Research Paper on:
America's Enlightenment Still Exists

Unformatted Sample Text from the Research Paper:
into modern American society, it was not been to the extent to which the ideals of the Enlightenment had been presented. The Enlightenment is a bit of an enigma  as it is not easily defined. It was a part of history that encompassed much of the world and took place during the time when America was about to achieve  independence. Major ideas were related to specific disciplines. For example, there were new ideas to emanate from religion, from science and from art and to a great extent, all of  these things were interrelated. At the same time, they were each distinct in their own right. Perhaps the greatest change was to step away from the dogmatic criterion that most  would use to run their lives. In essence, the Enlightenment reflected a new way of thinking. Rather than just embrace religion or philosophy or the one God concept, people were  beginning to think for themselves. Interestingly, this particular notion is seen today. This particular ideal was implemented to an extent, but not completely. In other words, most societies still embrace  religion unquestioningly. Although in the nineteenth century, Karl Marx would conclude that religion is the opiate of the people, to a great extent, people still cling to religious notions.  The observation made more than a century ago is still valid. Not only that, but religion is viewed as the key to living by many. It provides not only hope,  but direction. At the same time, the New Age movement of the latter part of the twentieth century is somewhat akin to the Enlightenment. Indeed, since the time of the  Enlightenment, to a small extent, people would question authority, and authority is often translated as being equated with the church. Hence, people would explore their own ideals. Today, there are