...The definition of a revolution is an “overthrow of government” or the “overthrow of a ruler or political system”. This term is generally used to describe an uprising by a disenchanted mass to overthrow existing ideology and practice and bring about major political, economic, social or cultural change in a society. Revolutions are mainly caused because of social and economic inequalities between classes causing the oppressed masses to become disillusioned with extreme excesses of the ruling classes. They then come together and revolt against the existing ruler or regime, often in a bloody movement. This is certainly true when describing the French Revolution and the Bolshevik Revolution, which not only brought about regime change through violent mass mobilization, but also overhauled the social, economic institutions of the time. So a revolution is essentially a struggle in which the holder of a power loses that power against their will. Aristotle’s view on revolutions was rather confined than its modern day interpretation. He suggested the doctrine of ‘stasis’ as a reason for revolution and decline of institutions, ‘stasis’ being an arrest of the political processes of a healthy polis leading to its political system breaking own and degenerating into violence and internal warfare. For him, the condition that led to all revolutions was the desire of the many for equality versus the desire of the minority for effective superiority. In an overview of Book V of ‘Politics’, it can...
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...guarantee that more human-centered structures will replace them. In fact, conservatives have their own ideas about how the new world should be organized, and it's not pretty. That is why we all must participate in the transformation of society-to ensure that human values replace the values of the old elite. Because destruction is also creation, the methods we use to pull down the ruins will determine what kind of world arises from the rubble. Our struggle should not be completely political because political revolutions simply deliver concentrated power into new hands, rather than dispersing it. Furthermore, political thought is rarely innovative: political change usually originates from social conditions, rather than the other way around. Instead of political revolution, our goal should be social revolution. Social revolution is nothing more than a change in the way we live our lives. It springs from changes in the way we think. In today's context, revolution occurs when people stop believing one thing, and start believing something else; when people discard their old ways of living, and begin to live in new ways. When enough people lose faith in an institution and begin to act as if it did not exist, that institution disappears. Values and institutions are social constructions. They were not handed down by God or created by nature. We invented them. And if they don't serve our needs, we have the power to eliminate them. Everything we do can have revolutionary...
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...Michael Bennett Page 1 Dr. Alla Boldina ENG 110-60 REVOLUTION AND ROMANCE Creedy: “Why won’t you die!?” V: “Beneath this mask is more than flesh…there are ideas. And ideas are bulletproof.” With these words, the film, “V for Vendetta” dramatically demonstrates the power of ideas to challenge and overcome the evil of oppression. In film critic Robert Ebert’s review of “V for Vendetta,” he notes the power of ideas, especially the belief that people should not be afraid of their governments, but rather that governments should be afraid of their people. Although Ebert questions the necessity of fear, and believes that governments and people should be able to happily co-exist, I think he trivializes the significance of the film’s message. Although it is an in-depth, well written look at the story, it is one-sided. He gives credit to a novel written by Allen Moore in 1983, on which the film is based, and compares “V for Vendetta” to other movies and stories. The main character, V, is described in detail, and Ebert explains his purpose in the story. The other characters, however, are not mentioned very much, leaving the reader a bit blank. I appreciate that he mentions the main idea of the film, and is generous with quotations. I do fin d his criticism a bit excessive, as he puts down the mask that V wears because the lips don’t move and his vision would be obstructed. Ebert seems biased on behalf of London’s architecture, as he expresses his disappointment...
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...American Revolution A revolution is when a government is overthrown, because the citizens believe in a new system. This can lead up to a war. There have been many revolutions throughout history. The revolution I believe has had the largest impact was the American Revolution. The American Revolution began in 1763 and went on until 1787. This revolution wasn’t just one event it was many small events that led up to a large war. It began with the signing of The Treaty of Paris, which put an end the the French and Indian war. A little after that they started passing all these different acts that the citizens were against. Begaing with the Sugar Act. The Sugar Act put a tax and sugar. Then there was the Stamp Act, the put tax on any printed paper,...
