The primary focus of the Enlightenment, an intellectual movement of the 17th and 18th centuries, was the promotion of reason, science, and individual rights. Enlightenment philosophers sought to challenge traditional authority and advocate for rational thought and empirical evidence as means of understanding the world. Figures like John Locke, Voltaire, and Jean-Jacques Rousseau emphasized concepts such as liberty, equality, and the social contract, which influenced political and social structures. This period fostered ideas about democracy, human rights, and secular governance, significantly impacting the development of modern Western political thought and leading to revolutions and reforms around the world.