The American and French Revolutions Compared–Sean Busick

Coach is Right ^ | 7/4/14 | Michael D. Shaw

[Oldpuppymax]

On this Independence Day, it is valuable to revisit this topic. There is no doubt that we on the Right are the followers of the American tradition, while those on the Left follow the French. This alone explains a lot.

Here, then, is Sean Busick’s superb essay…

One of the many differences between the American and French Revolutions is that, unlike the French, Americans did not fight for an abstraction. Americans initially took up arms against the British to defend and preserve the traditional rights of Englishmen. The slogan “no taxation without representation” aptly summed up one of their chief complaints. The right to not be taxed without the consent of your elected representatives was one of the most prized rights of Englishmen. When this became impossible to achieve within the British Empire, Americans declared their independence and then won it on the battlefield. That is, Americans fought for tangible goals; they fought to preserve their traditional rights rather than to overturn an established social order. Ours was a revolution more about home rule than about who should rule at home.

However, the French Revolution was about who should rule at home. They fought for “liberty, equality, and fraternity.” Neither equality nor fraternity can be achieved through force by the state. Perfect equality is elusive and, even if it could be achieved, would be inconsistent with liberty. Whereas Americans struggled for tangible goals, the French took on the Sisyphean task of striving for abstractions.

Yes, the second paragraph of the American Declaration of Independence deals in abstractions and universal truths. However, it is important to keep in mind the Declaration’s historical context. The signers of the Declaration did not think they were establishing a national government or founding a national Union when they signed it. There is not one shred...

[KC_Lion]

George Washington

Mr. President

What George Washington Stood For

http://youtu.be/SlHcIyyUP5A?t=2m39s

Napoleon I Emperor of the French

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1oLflPilcMc

[SeeSharp]

Whereas Americans struggled for tangible goals, the French took on the Sisyphean task of striving for abstractions.

True of the Americans until Lincoln. Now we too serve abstractions.

[BenLurkin]

Recommended reading on the subject:

[Verginius Rufus]

Jefferson and his political allies in the 1790s were much more sympathetic to the French Revolution than the Federalists were. When it looked like Jefferson would win the Presidential election in 1800, some of the Federalists were terrified, fearing he would try to impose Jacobinism and atheism on the US. That’s why the deadlock occurred in the House of Representatives in Feb. 1801, because Jefferson and Burr had equal electoral votes. Even though Jefferson had been the intended Presidential candidate, many Federalists preferred Burr to avoid Jefferson.

[Jim Noble]

Liberty and equality are antonyms.

[all the best]

The French revolution had more in common with the Russian revolution than the American.