures Of The Enlightenment Era
This Northern Renaissance artist is renowned for his woodcuts and theoretical writing, and is sometimes referred to as the "Da Vinci of the Northern Renaissance."
Jan Provost
Albrecht Durer
Erasmus
Jan van Eyck
Gerrit David
Albrecht Durer
Although slightly less revered in popular history, the Northern Renaissance was no less significant or accomplished than the Italian Renaissance. Albrecht Durer is probably the most famous of the Northern Renaissance artists. He is renowned for his woodcuts and his watercolors, as well as his theoretical writings on mathematics and perspective.
Example Question #31 : The Enlightenment Era
Isaac Newton and Gottfried Leibniz are the two men credited with __________.
Conclusively proving the heliocentric model of the solar system
Discovering the existence and significance of gravity
Discovering the theory of relativity
Inventing the mathematical system of calculus
First turning lead into gold using alchemy
Inventing the mathematical system of calculus
Isaac Newton and Gottfried Leibniz are two prominent Enlightenment Era scientists and mathematicians. Seemingly they both independently devised a system of calculus that allowed them to make calculations on things previously impossible. It is generally accepted that Newton invented calculus first, but as he did not publish this information for decades scholars have to rely on clues in his publications and on Newton's word (notoriously unreliable). The two men battled for acclaim for the invention during their lifetimes, but it is Newton who is most commonly remembered as the inventor of calculus (at least in the English speaking world), despite the fact that Leibniz was the first to publish on the matter. Calculus was vital to some of the scientific breakthroughs of Newton's lifetime and has been continued to be ever since.
Example Question #32 : The Enlightenment Era
The geocentric model of the universe was initially disproved by __________.
Francis Bacon
Isaac Newton
Galileo
Jan Huss
Nicholas Copernicus
Nicholas Copernicus
The geocentric model of the universe was originally developed by many ancient civilizations, and popularized by the Greek philosopher and scientist, Aristotle. It was widely accepted by scientific-minded individuals for over a thousand years. In the geocentric model, the Earth is at the center of the universe, and everything else orbits around it; however, in the sixteenth century, the Polish astronomer, Nicholas Copernicus, developed his theory that the sun was in fact the center of the universe. This event is called the Copernican Revolution, and his model was called the heliocentric model of the universe.
Example Question #33 : The Enlightenment Era
A Vindication on the Rights of Women, in which it is argued that women are not naturally inferior to men and should have equal rights in all areas of life, was written by which Enlightenment-Era philosopher?
Emily Pankhurst
Mary Shelley
Mary Wollstonecraft
Simone de Beauvoir
John Locke
Mary Wollstonecraft
Mary Wollstonecraft wrote A Vindication on the Rights of Women, in 1792. In the text she argues that women are not naturally inferior or less intelligent than men, but merely appear so because they were no allowed an education and were forced to be subservient to men. She imagines a society founded on reason and equality, in which women are given every right and opportunity that men are given.
Example Question #34 : The Enlightenment Era
This Enlightenment-Era philosopher wrote Candide and was primarily concerned with encouraging religious tolerance.
Thomas Hobbes
John Locke
Voltaire
Adam Smith
Descartes
Voltaire
Voltaire was an Enlightenment-Era philosopher who was most famous for his vehement attacks on the established religious orders—particularly the Catholic Church. He wrote passionately, advocating for freedom of religion and the separation of church and state. This naturally caused Voltaire to be condemned widely by the powers that be (although he was a good friend of Catherine the Great), and he had many causes to fear for his life, but he never stopped his polemical writings. His most famous work, Candide, is a scathing critique of the established order of the European world.
Example Question #35 : The Enlightenment Era
A Treatise of Human Nature and An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding are two of the most famous works of __________.
Jean Jacques Rousseau
David Hume
Diderot
Immanuel Kant
Voltaire
David Hume
A Treatise of Human Nature and An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding are two of the most famous works of the Scottish Enlightenment philosopher David Hume. Whilst you might not have recognized the works as immediately belonging to Hume, their titles ought to have been a clue. Hume was primarily concerned with understanding the relationship between human nature and human understanding. He was a particularly prominent supporter of empiricism and moral relativism.
Example Question #36 : The Enlightenment Era
Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations argues passionately in favor of __________.
Christian theocratic absolutism
Imperialism and nationalism
free-market Capitalism
Mercantilism
state-owned property
free-market Capitalism
Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations is the seminal economic text of the Enlightenment era. In it, Smith presents his arguments in favor of laissez-faire economics, or free-market Capitalism. The book was widely influential among the governments and thinkers of his era and continues to be influential to this day.
Certified Tutor