French Revolution and Modern America
September 28, 2008 9:27 pm
A while back, Melissa and I watched the movie “Marie Antoinette“, starring Kirsten Dunst as the eponymous role.
I thought the movie was pretty good — Melissa was a bit more critical, but she disapproves of most things. ( 
)
For those of you completely unaware of historical references, the movie was about the brief period of time before the French Revolution began. In a nutshell, the French Revolution occurred because the wealthy ruling class was so far divided (both financially and socially) from the servant / lower class that a Peasant uprising occurred. Other factors believed to be involved as causes were:
- the exorbitant national debt of france (partly due to Louis XV & XVI’s warmongering / overseas military activities)
- the “conspicuous consumption of the noble class…despite the financial burden of the populace”
- “High unemployment and bread prices”
- The ineptitude of the leader, Louis XVI, to deal with any of these (and many other) problems
