France
There were three main social classes in France, the 1st estate, consisting of nobility, the 2nd estate, or the church, and the 3rd estate, which consisted of everyone else. Instead of the government imposing taxes on everyone in an equal manner, the upper class of society refused to pay taxes, while the lower class appeared to be drowning in them. King Louis XVI once organized a meeting among all the estates to propose that the nobility, or 1st estate, start paying their fair share of taxes too. The 1st estate obviously voted against the idea, not wanting their sumptuous ways of life to falter due to added taxes; the 3rd estate clearly voted in favor of the idea, glad that some of the countries financial burden could be taken off of their shoulders, when they could already barely feed themselves; and the 2nd estate, church, voted against the idea simply out of fear that if taxation against the 1st estate would begin, that their social echelon would be next. So French society stayed the same; the rich were living in luxury, while the lower and working class had to pay all the taxes. Currently, in Greece, one of Lucas Papademos's plan is to increase taxation on luxury goods, therefore directly aiming to increase taxation on the wealthy, in an attempt to financially balance out the country, hopefully lifting some weight from the lower and middle classes shoulders. But the wealthy do not want to give up their lifestyles, just so they can help out the rest of the country. And the lower and middle classes feel that if anyone should be paying higher taxes, it should be the wealthy since higher taxes won't affect their lifestyles too much, or more importantly, their ability to put food on the tables for their families. Another aspect that largely contributed to France's revolution was a general unhappiness felt by France's working class, the bourgeoussie. The bourgeoussie were the young, hard working folks, who had gotten good education and were well prepared for intellectually demanding careers, such as doctors, lawyers, professors, etc. Yet the bad economic times that raised France's taxes on the 3rd estate and inflated the price of common goods, also increased unemployment rates, and left much of the bourgeoussie, without a job. Similarly, in Greece, their own economic crisis has driven the countries unemployment rate up to 17% percent, and nearly 48% of people between the ages of 20-30 are currently out of work. This means that practically half of Greece's youngest people, of the most well-educated generation yet, are not employed. When suddenly not even the Bourgeoussie could find jobs in France, they got extremely upset, and suddenly found a reason to help the revolutionary efforts, because the current state of their country was affecting them too. The peasants were large in number true, but their tactics simply involved going about burning buildings and rioting. They did not know how to organize themselves, which is why the revolution was not successful at first. But with bourgeoussie's wit, the the revolution finally began to gain ground, eventually cracking the corrupt and fragile French Monarch based government. Perhaps what the Greeks need for their revolutions recipe for success is the same missing ingredient that France needed too; teamwork. If the enlightened yet unemployed youth could try to work with the lower classes of Greek society, then maybe the revolution will finally gain the momentum it needs to bring power back to the people, improve economic conditions, resurrect the nation's success, and restore order. In 5 years the Greek educated, yet unemployed citizens will have realized the potential the working class has to benefit the revolution. The anger of the upper-middle class will reach the point where they feel the need to take action and work with the vast amounts of poor. The working class are frustrated with their government and unavailability of jobs but do not know how to utilize the anger in an effective strategy. Street riots, and the burning of christmas trees are not enough to provoke change. With the leadership of the more educated middle-class the people of Greece will be able to change the policies of their country and government. The French Revolution was successful because the form of government changed from a monarchy to a democracy. Greece's government will also result in a drastic change within the next 5 years making its' economy stable, the social conditions resolved, and an overall successful revolution. |
Russia
Russia's turn to socialism from a monarchy in the early 1900’s was driven by vast separation between the rich and the poor. To try to correct this Alexander II, the ruling czar, instituted reforms which freed serfs from their manor lords and gave them half of the nobles land. In a way, this did improve the lives of the peasants, allowing them to manage their own income and enjoy more civil freedoms; however, the government demanded that the peasantry would eventually need to repay them for the land. But the peasants did not have that sort of money, ultimately tying them to an immense debt. The Czar’s reforms did not truly free the people, because they were now forced to work, in an effort to pay back the government. The people became impoverished, since they could not produce enough crops, and did not have enough to give to the government as well as feed their families. Karl Marx was spreading his ideas for a society that was equal, called communism. Eventually a modified version of communism, called socialism was formed and supported by the peasants and proletariat class. Socialism was appealing because it still gave some power to the people, while maintaining the “equal” society that a communist system promised. Since the old form of government was putting the majority of the population in poverty, the Proletariat and lower class, began to petition for change to insure the adoption of socialism and end of the monarchy. The social conditions leading up to the rise of socialism are similar to the ones in appearing in Greece right now. At least 20% of the nation is in poverty, indicating a growing gap between the rich and the poor. Many people want the condition of their lives to improve, and feel that a more balanced society would stimulate economic prosperity to everyone. Yet once introduced to a new form of government, the Russian people believed that a change in the system was what would carry the revolution forward. It could be conjectured that in about five years, the Greek form of government will be eschewed, and replaced with a different type of rule that will satisfy the revolutionaries. On another note, much of what propelled the Russian Revolution was the support it gained after a horrific event that happened 12 years before the revolution even happened. The event known as Bloody Sunday was a peaceful march to the Czar’s winter palace to petition for better working conditions, more civil freedoms, and fairer wages. But the event turned into a nationwide tragedy, after one of the Czar’s army generals ordered the troops to fire on the crowd, killing around 100 people. This can be compared to the killing of a Greek Teen in late 2008, when a police guard shot Alexander Grigoropoulos. The country was swept with grief, and a felt surge of anger towards the government. Both events decreased the people’s trust in the government, and made citizens feel more strongly about their ideas of change. 12 years after Bloody Sunday, the March Revolution of 1917 finally took place, bringing down the monarch government. If the events that took place lead any indication of what the future of Greece will hold, then the tension of the revolution will only escalate, and within five years, perhaps the revolutions force will finally overwhelm the current government, and bring change. This revolution was successful because the form of government changed from a monarchy (Tsar) to Socialism. Greece's government system will also be changed in 5 years solving its economy and making it a successful revolution. |