Micah Germano Mr. Hawkins Modern World History P 9/15/10 Per.

. 2 French Revolution Newspaper Project A government has a duty to its citizens, a social contract, which binds them implicitly to protecting and serving the people of a nation. If this contract is violated, when a government becomes the oppressor of the people and not their protector, when a nation falls prey to the whims of a tyrant, such a government must be abolished. The king of France and his court have abused their self proclaimed Divine Right of Kings, feeding off of the Third Estate to support extravagant comforts. This must no longer be tolerated. The people of France must rise up; the people of France have a right and a duty to take control of their own nation, lest the social evils perpetrated by the ancien regime force the nation to crumble. The people of France must alter or abolish the unjust government, for the continued survival of themselves and the great nation of France. The basis of the current government, the Three Estate System, is unfair, unjust, and unequal to the people of France. One such injustice is that very small populations of First and Second Estate citizens own disproportionate amounts of land. This practice forces the majority of citizens, the members of the Third Estate, to scrounge for available farmland for which to make their livelihood. Most of the people are forced to live without enough space to produce enough food or money to support their families. Another unequal characteristic of the Three Estate System is that many of the top positions in

government, the church, and the military are reserved expressly for the members of the First and Second Estates. This means that the members of the Third Estate cannot increase their income, and therefore cannot improve their meager living conditions. It also means that the nobility can keep power over the majority of citizens by keeping high positions in the government. This combination of taking much of the land and not allowing for fair representation in government shows the unfair characteristics of the Three Estate System. The unfair qualities of the Three Estate System as well as the choices of the upper class have made the members of the Third Estate discontent with the current government. The First and Second Estates force the commoners to pay unreasonable and burdensome taxes without having to pay them themselves. These heavy taxes anger members of the Third Estate who can not produce enough crops to support themselves or pay them. Also, because the upper class was exempt from taxation, they could keep the wealth and power and forcing the angry Third estate to starve. Another injustice that the First and Second Estates have perpetrated that has enraged the Third Estate is using the wealth gained from the taxes on extravagant comforts. The elite were spending lavishly on themselves as the poor were starving, causing tensions to rise. The starving farmers that compose the majority of the Third Estate see these unfair privileges and feel oppressed. Cruel taxes and poor leadership have caused inter-class tensions to rise. Because of several factors, France is facing serious economic problems. One of the serious economic problems that France is facing are debts incurred from deficit spending caused by the lavish lifestyles of the First and Second Estates. This comfort cannot be afforded by the nobles, who are not willing to be taxed themselves. Without the

income from taxing the nobles, the court chooses to force heavy taxes on farmers who cannot support themselves. Another one of the important problems that France is facing is a recent poor harvest. Because of the lack of food, farmers have not been able to generate enough surplus crops to make a profit after feeding their families. Without more money being put into the economy, the lavish spending of the nobility could not be supported for a long period of time. These economic problems caused inter-class tensions to rise, tensions that could not be abated. The social and economic difficulties that France is facing could have been resolved if the royal court had taken the advice of a financial advisor named Jacques Necker, whose invaluable guidance had been quickly rejected. One of the suggestions that Necker had made was that the nobles could abolish feudal taxes. Such a move would have been seen by the Third Estate as an act of goodwill, assuaging the rising embitterment of the poor farmers. This recommendation was not heeded by the nobility however, as they felt they needed the capital generated from the outdated taxes to fund their lush comforts. Another proposal that Necker had made was the equal taxation of the First and Second Estates. Taxation of the social elite would have generated enough revenue to pay debts incurred from the recent Seven Years and American Revolutionary wars, as well as those from deficit spending. This was met with huge backlash among the royal court as the nobility had no wish to surrender their excessive habits. The nobles decided to fire Jacques Necker for his radical propositions, and the last hopes for reformation were dismissed with him. If the new government of France is to be superior to its predecessor, it can and must take influence from the Six Principles of the United States Constitution. Two of the