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...The French Revolution Before the French Revolution, France was ruled and governed by the king and parliament. King Louis XVI ruled by “divine right,” believing that he had been put on the throne by the grace of God. France then was one of the most powerful and wealthiest countries, and had a strong army, and even stronger cultural influence. Louis XVI and his wife Marie-Antoinette were shielded from the daily lives of the ordinary people in France. When Louis XVI inherited the throne in 1774, he also inherited many problems left behind by the previous king, King Louis XV. France was divided into three estates with their own status and role to play in the country. The First Estate involved religious people in the country. The Second Estate involved all the nobles. These two estates had many privileges, and were the wealthiest group, but were only a small piece of the entire population. The Third Estate was everyone else in the country: the peasants, poor city dwellers, and the “middle class”. The Third Estate was the largest group, and had little to no power, even though it was the largest group. In order to pay off national debts, Louis XVI increased taxes in the Third Estate, which impacted many of their lives. Because of the taxes, industry started to lag, and there were bread shortages in many places. They barely had any food and had to live of bread. King Louis XVI was a bad king and the people had every right to hate him and his wife. The people didn’t have any...
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...society. The definition of a revolution varies, depending who you ask. Most would say the definition of a revolution is an overthrow of an established government or political system by the people governed. It also may be defined as a radical and pervasive change in society and the social structure, especially one made suddenly and often accompanied by violence. Revolution effect on society varies. Revolutions have both a positive and negative effect on people and society in which it takes place. For example the industrial revolution made sever changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation and technology. This revolution made things easier for people; the machinery invented made working much easier. You didn't have to pull a plow because a tractor did it for you. Technology had profound effect socioeconomic and cultural conditions of the times. The industrial revolution began in the United Kingdom but spread throughout Europe, North America and eventually the rest of the world. This Revolution marks a major turning point in human history. The American revolution had a large impact on woman and their rights. The American Revolution had a large impact on slavery also. Woman before this time had little to now rights at all. Women's roles became more valued for their aid in the revolution and were under the idea of "Republican motherhood" or mothers for the new nation. They began to have ideas of the revolution stimulate hopes and expectations...
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...The British taxing the colonist following the end of the French and Indian war convinced Americans that the English constitution was corrupt. Many things led to the colonist to believe they were underneath the rule of a Robinarch, King Gorge III. Colonist believed they were being watched and taxed for things they did not need to be. Especially, since they were being taxed without representation. The colonist also felt as if they never received the assistance needed during the French and Indian wars making them very resentful. King George III did many things to make colonist believe that he was a Robinarch. George showed all symptoms of being a Robinarch. He fought expensive wars to keep people afraid and under control. King George III fought a series of unnecessary wars such as King William’s War, Queen Anne’s War, King George’s War, and the French and Indian War (The Colonial Wars), Assesses high taxes without popular consent to pay for these wars such as the Sugar Act of 1764, the Stamp Act, and Townshend duties. Americans didn’t like the idea of taxation without representation. Stephen Hopkins wrote a pamphlet to protest to the British government because he strongly believed that the colonies should not be taxed without representation. The next thing King George III did to make Americans believe he was a Robinarch was Promote worthless men to high public post. For example promoting Thomas Hutchinson, he was completely worthless to most Americans. During this time the colonies...
