American Freedom vs. French Upheaval

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American Freedom Vs. French Upheaval As Americans we are all, obviously, very well informed and aware of how our country came to be. We know about the Pilgrims, we know about the original Thirteen Colonies, and we know that we gained our independence from England through the Revolutionary War. Because this is what Americans have been taught about “Revolutions”, when one hears of the French Revolution it is easy to assume that it was very similar to America’s Revolution. After all, they were both around the same time and they were both overthrew the monarchies that controlled them. Although they may seem similar, through deeper investigation and examination one will find that the two revolutions were quite different. One big difference between the two revolutions was that in America everyone was roughly in the same class. They were all in a new land and were in the process of establishing themselves. In France things were completely different. There were defined classes that had been around for years, separating the people and creating animosity between the classes. The French Revolution was much more of a social revolt than the American Revolution was. The American colonists wanted either fair representation if they were going to pay taxes, or to be free of the British monarchy. Whereas, in France the people of the lower-class had been mistreated and deprived, causing them to become vengeful and violent. Another huge difference, and one that is fairly obvious, is the amount of violence. Although there was a war in the American Revolution, the French Revolution was much more ferocious. With the invention of the guillotine, no one could be sure they wouldn’t be the next person on the chopping block. The French revolutionaries would even stick the severed heads of aristocrats on pikes and parade them around in order to display their newfound
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