principles that would be invaluable to model in the new government would be the ideas of a limited government with checks and balances. If a government had limited power, the rights of the common citizen could not be trespassed upon, regardless of to whom governmental power belongs. If the new government had a system of checks and balances within itself, the people could not be subjected to unfair laws and taxes without the other branches intervening. Another very important principle that the new government would have to adopt to be successful would be the idea of popular sovereignty. Legislative and judicial power would ultimately rest in the hands of the people, they could no longer be oppressed at the unreasonable whims of a tyrant. Unlike an absolute monarchy, the people would be able to work together to ensure that the nation is ruled with justice and integrity. The principles contained in the U.S. Constitution can and must be employed by the new French government if it is to survive. The ideas of the Enlightenment philosophes contained in the American Declaration of independence can also be applied to and improve the new government of France. One of the thinkers whose ideas would be useful to France would be John Locke and the natural rights to life, liberty, and property. The Third Estate is in desperate need of these rights, rights that had been denied them by the king and the nobility. The people of France should be guaranteed the right to a life free of poverty, liberty from the rule of an unjust despot, and property that they can call their own under the laws of the new government. Another Enlightenment thinker whose ideas should be integrated into the new government is Rousseau and his idea that social injustice is caused by unequal distribution of property. Under the current regime, members of the First and Second Estates hold vast swathes of land, causing problems such as leaving the lower class not

enough room to farm and using assets from such large pieces of property to dominate business and government. If land were more evenly distributed, more people in the nation would be able to become affluent, bettering the nation's economic status and ending social tension. Independence from tyranny can be possible for the nation if the new government can make use of the Enlightenment ideas contained in the United States Declaration of Independence. The American Constitution also contains the ideas of Enlightenment thinkers that the new government should embrace. The Enlightenment thinker Montesquieu and his idea of separation of powers would be invaluable to the new government if it is to rid itself of the problems plaguing the old system. If governmental power remained in separate bodies, no one person could gain enough power to force their will upon the people without the other bodies stopping them. The separate bodies would each hold the powers to make laws, enforce laws, and interpret laws; serving as checks and balances for one another while retaining enough power to guard the citizens. Another idea that would be useful in ending the current problems in France would be the idea of social contract, put forth by the philosopher Rousseau. If the government kept the policy of putting the people first, nobody in the government would be able to abuse power for their own interest as the officials in the current government have done. This in turn would allow the citizens of the nation to work to better the government, and the nation itself. If the Enlightenment ideas contained in the American Constitution were embraced, a future free of the problems of the ancien regime would be assured. The upcoming government must take influence Constitution of the United States itself through its more pertinent articles to guarantee that the members of the current

Third Estate will not be exploited. If Article I of the U.S. Constitution were adopted, the people of France would no longer have to fear the power of the lawmakers. In the past, the absolute monarchy has served as the only legislative power; aside from the influence of advisors, the king or queen has had complete control over France's laws and its people. Application of the first article of the Constitution would ensure that the legislative branch would be composed of many people who do not have the power to take advantage of the citizens through unfair laws, especially those concerning taxation. If Article II of the American Constitution were adopted, the powers traditionally held by the sovereign ruler would be forever removed, and the threat of a corrupted ruler that does not work for the country would be removed with them. If the second article of the Constitution were to become part of the policy of the new government, the executive ruler of the nation would be bound to work with the other branches and with the people to enforce only fair and necessary laws. The articles of the U.S. Constitution are essential to the foundation of the new government, a government based on freedom for its people. A future government based in the freedom of the people can parallel the values expressed in the American Bill of Rights, and must have a list of inalienable rights that no power can transgress for the safety of its citizens and for the stability of the country itself. One of the most vital rights that all citizens of France must possess is the freedoms listed in the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Indisputable possession of the freedoms outlined in the First Amendment would end the class system that the current, feudal government is based upon, guaranteeing freedom for any member of society to speak out against and resolve any social problem around them. Freedom of speech would be particularly necessary, as radical documents such as the one you are reading would not

and could not be censored, allowing the citizens of France and Parisians such as yourself to know about and fight the tyranny of a despotic ruler. Perhaps the most important right that must be guaranteed under the new government would be those outlined in the Ninth and Tenth Amendments to the Constitution. These amendments in particular act as a safeguard against the worst case scenario; in the event that the entirety of the government, all three branches, deliberately worked to crush the rights on which the future government would be based; that the rights of the citizen are not limited to those specifically referenced in the American Bill of Rights. The power of state and citizen would be absolute, under all and any circumstances, ensuring that if the government were to corrupted, hope for the people would rest in their own power. It is critical that the new government of France follow the values and principles of the U.S. Bill of Rights if the unjust ways of the old government are to be successfully abolished. The citizens of a nation have a duty to themselves and their country. To protect themselves, their futures, and to prevent their great nation from crumbling, the people of France have a sacred duty to end the age old tyranny once and for all. The people of France have entered a social contract that states they must take justice for themselves and their countrymen. When all attempts at reform have failed, it is time for revolution. Citizen of France, it is time to do your duty to your government, it is time to ensure a prosperous future for the great nation to which you belong, it is time for you to alter or abolish your unjust government.