The French Revolution - Essay Example

The French Revolution “Every visitor brings me intelligence from France full of dismay and horror. I hear of nothing but crimes, assassinations, torture, and death. I am told that every day witnesses a conspiracy; that every town is the scene of a massacre; that every street is blackened with a gallows, and every highway deluged. I hear these things, and repeat to myself, Is this the picture of France? Are these the images of universal joy, which called tears into my eyes, and made my heart throb with sympathy?”............(Helen Maria Williams) This quote, drawn from the work of poet Helen Maria Williams, eloquently describes the horror and carnage that accompanied the French revolution. Thousands perished and the scale of the violence, as depicted in the lines above, hints at the extent of repression that were seething below the surface of French society for many years. Williams responds to this carnage with horror and distress; sharply in contrast to poet Ann Yearsley, who responds to the same carnage associated with the French revolution with a militant joy. This essay compares and contrasts the similarities and differences in the approach and attitude of these two female poets to the French revolution. It also examines how the differences in the backgrounds of the two poets could have played a role in their different responses to the carnage associated with the French revolution. The French Revolution effectively achieved the objective of bringing freedom to the people, and women were active participants in the lynching and other mob activities (Andress, 1999:64). The position of women in England was however, somewhat different and this attitude also spilt over into the response to the French revolution. In England, the position of women during this period was still largely subordinate to the male sex; as a result, the writers who supported the French revolution were accused of aligning themselves with the perceived low morals of Frenchwomen who participated in the carnage. Marie Antoinette was executed in October 1793, and the allegations of lesbianism and incestuous attacks on her son also contributed to the general perception in England that French women were scandalous and that their conduct was not to be emulated under any circumstances. Marie Antoinette was viewed by the French working class as the Austrian hussy, who frittered away the money that the peasants paid in taxes and this unfavourable view was also shared by people in other parts of the world, such as England. In this aspect, both the poets Williams and Yearsley are similar in that both of them were viewed unfavourably in England, as writers who were in support of the French Revolution. Although Williams’s first hand view of the French Revolution was horror at the carnage, her works on the whole, demonstrated a support for the ideals and motivation of the common people, which led to the revolution. Despite her portrayals of the fear, torture and bloodshed in France, Williams still argued through her writings that the violence associated with the French revolution did not invalidate the ideals of humanity that were enshrined in the Enlightenment. However, because she was one of the writers aligning herself with the revolutionaries, she, along with Yearsley, were frowned upon in British society as supportive of acts in women which were against the traditional notions of feminity. Women participating in the French revolution were completely against the norm for ladies from England to be involved in or supportive of and both these poets supported the cause of the French revolution, albeit from different perspectives. The French revolution was in essence, the rebellion of the working class against the gentry and royal rule. The spur for the French revolution was the country’s economic woes, which were caused by years of financial mismanagement by the ruling class. Those who suffered most as a result of the economic crunch were the working class, i.e, the peasants, who worked very hard but did not see much fruits of their toil in terms of an improved standard of living. On the contrary, the monies they paid in taxes were frittered away by the nobility, thereby instigating a fierce spirit of retribution in the people, who wanted to seize back their power over their own lives and future. The two poets Yearsley and Williams, differ in the manner in which they respond to the external manifestation of the Revolution. Helena Maria Weaver, through her poems in the book titled “Letters from France”, has questioned, “I hear of nothing but crimes, assassinations, torture, and death….is this the picture of France?” The nature of the activities the French women engaged in – the bloodshed and carnage, were unseemly for British women – so much so that Helen Maria Williams questions, “Are these the images of universal joy, which called tears into my eyes and made my heart throb with sympathy?” This reveals that Williams, in aligning her sympathy for the French cause, may have harboured rosy pictures in her mind, of those who were oppressed being set free. Being from a genteel section of English society however, it may not have been easy for her to be faced with the stark reality of the hardship and horrors associated with fighting for freedom, as exemplified through the carnage and bloodshed of the Revolution. In offering a solution, Williams suggests that “where hideous carnage marks his dang’rous way” , then “blest Concord” needs to appear on the scene and with “smile serene” chase the “hostile passions from the human scene” (Williams, at pp 210). She is thus of the view that a soothing, soft spirit needs to overcome the hideous passions which have led to the storms and the wreaking of havoc which has produced the carnage. In contrast, Yearsley responds to the carnage in a very different way. She responds from the perspective of the French peasant, who had endured years of injustice and mismanagement of finances by the gentry. In her poem titled “Anarchy”, she questions “Furies! Why sleep amid the carnage? - Rise! Bring up my wolves of war, my pointed spears!”