The Enlightenment Period (Age of Reason), began in the late 17th century. It was a cultural movement that inspired people to become intellectual. Many people see John Locke as the creator, instigator, and motivator of this intellectual revolution. There are 5 major factors that are involved in the Enlightenment; reason, questioning authority, natural laws, human progress, equality, and liberty and freedom. In this essay I will talk about John Locke's contributions and how the 5 factors created the Enlightenment. During the mid 17th century, the big three power movers were the monarchy, aristocracy, and the Church. They had complete control over markets, land, and politics. The populations were essentially indentured servants indebted to landowners and owing taxes to the monarchy. There was no reasoning as to why these corporations/organizations were in power, sure there was divine right and other gifts given from god to certain endowed people, but that is not reasoning because you can't have reasoning when it comes to god or religion. There reasoning is blind faith. John Locke opened the floodgates to reasoning and therefore called this era the Enlightenment. Instead of focusing on doing "good for the church and allowing monarchy to exist, he challenged the role of those in power not by reasoning with religion, but reasoning with a basis of what is good for the people. So instead of saying "the king is good because he has divine right." Locke put a twist on it and said " How is the king benefiting the good of the people . John Locke's views on the state of nature are a key component to the progress of the enlightenment. He believed that we are born into a state of perfect freedom,that one cannot only rule over another by divine right but by the talents that you learn, and that no one can harm another in their endeavors. Locke's famous phrase is "Tabula Rasa" meaning, "clean slate," he believed that everyone was equal and th