Author Bio: This is a statement from an observer of the fall of the Bastille. The exact person is not known to history, but they would have been known as a person of France.
Date/Context: The date is obviously the fourteenth of July in 1789, since that is the day this historic revolutionary event occured. The context is the height of discontent in France. People are dying due to food shortages and economic conditions. The urban masses are demanding something be done, and today will be the day that change shall commence.
Summary: The text is giving a short description of the events that happened that day. It details the soldiers final willingness to stop the masses, that they cannot harm so many people. It describes the soldiers dragged through the streets, the assassinations, and the soldiers taken to the Grève. In the end it describes the King's reaction to what had happened. The text is mainly focusing on the events, and it serves it's purpose well by giving a little bit of info on all major actions that happened that day.
Key Quotes:
"After a few moments' silence the king said 'It is then a revolt.' 'No, sire,' replied the duke. 'It is a revolution.'"
Friday, May 26, 2017
Unit 6: Utopian Socialism
Author Bio: Robert Owen was the son of a saddle maker. He left school at the age of 9 to work in a draper's shop. When he was 18 he borrowed money and set up a small cotton mill in Manchester. Within 10 years of starting that he was very wealthy and the joint owner of the New Lanark mills.
Date: Utopian Socialism was written in 1816. It was delivered in the address on the opening of an "Institution for the Formation of Character".
Summary: In this writing there is a notable emphasis on morality as an essential ingredient of change. Also in the text there are principles listed. The first one states that there is the power of every individual to form his own character. Second, that the affections are at the command of the individual. Third, that it is necessary that a large portion of mankind should exist in ignorance and poverty, in order to secure to the remaining part such a degree of happiness as they now enjoy.
Quote: "Every society which exists at present, as well as every society which history records, has been formed and governed on a belief in the following notions, assumed as first principles."
Date: Utopian Socialism was written in 1816. It was delivered in the address on the opening of an "Institution for the Formation of Character".
Summary: In this writing there is a notable emphasis on morality as an essential ingredient of change. Also in the text there are principles listed. The first one states that there is the power of every individual to form his own character. Second, that the affections are at the command of the individual. Third, that it is necessary that a large portion of mankind should exist in ignorance and poverty, in order to secure to the remaining part such a degree of happiness as they now enjoy.
Quote: "Every society which exists at present, as well as every society which history records, has been formed and governed on a belief in the following notions, assumed as first principles."
Unit 6 PDP- The Decleration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen
Author Bio: The declaration of the rights of man and of citizen was issued by the National Assembly which were influenced by Thomas Jefferson and the General Lafayette.
Time Period: The document was passed during the French Revolution in 1789 which was a time where human and civil rights were important.
Summary: The concepts in the Declaration come from the philosophical and political duties of the Enlightenment, such as individualism, the social contract , and the separation of powers. As can be seen in the texts, the French declaration was heavily influenced by the political philosophy of the Enlightenment and principles of human rights as was the U.S. Declaration of Independence which preceded it (4 July 1776).
Quotes: "Men are born and remain free and equal in rights. Social distinctions may be founded only upon the general good."
"The aim of all political association is the preservation of the natural and imprescriptible rights of man. These rights are liberty, property, security, and resistance to oppression"
Time Period: The document was passed during the French Revolution in 1789 which was a time where human and civil rights were important.
Summary: The concepts in the Declaration come from the philosophical and political duties of the Enlightenment, such as individualism, the social contract , and the separation of powers. As can be seen in the texts, the French declaration was heavily influenced by the political philosophy of the Enlightenment and principles of human rights as was the U.S. Declaration of Independence which preceded it (4 July 1776).
Quotes: "Men are born and remain free and equal in rights. Social distinctions may be founded only upon the general good."
"The aim of all political association is the preservation of the natural and imprescriptible rights of man. These rights are liberty, property, security, and resistance to oppression"
Unit 5: The Grievances of Carcassonne
Author Bio: This writing is from the representatives of the Third Estate in Carcassonne. Carcassonne is located in Southern France. The author of the document is unknown to historians today. It is likely that the writer originated from the bourgeoisie and spoke on behalf of the people in the Third Estate. It addresses their wants and necessities in regards to how France should be governed.
Date Context: "Grievances of Carcassonne" is from James H. Robinson and Charles A. Beard's Readings in Modern History, which was published in 1908.
Summary: The writing specifically addresses concerns as to how the people of the Third Estate feel France should be governed. It includes topics such as religion, equality, and civil liberties. At first it requests that the king ban all public worship that is not Roman Catholicism. The author also tends to criticize the king and the current state of government in France.
Thursday, May 25, 2017
Unit 5 - "An End to the Woes of Anarchy"
Author Bio: The author of "An End to the Woes of Anarchy, Napoleon Bonaparte, was a French military and political leader and he became more well known during the French Revolution. He was emperor of France from 1804 to 1814 and Napoleon dominated much of Europe during his reign. He won most of the wars that he fought and helped build up a large empire until the collapse of it. He is known as one of the greatest commanders in history and his legacy as a political and military leader continue on.
