The French Revolution: A Rise Over Oppression

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One issue that helps to shape the world socially and politically is the rise and overpowering of an oppressive force. Things such as corrupt or forceful governments, slavery or racism, and living conditions not suitable for living give reasons for such a rise against power. “Rebellion is important because you need to change the ways things are if they are inefficient or unfair” (Goldstone). This opposition to oppression allows reformation and advancement of society as a whole to occur. People who feel the need for change have gone into drastic actions to gain a freedom or change. Some of these efforts can be demonstrated through revolutions, battles, protesting, and even anarchy. The following paragraphs will attempt to exemplify how novels we discussed in class show textual evidence of rising over oppression as well as to explain and elaborate on real world revolutions.
The first topic that comes to mind when thinking of a rise over oppression is the French Revolution. The French Revolution lasted ten years from 1789-1799, and was a period of radical social and political controversy. The monarchy possessing total control over France for centuries, collapsed within three short years. This sudden change caused the French society to undergo a huge transformation as feudal, aristocratic and religious rights began to disappear. Change was coming from an effort started by many liberal political groups fed up with the treatment given to them by the upper class groups. Enlightenment began to be the new form of knowledge and thought processes. For the suppressed groups, the French Revolution was successful. A new middle class was influenced by Enlightenment theories and fought for freedom and equality among society. During the time bef...

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...r Called Henry, Waiting For the Barbarians, and Persepolis that have discussed the significance of opposition to evil and preventative forces. Each event in history and each novel that we have read exemplifies this fact. In my opinion, people should have the right to stand up for what they believe is correct and that should not cause any unfair treatment of anyone.

Works Cited

Coetzee, J. M. Waiting for the Barbarians. Harmondsworth, Middlesex, England ; New York: Penguin Books, 1982. Print.

Domenach, J. -M. "Camus-Sartre Debate: Rebellion Vs. Revolution." Nation 176.10 (1953): 202-3. Print.

Doyle, Roddy. A Star Called Henry. London, UK.: Random House, 2000. Print.

Goldstone, Jack A. Revolution and Rebellion in Early Modern World. Univ of California Press, 1991. Print.

Satrapi, Marjane. The Complete Persepolis. New York: Pantheon Books, 2007. Print.

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