BF190 Lecture 4: Modernity
Document Summary
Modernity describes a historical period in social and cultural development in which traditional feudal relations give way to secularism, rationalism and capitalist economics. While we arguably live in a post-modern world, the structures and forces that characterize modernity continue to impact our lives on a daily basis: concepts such as modern democracy, modern science, and capitalism itself are clearly still with us. And while the origins of modernity can largely be traced to transformations in particular western european societies and cultures, modern concepts have indelibly structured the global society in which we now find ourselves. As such, understanding modernity is vital to understanding our place in the here and now. Secularism - the principle of separating the church from the state. Four traits of modernity: the dominance of secular (non-religious) forms of political power and authority and conceptions of sovereignty and legitimacy, operating within defined territorial boundaries, which are characteristic of the large, complex structures of the modern nation-state.