Context/Background: "An End to the Woes of Anarchy" was written during the French Revolution, which then leads to the uprising of Napoleon Bonaparte. France was in a state of turmoil and Napoleon saw this as an opportunity to gain control of France and fix the problems France faced. He wanted to establish a government that was favored by the people, however he still wanted to be in complete control of this government he wanted to create. By still wanting absolute power, Napoleon created more of a dictatorship in France, than a government that favored the people.
Summary: Napoleon thought his duties once he assumed the throne of France were to establish the destinies of France, determine the fate of the people in France, ensure stability and order, and end anarchy in France. Also, by gaining the throne Napoleon states he is done with Italy, and wants to let the people in France create their own fate, thus honoring the government and himself.
Key Quotes:
Context/Background: "An End to the Woes of Anarchy" was written during the French Revolution, which then leads to the uprising of Napoleon Bonaparte. France was in a state of turmoil and Napoleon saw this as an opportunity to gain control of France and fix the problems France faced. He wanted to establish a government that was favored by the people, however he still wanted to be in complete control of this government he wanted to create. By still wanting absolute power, Napoleon created more of a dictatorship in France, than a government that favored the people.
Summary: Napoleon thought his duties once he assumed the throne of France were to establish the destinies of France, determine the fate of the people in France, ensure stability and order, and end anarchy in France. Also, by gaining the throne Napoleon states he is done with Italy, and wants to let the people in France create their own fate, thus honoring the government and himself.
Key Quotes:
- "I gave you a prince of my own blood to govern you..."
- "...establishing the forever destinies of France, to determine the fate of all those people who formed a part of the empire, to insure for all the benefits of stability and order, and to put and end everywhere to the owes of anarchy."
Unit 5- Duties of Man
Author Bio: The author of "The Duties of Man" Giuseppe Mazzini, was an Italian author who wrote to promoting the unification of Italy in the 1830-40s. Mazzini was considered a liberal at the time for his nationalist ideas, but they nonetheless became important as Italy began merging into one united country by 1870. His works helped to lay the foundations for the constitutional monarchy that would be established in Italy.
Context/Background: During the 1800s, Italy and other European countries such as Germany were comprised of many small nation-states left over from the Middle Ages through the Renaissance and Enlightenment. As Europe grew into a more modern age, however, unification became increasingly prominent and was propagated to the masses by advocates such as Mazzini in order to raise nationalism. These hopes for a united Italy finally came about by 1870 through Count Camillo Cavour, whose efforts united the diverse regions and created the independent state of Italy.
Summary: Mazzini first states that a man's absolute primary duty is to humanity and his family, the next and hardly less important duty is to his country and the brotherhood and unity focused towards the higher goal of a united country. He declares that united, independent countries are the highest order of nation, and what God originally intended before they were corrupted by greedy monarchs. The "Divine design" of unity will, Mazzini writes, transcend class and monarchy to unite all people of the country in harmony. The ideal nation would be one whose people are united by language, economic tendencies, culture, and history. When the people of a country are united together in brotherhood, this heavenly purpose can be fulfilled.
Important Quote: "O my brother, love your Country! Our country is our Home, the house that God has given us, placing therein a numerous family that loves us, and whom we love... Our country is our common workshop, whence the products of our activity are sent forth for the benefit of the whole world."
Unit 5: "Virtue and Terror"
Unit 5- “Virtue and Terror”
Author Bio: Author- Maximilien Robespierre (ca. 1758-1794) - French lawyer and later politician who was born in Arras, France; he had an important and influential role in The French Revolution and the Reign of Terror. During the French Revolution he advocated for universal male suffrage in France, the abolishment of slavery in the French colonies and played a major role in executing King Louis XVI, helping to pave the way for the establishment of the first French republic. He is arguably best known for his notorious role in the Region of Terror in which Robespierre used the Committee of Public Safety to help cement a totalitarian police state in France where thousands upon thousands of people were executed as supposed traitors to the Revolution.
Speaker: Maximilien Robespierre
Date/Context: February 5th, 1794, Maximilien Robespierre delivered a speech to the National Convention in order to convince them of the reasons for the need to execute massive amounts of suspected traitors to the Revolution and to establish a totalitarian regime that would squash out any future opposers to the Revolution and the high set of moral principles and values that is at the very heart of the revolution.
Summary: Maximilien Robespierre believes that the only way to truly achieve the virtues of the French Revolution (the virtues being of course Liberté, égalité, fraternité) is through the necessary evil of terror. Virtue and terror go hand in hand in defense against the tyranny of the monarch and to fulfill justice for the people of France. In order to eliminate any remaining traces of the monarchy, you need to use terror to fully eradicate the notion of absolute power over the people of France. In peacetime, the strength of government is in virtue, however the strength of a government in a time of revolution is determined by both virtue and terror. In conclusion, Robespierre is declaring that terror and virtue are interconnected with each other, terror is needed to demolish any remaining influence of the monarchy, and most importantly terror and virtue play a pivotal role in maintaining liberty, equality, and justice in the time of revolution.
Key Quotations:
“. . . we want to fulfill the wishes of nature, accomplish the destiny of humanity, keep the promises of philosophy, absolve Providence from the long reign of crime and tyranny.”
“If the strength of popular government in peacetime is virtue, the strength of popular government in revolution is both virtue and terror; terror without virtue as disastrous, virtue without terror is powerless.”
“The government of revolution is the despotism of liberty against tyranny.”
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