The bourgeoisie was about to grow as commerce increased and the industrial revolution had a larger and larger influence. Appreciation of the individual was a far stronger trend in the French Revolution than class (Furet, 1989). Instead of class struggle and growing communist ideas, the French Revolution was arguably most influenced by the Enlightenment, particularly as expressed by Rousseau (Censer, 2003). Some historians view industry and commerce as being the strongest social influence at the time, as the middle class grew, industry expanded -- especially printing, which promoted the exchange of ideas and new importance for free speech, and the growth of commerce (Censer, 2003) more than social movements. This increased importance of the individual was also reflected in the desire to have more equitable access to the courts. The influence of seeing individuals as important, no matter what their class, is a pattern that exists throughout the events of the time in France.

The view of the French Revolution as an outgrowth of the Industrial Revolution and the growth of commerce might be quite a surprise to those who have heard the famous quote of Marie Antoinette, "Let them eat cake!" when told that people did not have bread to eat. However, that story is probably apocryphal (Barker, 1993). It did reflect the view of Marie Antoinette as a frivolous person who led a dissolute life, but French dissatisfaction with the Royals does not in itself make the Revolution a class struggle. View of her excesses, and in fact the excesses of all the Royals, in the face of increased taxation on people already struggling to feed their families, did justify popular anger against the king and queen, however (Barker, 1993). The Royals made some serious errors in not addressing the rumors they heard spread about themselves. By withdrawing and pretending those views did not exist or were irrelevant (Barker, 1993), they treated the people of France with disregard. Barker (1993) describes Marie Antoinette as someone with."..

A the fantastic image of [a] profligate,...

While that description might apply well to the Russian Revolution of 1917, the French Revolution was more a logical extension of the Enlightenment (Censer, 2003). The individual became more important, and as a result, French citizens wanted to have more control over a government that was taking an impoverished people and adding to their financial burdens rather than finding ways to help alleviate them. The French people wanted more self-determination and held an enlightened view that they were capable of governing themselves.
The French Revolution was also not identical to that of the American Revolution. The French Revolution more resembled a civil war with both warring factions arising completely from within France itself. There were no outside interests to fight against in France. However, in the American Revolution, the Colonists viewed the arriving British Army as invaders. The French Revolution may best be seen as a group of people who crossed all classes except the aristocracy and rose up, beginning somewhat spontaneously, to take control of their country.

Bibliography

Barker, Nancy N. 1993. "Let them eat cake': the mythical Marie Antoinette and the French Revolution." Historian, Summer.

Censer, Jack R. 2003. "Amalgamating the social in the French Revolution - Social History and Standard Topics."

Journal of Social History, Fall.

Crubaugh, Anthony. 2000. "Local Justice and Rural Society in the French Revolution." Journal of Social History, Winter.

Furet, Francois. 1989. "An idea and its destiny - French Revolution - 1789: An Idea That Changed the World." UNESCO Courier, June.

Luckett, Thomas Manley. 1997. "Hunting for spies…