Causes French Revolution Essay

Having pushed aside class conflict as the Revolution’s central dynamic, Furet succinctly posited his own theory that even before 1789 the monarchy was toothless.

Into that power vacuum, sailed Rousseau’s , a tract so powerful that its message eclipsed other ideologies and installed a potent logic—the absolute dominance of popular sovereignty.

The first half of the book lambasted the Marxist explanation for the Revolution, which Furet labeled a “catechism” with class struggle at its absolute, immutable center.

The twentieth-century Marxists who advocated this view saw themselves as the obvious heirs to the founding of the French republic, but Furet dismissed the Marxist interpretation as sheer fabrication.

From this fatal flaw eventually followed the Committee of Public Safety and the Terror.

Furet’s theory was novel: by reducing the Revolution to the Terror, and blaming all of it on the logic of popular sovereignty derived from Rousseau, he tied the philosophe directly to the Revolution.uses cookies to personalize content, tailor ads and improve the user experience. By using our site, you agree to our collection of information through the use of cookies. This, together with other factors, had led to an increase in the population of Europe unprecedented for several centuries: it doubled between 17.For France, which with 26 million inhabitants in 1789 was the most populated country of Europe, the problem was most acute. Google(); req('single_work'); $('.js-splash-single-step-signup-download-button').one('click', function(e){ req_and_ready('single_work', function() ); new c. Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article.In these accounts, Enlightenment notions of natural law provided the central justification for radicalizing the revolution as the decade proceeded.Beyond patriotism and rights, this essay also examines other competing discourses, especially those that challenged the church.A larger population created a greater demand for food and consumer goods.The discovery of new gold mines in Brazil had led to a general rise in prices throughout the West from about 1730, indicating a prosperous economic situation.