The French Revolution: The Prototype of Revolutions

‘Revolution’ is an omnipresent term we have come to take for granted in modern society, but its origins are deeply rooted in historical concerns. Through examining the political, economic and social effects of the French Revolution, it can be defined as destroying the current social order to accomplish what had never been achieved before, leaving far-reaching and permanent consequences for the future with the aim of improving society in general.

Firstly, “revolution” can be defined as destroying or overturning the known social order to create a newer and better one for good. While there are many debates about the causes of the revolution, what is really more important for defining revolution are the changes it brought about for Europe. It was the first time that feudalism and the system of privilege had been abolished.

The society where the clergy, the nobles, and the ordinary people had different privileges, such as exemption from taxation, was suddenly overturned in this violent upheaval. With the accepted way of being suddenly destroyed, people felt incredibly displaced about their role in society; yet at the same time it created a sense of “possibilism”, the belief that anything can happen in the post-revolutionary period, instilling hope. Suddenly, men’s rights were affirmed in the Declaration of the Rights of Men and the Citizen, a concept that has lasted until now, being the basis of international human rights law.

What would have been even more unsettling was the fact that the long established traditions of hereditary absolute monarchy and religious sovereignty were overthrown, with the king himself guillotined for treason, raising questions about the validity of the governmental structure: if the king can be a traitor to the country, how can a monarch ensure the public will is met?

It is this notion which caused the authorities of other nations to fear for their own security, and indeed the French Revolution began the chain of events which led to revolutions upon revolutions, such as 1848, the year of revolutions for Italian unification. Thus, it can be seen that revolution is a permanent overturn of social order that extends its power beyond politics – it recreates the people’s way of thinking by giving them a sense of possibilism, causing other nations to follow suit.

In order for a revolution to be accomplished, however, there must necessarily be sacrifices and destructions made to fulfill its true definition, for if remnants of the old regime remained men could easily revert back to that, finding it more comforting because that is what they have known their whole lives. The French Revolution exemplified this. The storming of the Bastille was only the prelude to the violent reign of Terror which dominated under leaders like Robespierre.