Enlightenment thinkers focused on reason, individualism, and skepticism of traditional authorities. They emphasized rational thought as the pathway to knowledge and progress, promoting ideas like liberty, justice, and the social contract. Philosophers such as John Locke, Voltaire, and Rousseau challenged existing societal norms, advocating for human rights and government by consent. Their intellectual movement laid the groundwork for modern democracy, scientific inquiry, and secular governance, ultimately influencing revolutions and reform movements across Europe and the Americas.