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...Demi Wack Period 1 Age of Revolution From the late Eighteenth Century to mid Nineteenth Century, Europe revolved around the revolutionary spirit. This “Age of Revolutions” evolved from many factors: heavy taxes from war debt, harshness of labor, the Enlightenment influence and, diversity of social classes. The range of factors coincides with the various attitudes toward the Revolutions themselves (especially those of France). Many revolutionary supporters argued that revolution was the only way to invite justice and equality into Europe. The other’s saw the consequences of the revolutionaries’ actions and sided with the aristocracy. This radical spree of war was avoided by England--not because it was a country of compete justice and equality, but because of its flexible government (which developed from Queen Elizabeth reign). With a heavy disliking of the current conditions, many sought of the benefits of the revolution, which included the down fall of the aristocracy. Dickens advocated to the horror of the aristocracy with the depiction of his character Monseigneur, a Great Lord of the royal court and a massive terror to French citizens. Besides the guiltless murder of a child, he is provided four men to assist him in the strenuous chore of eating (doc 2). Meanwhile, the working class of France falls to their knees for the slightest sip of wine. With Monseigneur being the example for the upper class, it is no question to why there was a call for change. This same attitude...
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...Predictably Unpredictable Revolutions Revolutions occur when a society sees a weakness in a regime and has demands they want answered. In Eastern Europe this is the case with former nations who had been taken over by the Soviet Union after World War II. In 1989 and the years following the Soviet Union became more lenient controlling these nations, and people thought a revolutions could become possible but that the retaliation would be to much. In other words the public benefits from a revolution did not outweigh the private costs of trying to achieve one. In order for these revolutions to work as they did someone had to ignite the flame underneath the public, or a small group of people had to organize a plan to make people swing over their...
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...Question 5: Discuss the causes of the 1848 revolutions in Europe. While studying the history of Europe, one cannot omit the 1848 revolutions. Soon after the New Year, Europe exploded in revolutions as Mike Rapport stated, “in 1848 a violent storm of revolutions tore through Europe.”1. As with many revolutions, the main cause was economic that channeled into political, social, cultural, and national demands for reforms. Europe experienced rather significant economic recession in 1844 and its effects were felt for several years. The revolution can be summarized to three particular factors; the prevailing discontent in Europe at that time, the urge for liberalism in Europe, and lastly, the large sense of nationalism crates by foreign rule and hopes for unification. The poor quality of life mainly caused turmoil in the mid-19th century. Years prior to the 1848 revolution, bad harvest and economic depression infuriated the masses all throughout Europe, and food riots were recurrent. The economic crisis also increased the rate of unemployment. Large scale revolutions advertently followed these social issues, with even more discontent building up from each bad harvest. To cause further discontent was the poor governance. The laissez faire attitude of the French Government and monarchy displeased many people. They treated that the government as useless. And in France, not only poor governance but violence from the numerous rebellions and revolts against the government, after...
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...Why and What Do We Compare? The Story of Revolution and Democratization Mehrzad Boroujerdi, Syracuse University Introduction The field of comparative politics starts with the assumption that knowledge in the social sciences must proceed by way of the search for comparisons, or what has been called "suggestive contrasts." Scholars of comparative politics compare in order to discover similarities and explain differences. As infrequent and highly complex events, revolutions have attracted a great deal of attention from comparativists. In this article, we will address the following topics: • The Concept of Revolution • Why Revolutions Happen? • Can Revolutions be Predicted? • What Do Revolutions Accomplish? • What Are some of the Failures of Revolutions? • Comparing Characteristics and Outcomes of Some Revolutions • Questions The Concept of Revolution: According to the American philosopher Richard Rorty "revolution," like such other words as "reason," "democracy," and "socialism" is a "thick word" which can be contrasted with such "thin words" as truth, dialogue, and justice. How do we define a "revolution?" How are revolutions distinct from other forms of political change such as Coup d'état, rebellion, mutiny, insurrection, or uprising? All of the above nouns may denote acts of violence aimed at changing or overthrowing an existing order or authority. However, there are important legal and political differences among them as well. ...
