Defining revolution through the French and Industrial Revolutions

Revolution

Talking About a Revolution?

The word "revolution" has several meanings, all of which are closely related but that have significant and important differentiating details. The most basic and concrete meaning of the word, and the earliest usage of the word in English as derived directly from its Latin roots, is simply "a revolving," from Latin words meaning "to turn" or "to roll" (Online Etymology Dictionary, 2012). From this usage there quickly sprang the meaning of an "instance of a great change [or turn] in affairs," and in the current age the word can and has been applied from major scientific discoveries that fundamentally change the understanding of the universe to a new non-stick pan available for three payments of nine-ninety-nine (Online Etymology Dictionary, 2012). So when someone raises a question like, is the French Revolution or the Industrial Revolution more of a true revolution, the answer must include an analysis of the word itself.

Manufacturing a Revolution

If the French Revolution can be considered a true revolution based solely on the grounds that it caused a major change in the course of world history, then it would seem obvious that the Industrial Revolution must also be considered a true revolution. This social revolution has fundamentally altered civilization on a worldwide basis far more directly, extremely, and pervasively than any single nation's change in administration ever could (Goloboy & Mancall, 2008). There might be another criterion that excludes industrialization from this moniker, however.

While the French Revolution's effects might have been indistinct and uncertain for over a century, the period of the Revolution itself is well defined and concrete. The period known as the Industrial Revolution, however, is far less distinct; though there are certain key events that can be pointed to as evidence of the start of the "revolutionary" period and statistical data that clearly indicates when in history industrialization reached a certain location, indicating the spread of this "revolution," there is no effective start or especially and end date to the period (Goloboy & Mancall, 2008). One could even argue that the Industrial Revolution is still ongoing, as there are parts of the world to which it is still spreading or has not even begun to spread, and as processes continue to become more refined and less skilled-worker-dependent -- more industrialized, in other words -- even in the developed world. Thus, it is possible to say that the Industrial Revolution is a true revolution only in the abstract sense as a process that leads to a great change in the state of affairs, but not in the concrete sense of a specific event or period that constituted this change in its entirety.

Conclusion

Both the French and the Industrial Revolution caused significant turns or changes in history and the state of civilization. According to strict definitions of the word, however, the French Revolution would have to be considered the truer revolution of the two despite having had a lesser overall impact on world and arguably even national affairs. In the end, war is simply more concrete than process.