Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
A bold new history of the French Revolution from the standpoint of the peasants, workers, women and sans culottesThe assault on the Bastille, the Reign of Terror, Danton mocking his executioner, Robespierre dispensing a fearful justice, and the archetypal gadfly Marat--the events and figures of the French Revolution have exercised a hold on the historical imagination for more than 200 years. It has been a template for heroic insurrection and, to more conservative minds, a cautionary tale.
In the hands of Eric Hazan, author of The Invention of Paris, the revolution becomes a rational and pure struggle for emancipation. In this new history, the first significant account of the French Revolution in over twenty years, Hazan maintains that it fundamentally changed the Western world--for the better.
Looking at history from the bottom up, providing an account of working people and peasants, Hazan asks, how did they see their opportunities? What were they fighting for? What was the Terror and could it be justified? And how was the revolution stopped in its tracks? The People's History of the French Revolution is a vivid retelling of events, bringing them to life with a multitude of voices. Only in this way, by understanding the desires and demands of the lower classes, can the revolutionary bloodshed and the implacable will of a man such as Robespierre be truly understood.
About the Author
The legacy of the French Revolution has remained a fascinating and contentious subject for over two centuries. Instead of seeing the revolution as an aberrant bloodbath on the path to a liberal society, this new book, the first significant history of the French Revolution in over twenty years, maintains that it fundamentally changed the Western world.
Looking at history from the bottom up, the history of working people and peasants, Hazan asks: How did they see their opportunities? What were they fighting for? What was the Terror and could it be justified? And how was the revolution stopped in its tracks?
This is vivid historical writing – the multitude of voices of the Revolution come to life. Hazan shows how only through the people can we fully understand the legacy of the French Revolution.