The Life of the Commoners: The French System

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At this time, France was going through a radical change. The three estates were starting to become equal and the huge gap between them was closing fast. The commoners of the 3rd estate were fed up with the life of poverty that they were forced to live in and sought for a change to the French system. But do the commoners deserve ALL the blame for executing the French Revolution? No they don’t. It was the Nobility that provoked this revolution and who drove the commoners into such despair.

The Life of the Commoners
These people took up 95% of France’s total population and at this time in France, there was something called birthright. This means that if you were born into a life of poverty and labour this would be the position in which you would stay, there was no advance from this place in the social monarchy. They received low pay and the majority of what they did earn would be paid to the taxes that were forced on them. They struggled to pay for bread let alone clothes and essentials. They were forced into the life of poverty with no hope of ever progressing further up the monarchy.
The Role of the Three Estates
In France, at this time, the population was split into three distinct groups:
- The 1st Estate which consisted of the Clergy
- The 2nd Estate which consisted of the Nobility
- The 3rd Estate which consisted of the Commoners
Each of these estates was significantly different in their wealth, percentage of population and roles. The Clergy were the ones that controlled the Churches and who received money and produce from the 3rd estate, they weren’t required to pay taxes. The Nobility were the privileged of the social class and their job was to honour their king, which, in this case, would be King Louis XVI. They also were...

... middle of paper ...

... If the outcome of the meeting was different, the revolution would never have happened. Because, if the 1st estate agreed to pay taxes as well there would be equality between the estates and the commoners wouldn’t have used violence and widespread terror to achieve fairness. This is another example of the 1st estates negligence and carelessness.
Conclusion
As we can see in many instances, the Nobles did not care for the 3rd estate and drove them to such an extent that they used violence and fear to gain equality. If the Nobles had changed their attitudes and choices regarding the 3rd estate the outcome of France would have greatly differed. The Nobles, though, aren’t to blame for the brutal violence that ensued throughout Paris and France. The intentions of the Revolution were understandable but the violence that they used to get what they wanted was questionable.

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