Answer
Mendelssohn's parents were deeply committed to the Enlightenment ideals of self-improvement and knowledge through education. They instilled these ideals in their children, and Mendelssohn embraced them enthusiastically. He read widely in German thought and literature, as well as in the Bible, and he studied the works of philosophers such as Leibniz and Kant. Mendelssohn also learned several languages, including Hebrew, Greek, Latin, and French.