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...Social change is being reintroduced through trade and commerce – the idea that social responsibility does not only mean volunteerism and community service, but also by responsible spending. Nowadays, consumers consider social and environmental specifications on their products, aside from the nature of products. A number of consumers would consider buying 100% organic materials compared to those that weren’t. A big percentage of consumers purchased products because of the social or political values of the company that produced the product. Some even said that they’ve supported local or neighborhood businesses. These are examples of a changing mind-set. We can now see a rise of the citizen consumer – and the beginnings of a responsibility revolution. A big number of companies in today’s market, both large and small, are practicing Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in order to achieve organizational sustainability. The concept of organizational sustainability increasingly impacts the nature of organizations’ operations. Green management in organizations has to go beyond regulatory compliance and needs to include conceptual tools such as pollution prevention, product stewardship and corporate social responsibility. Hence, determination and measurement of organizational sustainability does not only consider profit – it should also involve efforts that consider both people and planet. This concept of triple bottom line helps companies to focus on running a business while improving...
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...Technology has been a primary driver of social change for thousands of years. In particular, four technological innovations were responsible for social revolutions: The domestication of plants and animals over ten thousand years ago, the invention of the plow, the invention of the steam engine, and the invention of the computer all led to massive social change (Henslin 390). The transition from hunting and gathering to a pastoral society changed earlier societies by enabling them to abandon migratory practices and establish fixed residences. The invention of the plow revolutionized agricultural techniques and increased yields, allowing societies to sustain larger populations. The invention of the steam engine in the 18th century transformed the transportation capabilities of society and spurred further innovation as people and materials could be quickly transported on land for distances previously unimaginable. Finally, it is difficult to understate the ways in which the microchip and personal computer have fundamentally altered the organization of society; the instant access to and constant flows of information have changed communication, education, and business in modern society. In light of the social change wrought by these technological innovations, sociologist William Ogburn argued that technology was the basic cause of social change. In particular, he identified three processes by which technology drove social change: Invention, discovery, and diffusion. While...
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...American and French Revolutions: Compared and Contrasted The history of the human race always has been, and most likely will always be, that of evolution and revolution. – Lewis F. Korns, Thoughts A revolution occurs when one government is overthrown and replaced with another (Yahoo). The American and French revolutions can be both compared and contrasted in their origins and outcomes. Both revolutions began due to the common peoples’ need to obtain independence and liberty from an oppressive government (2). The American Revolution was triggered by the American colonists’ need for financial independence from the overpowering nation of Great Britain, while the French revolution was a struggle to gain social equality among the masses. Although the American and French Revolutions were fought over some of the same ideas, the American Revolution is considered more "conservative" than the French is (2). The intent of the American revolutionaries was not to initiate a revolution, but rather to gain their freedom from a "long train of abuses" (Jensen). In contrast, the French were trying to cause a true revolution because they were not just fighting for freedom but rather to over throw and remove the monarchy (3). The American revolutionaries had no choice but to defend their liberties and the tactics used by the Americans were not as directly aggressive as those used by the French. The American and French Revolution both have similarities...
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...The Mexican Revolution can be categorized as the first great revolution of the 20th century which was cause by the need for the dictatorship of Mexican President Porfino Diaz to end. This revolution was not just one type of people wanting the end of his regime all classes joined the revolts against his form of government. The Mexican Revolution was led by Francisco I. Madero he was seeking a way towards democracy while others didn’t have the same goal in mind. The lower classes were rebelling against Perez but with a different intent in mind. These dwellers as they were called wanted their land and rights that taken away from them back. The revolution soon changed when they realized that Madero was not in support of their goals and they began a revolution of their own seeking justice. This chain of events led to the death of Francisco Madero once he was killed the movement was revitalized by Victoriano Huerta. Huerta brought the necessary changes to the revolution in my opinion. The revolution didn’t happen all at one time it occurred in stages. Many things can be stated for the causes of the Mexican Revolution. One of these reasons was economic inequality while others many suffered while others flourished. While under Porfino regime Mexico did have vast improvements although it was a cost to the little man. For Porfino to truly bring change, he advanced many aspects of Mexico such as the railroad which was ongoing growth and Industry. With help from foreign investors he was...
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