Lesson 3: What Historical Developments Influenced Modern Ideas of Individual Rights?

Lesson Objectives

When you have finished this lesson, you should  be able to

• explain the differences between classical republican and Judeo-Christian ideas about the importance of the individual,
• explain how certain historical developments influenced modern ideas about government, constitutionalism, and individual rights, and
• evaluate, take, and defend positions on approaches to theories of morality, the importance of the rise of capitalism, and how the Enlightenment inspired the Founders.