The significance of the Age of Enlightenment for modern thought lay in its promotion of reason, individualism, and critical inquiry over tradition and superstition. Emerging in the 17th and 18th centuries, this intellectual movement emphasized the power of human reason to understand and shape the world. Enlightenment thinkers, such as John Locke, Voltaire, and Immanuel Kant, challenged established authorities and proposed ideas about government, rights, and ethics that influenced modern democratic principles. The Enlightenment laid the groundwork for revolutions and social change, impacting fields like science, philosophy, and politics, and shaping contemporary notions of freedom and equality.