French language

Background to the Revolution: In order to understand the origins of the French Revolution, it is important to first understand what in fact a revolution is and the two main factors which trigger it. A revolution is primarily any change that takes place in the socio-economic and political setup of a country or society, over a relatively short period of time. According to Karl Marx, the nature of a state is simple. It is, he said, ‘but a committee for managing the whole affairs of the bourgeoisie…

The Enlightenment movement influenced the departure from a monarchy and religious government for France and served as a catalyst in the French Revolution. The Enlightenment was the embodiment of criticism of government and society. The ideas of the French Enlightenment were secular, scientific, critical, and skeptical. It promoted reasoning, reform, and freedom. When King Louis XVI agreed to call the Estates General in 1788, one question remained, Would the assembly vote by order or head? Abbé…

Eugen Weber, author of Peasants into Frenchmen, examined how rural, French peasant communities transformed between 1870-1914. Urban travelers who passed through these communities often encountered people who they considered to be backward who spoke different languages and believed in various magical powers. Weber’s thesis was that the incredible change that swept through the French countryside occurred roughly forty years or so prior to World War I. France only became a unified nation when the…

monarchy and attempted to bring about social progress through peaceful means like changes to the law. The explosion of the French population and food shortages for the lower classes created famine conditions, exacerbated by the lavish lifestyles enjoyed by the upper class and royals. The lack of social mobility within French society crushed the hopes of millions of French commoners for a better life. Finally, the constant war with other countries drained away financial resources that were…

fought viciously to protect themselves; however, a chain of events ended up dislodging their grip over the French people. The creation of the National Assembly, the storming of the Bastille and the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen are three essential and extremely consequential events during the ‘moderate’ phase of the French Revolution for they convey the restlessness of the French people, above all those of Third Estate,…

The language of political revolutions has guided other groups in their movement toward change. Documents of political revolution such as The Declaration of Independence and The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen have had a major influence on the women’s rights campaign and documents written in support of their cause. The documents are similar in language, organization, and overall idea of laws that should be enforced in society. Although these documents were written in different…

Spanish by forced labor and diseases. With very little of the indigenous people surviving, Hispaniola became a part of the Spanish rule that was forgotten. The modern Haitian American culture has pulled several cultural influences from the Spanish, French, African, and other Caribbean cultures…

extensive knowledge about the roles women played throughout history. Her book, titled Blood Sisters: The French Revolution in Women’s Memory, lets you see the impact that women had in the French Revolution. Published in 1993 by BasicBooks, Blood Sisters is a compilation and analysis of nearly one hundred memoirs, all written by women. The book focuses on giving a different perspective to the French Revolution. Because men wrote most memoirs at that time, the women featured share their side of…

constitutionalism and individual rights as a result of the French monarchial structure crumbling. Although the ideals of constitutionalism and individual rights were already present as seen in the American revolution a decade earlier, the impact of the French revolution was the through the creation of the middle class and nationalism in European society. Unlike other revolutions at the time, the French revolution was ignited due to the collapse of the French economy as a result of the large debt…

successful performers, Americans did not appreciate her as much due to her race. This encouraged her to become active in the Civil Rights Movement, including talking at the March on Washington. She also made her mark on history by working for the French Resistance during World War II. Joan of Arc (1412 – 1431) Well-known fact: She was a war hero. Joan of Arc is a war hero? Certainly, but most people don’t realize that she claimed holy voices are what inspired her to fight for France beginning at…