Lesson 3

Intellectual revolution of society

What is an intellectual revolution?

- In science and technology intellectual revolutions refer to series of events that led to the
emergence of modern science and more current scientific thinking across critical periods
history

Intellectual revolutions as paradigm shifts

- They resulted from a renewed and enlightened understanding of how the universe behaves
- They challenged long held views about the nature of the universe. It is where the scientific
beliefs that have been widely embraced and accepted by the people were challenged and
opposed
- Thus these revolutions were often met with huge resistance and controversy, especially
during their onset

Jean Sylvain Bailley’s

Two-stage process

1. Sweeping away the old

2. Establishing the new

Foci of this lesson

- Copernican revolution
- Darwinian revolution
- Freudian revolution

Nicolaus Copernicus

(1473-1543)

- Born: 19 February 1473

- Profession: mathematician, Physician, Astronomer
- Works written: Commentariolus De revoolutionbus orbium coeslestium (on the revolution of
the heavenly spheres)
Copernican Revolution

- It refers to the 16th century paradigm shift named after polish mathematician and
astronomer. Nicolaus Copernicus. Copernicus formulated the heliocentric model of the
universe. At the time the geocentric model of Ptolemy was the widely held belief about the
universe (Ptolemaic model)

Copernican Revolution

- The idea that is the sun and not the earth that is at the center of the universe proved to be
unsetting in the beginning. In fact the heliocentric model was met with huge resistance
primarily from the church who accused Copernicus of being a heretic. At the time, idea that
it is not the earth, and, by extension not man too, that is at the center of all creation proved
to be uncomfortable

Copernicus books De Revolutionibus was published in 1543 (the year Copernicus died)

- Included an anonymous preface that stated that the new model was merely an aid to
calculation and suggested that Copernicus really did not believe it

- The contribution of the Copernican revolution is until today far reaching. It served as a
catalyst to sway scientific thinking away from age long views about the position of the earth
relative to an enlightened understanding of the universe. This marked the beginning of the
birth of modern astronomy
Darwinian revolution

- February 12, 1809 ,April 19, 1882)

- English naturalist whose scientific theory of evolution by natural selection became the
foundation of modern evolutionary studies
- Drawing fervent interest in the natural word began as a young boy and continued unabated
throughout his remarkable career

What influenced Darwin’s ideas about species?

- During the years surveying mission in which Darwin served aboard the royal navy big HMS
eagle as a naturalist he became intrigued by Charles Lyell’s Principles of Geology
- In principles of geology, Lyell presents arguments in support of uniformitarianism the theory
that observable process occurring in the present are sufficient to explain the formation of all
geological features over great time periods
- Darwin eventually applied the idea that ongoing observable processes can account for the
variety of features in the natural world to living system
- Departing the coast of south America the beagle arrived at the Galapagos Island, where
Darwin would make his most famous observations of species, including the 14 or so closely
related species of finches now commonly referred to as Darwin’s finches

- In on the origin of species. Drawing constructed a logical argument for the mechanism of
natural selection based on two observations and inferences.

1. Individuals in a species vary to some degree in traits

2. A species produces more offspring than actually survives to mature and reproduce

- Individuals with traits better suited to their environments are more likely to survive and
reproduce, therefore their offspring are more likely to inherit these adaptive traits

Survival of the fittest

Darwinian Revolution

- Darwinian revolution benefitted from earlier scientific revolutions in the 16 th and 17th
century in that it was guided by confidence in human reason’s ability to explain phenomena
in the universe
- For his part, Darwin gathered evidence pointing to what is now known as natural selection
an evolutionary process by which organisms, including humans, inherit, develop and adapt
traits that favored survival and reproduction
- Darwin theory of evolution was, of course, met with resistance. Critics accused the theory of
being either short in accounting for the broad and complex evolutionary process or that the
 functional design of organisms was a manifestation of an omniscient God that of a theory of
evolution

FREUDIAN REVOLUTION

- Sigmund Freud
- May 6-1856 – September 23, 1939
- Physiologist, Medical Doctor, and father of psychoanalysis
- Id, Ego and superego

Freudian Revolution

- Sigmund Freud is credited for stirring as 20 th century scientific revolution named after him,
the Freudian revolution
- Psychoanalysis is at the center of this revolution
- Freud developed psychoanalysis is a scientific method of understanding inner and
unconscious conflict springing from free associations, dreams and fantasies to the individual

DUALITY OF A MAN

- According to Freud the mind tries to keep away evil thoughts and desires which are then
banished to the unconscious mind.
- In Freudian theory, a Jekyll and Hyde situation in real life creates a dual personality in one
person
 - Duality refers to having two parts, often with opposite meaning like a duality of good and
evil
- If there are two sides to a coin, metaphorically speaking, there a duality peace and war love
and hate up and down, and lack and white are dualities

Freudian revolution

- Scientists working on a biological approach to human behavior criticized psychoanalysis for

lacking vitality and bordering unscientific as a theory. Particularly the notion that all humas
are destined to exhibit. Oedipus and Electra complexes, i.e.,. sexual desire to the opposite
sex parent and exclusion of the same sex parent, seemed to not e supported by empirical
data
- Amidst the controversy, Freud’s Psychoanalysis is widely given credit for dominating
psychotherapeutic practice from the early 20 th century. Psychodynamic therapies that treat
a myriad of psychological disorders remain still largely informed by Freud’s Work on
psychoanalysis