00:00mary shelley is widely known as the author of frankenstein or the modern prometheus a work
00:09often interpreted as a cautionary tale against unfettered scientific ambition
00:13in contrast her father the philosopher william godwin was a leading figure of the enlightenment
00:20a movement that championed progress through reason science and technology in his 1793 work
00:28inquire concerning political justice and its influence on general virtue and happiness
00:33godwin argued that human reason rather than political upheaval was the true engine of societal
00:39progress he posited that humans possess a unique capacity for self-control particularly over their
00:47passions which enables them to improve society for godwin rationalism was a potent instrument for
00:54forging a future with significantly less human suffering godwin is thus considered one of the
01:00foundational figures of the enlightenment another was the french nobleman and mathematician
01:06the marquis de condorcet a year after godwin's treatise condorcet published sketch for a historical
01:13picture of the progress of the human spirit in this work he predicted boundless human advancement
01:20driven by science and technology suggesting for instance that technology could allow for greater
01:26food production on less land to sustain a growing population and that international trade could
01:32mitigate scarcity the core ideas of godwin and condorcet underpin the humanist perspective of the
01:38enlightenment which held that humans were distinct and capable of shaping their own destiny through reason
01:44free from the absolute dictates of divine or natural authority despite being the daughter of william
01:51godwin and the feminist writer mary wollstonecraft mary shelley ultimately diverged from these enlightenment
01:57principles
01:57principles
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