Final answer:
Rationalism and individualism, key ideas from the Enlightenment, created a philosophical foundation for the American and French Revolutions by questioning traditional authority and emphasizing personal liberty.
Step-by-step explanation:
The ideas of rationalism and individualism played pivotal roles in the revolutions of the American colonies and France by providing a philosophical justification for challenging and ultimately overthrowing established governments.
Rationalism, which asserts that reason is the primary source of knowledge and justification for authority, laid the groundwork for questioning the legitimacy of traditional monarchy and divine right.
Individualism, emphasizing the importance of the individual and the pursuit of personal liberty, further fueled the desire for a political system that protected the rights of individuals against oppressive governments.
Enlightenment thinkers like John Locke influenced the American Founding Fathers, who saw a government's duty as serving the people. In his work 'Common Sense,' Thomas Paine articulated that equality was a natural right and the monarch's role was questionable if it didn't benefit its subjects.
In France, Enlightenment ideas promoted by philosophers such as Montesquieu led to demands for a constitutional monarchy and eventually a revolution fueled by the principles of liberty, equality, and brotherhood.