The enlightenment represents a light that can be "channeled inwards," as described in class. The prism is a symbol that represents that when light passes through it, a magnitude of colors flow from the inside. The French Revolution happened when people discovered inner light within them. When prompted to describe what the French Revolution was about, one thinks about The Declaration of the Rights of Man, Olympe de Gouges, and authors like, Abbe Sieyes. When reading works of such great people one can only shake one's head in disapproval, as they pretended to be enlightened, but never stepped out of the shadows. The same can be said today of many countries; who claim justice but fail to enforce the true definition of moral justice on every human.
Abbe Sieyes, author of, What is The Third Estate, describes how the most populous estate in the country, the third estate, has no voice in government. In Contrast, the nobility live under a different code of law and are often excused from many duties. Sieyes provides a powerful argument when he calls out the nobility who do not follow the common law. He questions; if they do not follow the common law of France, then which nation do they belong to? Are they really part of the nation when they do not contribute to it? Is it fair that they don't work but are still rich?
Furthermore, Sieyes compared government to a human body. While some parts of the body are different, they all play an important role. Without some parts, the whole body would perish. It would be illogical that one organ receive less nourishment that the other when they all are a crucial part for survival. It all depends on homeostasis, but put into terms relevant to government, equality. He classified people into different roles: the people of the countryside, labor, trader, and private occupation. He forgot the most important part, the heart. The slaves are the ones who do all the work. He forgot a five class. Is the third estate just like the nobles? How is one supposed to survive with out a heart?
Order custom essay What Moral Values Were Brought Upon People from Revolutions with free plagiarism report
The same is obvious in the Declaration of the rights of Man. All one has to do is read the tittle. The declaration boast of scared, inalienable, natural rights endowed to any man. The fact that one is born human, in the image of God, guarantees one's natural rights. However, just like Sieyes, the declaration fails to dedicate a word towards women or slaves. One was hopeful when Olympe Gages wrote the Declaration of the Rights of Women, that she would relate to everyone human. Not one word in her declaration indicated that all humanity had the right to be free. Instead she cleverly rewrote the original declaration and referred to humanity as man, women, and citizen.
Robespierre, author of Report on the Principles of Political Morality, understood what the French Revolution was about. He described a government as, "where every soul grows greater" (125). He was clever in using the word soul. He is referring to every individual as a creation of God. God made humanity in his own image; as a result we are all perfect.
The French Revolution was about finding one's true value in the prism. Unfortunately they were never truly enlightened, as they never really extended equality to everyone. Their ideas are of no value if they are not practiced. The French Revolution fell short in discovering humanity in everyone, but so have many countries today. One Ironic and comical example is the United States who had a revolution for being taxed and not represented, but yet they tax millions of immigrants, residents, and people of lower class who are not represented in the government. It is safe to say that even today one fails to see the light that lies within every soul.
Cite this Page
What Moral Values Were Brought Upon People from Revolutions. (2023, Apr 19). Retrieved from https://phdessay.com/what-moral-values-were-brought-upon-people-from-revolutions/
Run a free check or have your essay done for you