Every era has a zeitgeist, a defining spirit or mood, and the 17th to the 18th century was under the sway of the Enlightenment period, a remarkable epoch that was a pendulum swing from faith-based decision making towards reason, logic, and empirical evidence.

Started principally in Europe, in the backdrop of an age marked by the Scientific Revolution, religious conflicts, discoveries of new lands, societies were beginning to question established norms, customs, and authorities. The Enlightenment - or Age of Reason as it's often called - was a philosophical movement that sought to shine the light of scrutiny on every facet of life, urging the utilization of rationality to dissect even the most holy scriptures or the monarchy's rule of law. Unlike its predecessor, the Renaissance, which gravitated around artistic and cultural transformation, the Enlightenment prioritized intellectual and philosophical progress.

At the epicenter of this intellectual revolution was the newfound emphasis on human reason. Enlightenment thinkers proposed that reasoning could lead to concrete, universal truths applicable irrespective of the context. Logic and evidence-based arguments were wielded like weapons to challenge dogmas and ignorance, leading to a heightened spirit of intellectual inquiry.

The potent concepts of reason and logic weren't anomalous constructs standing in isolation; they became integral elements weaving themselves into the societal fabric. They fueled an era of unprecedented progress, leading to advancements in myriad domains such as political science, the physical sciences, economics, and more. Civil liberties that we today hold sacrosanct, like freedom of speech and equality, are the fruits harvested from the Enlightenment's seeds.

The impact wasn't limited within academia's ivory towers; it resonated within the common populace through the advent of print media, triggering a major shift in societal attitudes. It led to a wave of skepticism towards religious institutions, as thinkers began arguing for the separation of Church and State. Religion, once viewed as a monolithic, unerring entity, was now subjected to human reason's litmus test, leading to religious skepticism and the growth of deism.

Underlying the Enlightenment was a scrupulous quest for knowledge, an intellectual journey that took place both subjectively and empirically, rattling the foundations of long-help assumptions. The desire to classify, clarify, and quantify knowledge brought science into limelight. Aided by advancements in technology, literary transcendence, and a shift in social sentiment, deduction and observation became the preferred process of probing into the mysteries that shrouded existence.

Concisely, the Enlightenment was an epoch that changed the trajectory of human thought and societal frameworks. It championed reason, logic and progress, spurred scientific exploration, poked holes in blind faith and birthed an era where knowledge was open to public, debunking the divine right to it. Its resonances are still apparent in the modern world, both practically and ideologically. It's a luminary beacon that guides us even today, illuminating the significance of rationality, logic, and enlightenment.