Enlightenment(启蒙运动)

Enlightenment : the Spirit of Laws

We all know that Enlightenment was a movement launched by a group of progressive intellectuals in the 18th century to fight against class inequality ,stagnation,prejudice and other survivals of feudalism.Beginning in France,it rapidly spread throughout the European world,and its ideas continue to be influential in modern times. Among those ideas,I’m profoundly impressed by the spirit of laws,which was put forward by Montesquieu,the initiator and the culminant figure of the decentralization theory in the West.

Montesquieu's fame rests above everything else on his political theory of the separation of powers.His principle of parity of three powers,which is embodied completely and developed creatively in the constitution of the United States ,makes American Government the most democratic and liberal government in the rule of law.And his thought of power balance is the origin of Sun Yat-sen's five-power constitution.Most of all,his ideas make people have a much stronger sense of law.

Each era finds its own “law”.In medieval Europe,people believe in the pope,the divine agent of God;In ancient China,emperors had boundless power ,everything they said

becoming a legal basis.The key point is that those “laws” were unfair,which safeguarded openly the rulers ' privilege in order to maintain the order among social classes and actually trampled on justice.But for Montesquieu,all those who have powers tend to abuse them for their self - interest,so we need to restrict power with the right.I think it’s actually the beginning of “all are equal before the law”,which is taken for granted nowadays.

Since then,we see a general improvement of citizens’ legal consciousness.While the privileged class stubbornly maintained its position,the French Revolution effected great changes in the law,encompassing the fall of the House of Bourbon;The Declaration of Independence was made in America in 1776,claiming that all men are created equal and we are endowed with inalienable rights;Sun Yat-sen led the Revolution of 1911 to remove the millennia old autocratic monarchy in China……Big events like these constitute the modern history of the world.

As for the influence in daily life,almost everyone support the idea of isonomy in the unconscious.We admit that all citizens have the responsibility to obey the laws and the right to pursuit fairness and justice.No matter how wealthy you are or how

great authority you have,once you break the law ,you will be punished justly.We are not afraid of seeking legal recourse when it’s needed.The spirit of laws has found its way into our everyday life,making the law-based society a reality.Though the legal system still need self-improvement,I believe that with the ideas of the Enlightenment thinkers, the experience gained from the modern history and unremitting efforts by each generation,we can finally realize the rule of law.