French Revolution

As nicely phrased from the textbook, "The Revolution in France overthrew the hierarchy, the aristocracy, and the monarchy, and the whole of that peculiarly insolent and oppressive system on which they were based" (p. 36).  This was a time for the low and middle class people to overthrow the corrupted monarchy and higher class.  During this time, there were several writers that came out and expressed their views about the revolution.  Among those were Helen Williams, Edward Burke, Mary Wollstonecraft, and Thomas Paine.  Williams, Wollstonecraft, and Paine were supporters of the revolution but they were clear that it was not targeted mainly towards the monarchy.  Rather, it was streamed around political principles such as liberty and equality.  Thomas Paine wrote that "The Monarch and the Monarchy were distinct and separate things; and it was against the established despotism of the latter, and not against the person or the principles of the former, that the revolution commenced, and the Revolution has been carried" (p.646).  Paine is explaining that the important matter is not the Monarchy family but rather the principles of the human rights of the people.Williams reenforces this idea by stating that "the foundation [for the revolution] was laid in wisdom" (p.46).In agreement with Paine and Williams, Wollstonecraft argues that humans are "rational creatures, who are raised above brute creation by their improvable faculties" (p. 58). Wollstonecraft is explaining that humans inherited rights when they were first conceived on earth.  Paine also reiterates this concept when he referenced the book of Genesis to help critique the aristocracy.  
 
In contrary, Burke's was against the revolution and the idea that lower classes were attacking the monarchy.  Burke states that "They have a right to the fruits of their industry; and to the means of making their industry fruitful.  They have a right to the acquisitions of their parents; to the nourishment and improvement of their offspring; to instruction in life and to consolation in death" (p.50).  In other words, Burke believes that the royal family or the financially well-established people should be allowed to be above other people on the social ladder.  In all, "all men have equal rights; but not equal things" (p. 50). I can understand where Burke is coming from in his ideology, but there should definitely be  a political power to balance out society at the time of the French Revolution.  There were many people starving and inflation did not help the matter either.  The monarchy family should not be allowed to sit and ignore the fact that their people were in bad condition.  If I had to pick a side in this argument, I would have to favor Williams, Wollstonecraft, and Paine's views.  Equality and liberty were the main arguments for the revolution.