The conception of God and nature and of
the relation of man to both provided the 18th- century philosophers with their
faith in the worth and dignity of the individual man and the efficacy of human
reason. The 18th century was the moment in history when men experienced the
first flush and freshness of the idea that man is master of his own fate; the
moment in history, also, when this emancipating idea, not yet brought to the
harsh test of experience, could be accepted with unclouded optimism.
Never had the nature seemed less mysterious, more simply constructed, more
open and visible and eager to yield its secrets to common-sense questions. Never
had the nature of man seemed less perverse, or the intelligence and will of men
more pliable (yielding) to rational persuasion. Never had social and political
evils seemed so wholly the result of ignorance and superstition, or so easily
corrected by the spread of knowledge and the construction of social institutions
on a rational plan. The first task of political science was to
discover the natural rights of man, the second to devise the form of government
best suited to secure them. And for accomplishing this high task, for creating
and maintaining a society founded on justice and equality, the essential freedom
was freedom of the mind.
单选题
The initial words of this passage, "the conception of God and nature", refer certainly to ______ .