In this activity, you will discuss the relationship between the scientific revolution and the enlightenment. would the enlightenment have been possible if the scientific revolution had not occurred first?

The Scientific Revolution was one of the factors that caused the Enlightenment. However, it depends on which entities of the Enlightenment you are focusing on.

When we think of the Enlightenment, we tend to think of philosophers first. This is because the Enlightenment was not a purely scientific movement, but more of a wide-ranged intellectual time. Ideas from thinkers like Galileo, Copernicus, Isaac Newton, etc, were produced in the Scientific Revolution, and merely built off of in the Enlightenment.

You see, thinkers during the Enlightenment wanted to question the many beliefs that were set during the Dark Ages, which also meant going up against large, powerful opposition, like the Catholic Church. The ideas that came out of the Scientific Revolution gave Enlightenment thinkers the facts they would use when creating their theories. Armed with these facts, they could debunk the ridiculous theories that others had set in the past.

So finally, to answer your question, it is probable that the Enlightenment would have started nevertheless, but it is unlikely that the ideas of its thinkers would have made such an impact without the Scientific Revolution.

Hope it helps!

b.provides a written record of the transaction