. The work of poet Ann Yearsley thus differs from Weaver in her lack of repugnance at the bloodshed and carnage associated with the French revolution. In effect, her work appears to not only celebrate the carnage but to actively encourage it. In her poem, she states: “paint your cheeks with gore and lave your locks in tears”, thereby seeking more distress and horror to be piled upon the existing carnage, as opposed to the soothing spirit that Williams espouses. Her works celebrate the working class because she was also from the working class herself. As a former milkmaid, she writes about the urge for freedom arising out of the oppression of her present life and appears to identity with the spirit of independence driving the French working class into revolution. In her poem titled: “A poem on the inhumanity of the slave trade”, Yearsley writes: “....snatch her rustic thought, her crude ideas, from their panting state, and let them fly in wide expansion...,”(Yearsley, no date). The poem deals with the need to set the slaves free and its notable aspect is the underlying urge for freedom that Yearsley expresses in her poem; an urge so strong and all consuming that the need to fly would overcome all constraints, ripping them apart even if it involved bloodshed during the process. Yearsley, as described above, is in her element, writing about the French revolution in a bold manner, supporting and admiring the spirit of violence and destruction that drives the revolution. Williams’ offers the view that glory may be found “afar from agonizing groans and crimson war” (page 210), but Yearsley’s view is almost entirely the opposite. In her poem titled “Anarchy”, the solution she proposes to the carnage is much different from Williams’ – she states: “...see that happy child! Seize it deface its infant charms!”. Yearsley is thus actively promoting and encouraging rampant bloodshed as a means to give free rein to the urge for freedom. This spirit and thirst underlying the French revolution is perhaps best characterized by the poems of Ann Yearsley, whose humble beginnings as a milkmaid were no barrier to ascent to a poet. She expressed the spirit of underlying independence in her as follows:  I’ve patient trod the wild entangled path of unimprov’d Idea…..My independent spirit: on the wing, she still shall guideless soar.” (Yearsley, 22). Yearsley, from her humble origins as a milkmaid, would have sympathized far more with the urge towards violence in seeking the goal of freedom, because she would have fought against the invisible limits that class and wealth in English society placed upon its citizens. This could explain why her reaction to a revolution and the urge for freedom is “This is my era! O’er the dead I go!” , thereby showing a willingness to countenance death if it appears necessary to further the cause of freedom. The objective of the French Revolution was also to overthrow the aristocracy; it brought about a sea change in the seat of power, which shifted dramatically from the aristocracy to the people. The radical change was however achieved only through considerable bloodshed. While Yearsley appears to be actively in support of this bloodshed, Helen Maria Williams does not appear to experience such a militant joy at the prospect of death and responds with distress to the carnage. Yearsley’s work on the French Revolution differs from Williams in their focus. While Yearsley focuses on the underlying spirit of and striving towards independence which characterized the Revolution, Williams tends to dwell on the external violent manifestations of the revolutionary spirit, which she finds alarming. While Williams is disturbed by the bloodshed and carnage, Yearsley is able to move beyond it to seek out the underlying spirit of thirst for independence. Williams’ proposes peace and a soothing spirit to being joy to those who are suffering, while Yearsley appears to be espousing more violence. Williams expresses her support for the French Revolution through suggestions of peace and joy to be brought to the people, to conform to her mental image of the rich cultural arena and fine standard of living which she perceives France to be; in line with genteel English society - a France where such violence seems out of place. The carnage and violence was an essential element of the upheaval and chaos that was necessary to break up the existing structures which revolved around aristocracy and gender inequalities. In conclusion, it may be noted that the positive writings of the British women on the French revolution do point to the underlying admiration they had for the French and the underlying cause of equality that drove the revolutionary activity. Both Yearsley and Williams show a support and sympathy for the French revolution in their writings, but while Williams focuses on its external manifestations of bloodshed and carnage, Yearsley celebrates the underlying spirit of spirit that drives the revolution. The manner in which they both respond to the bloodshed of the Revolution is also different. Williams is distressed by it and is anxious to bring soothing and peace to calm the troubled, stormy waters, but Yearsley actively encourages more violence and fighting through her poems. The difference could likely be the result of the differences in the upbringing of the two poets; while Williams is from a genteel, upper class background, Yearsley as a former milkmaid, is from the working classes. While it may be inferred that both the poets sympathize with the aims and purpose of the French revolution and were anxious to promote the cause of the common people fighting for their freedom, they do not offer similar solutions. Yearsley appears to be more in tune with the aspirations of the French populace, in terms of understanding their urge for freedom after the repression of past years, because she is herself a member of the working class. As opposed to this, Williams who is from a higher class background, appears to view the solution to the problem as being much easier to achieve; i.e, through the use of soothing platitudes and peaceful resolutions, which might not accurately represent the underlying motivation for the Revolution. The fierceness and violence associated with the revolution were an essential expression to counterbalance years of repression; this is an aspect that Yearsley appears to appreciate to a far greater extent than Williams. References: * Andress, David, 1999. “ French Society in Revolution, 1789-1799”, Manchester: Manchester University Press. * Williams, Helen Maria, Fraistat, Neil and Lanser, Susan Snaider, 2001. “Letters written in France: in the summer 1790, to a friend in England”, Broadview Press * Yearsley, Ann. “Selected poems”, (Edn Tim Burke, foreward: Donna Landry. The Cyder Press. * Yearsley, Ann. “Anarchy: A sonnet2, retrieved November 3, 2010 from: http://www.rc.umd.edu/editions/warpoetry/1796/1796_7.html Read More