The American and French Revolution had common goals: to achieve democracy. However, both American and French Revolution were not very successful democratic revolution because their outcomes were not very democratic based on the definition of liberal democracy. This essay is first going to discuss the definition and elements of liberal democracy; then the outcomes of both revolutions; and lastly, how successful were the outcomes of the revolutions in achieving democracy.
“Democracy is the theory that the common people know what they want, and deserve to get it good and hard.” (H.L. Mencken, 1920). What is liberal democracy? Liberal democracy is a form of government that representative government operates under the ideas of liberalism, in which contains the factors: power, justice, legitimacy, and freedom. Power means the government should have a written convention to limit and define power, while a balanced political system that separates legislative, executive and judicial power is instituted. Legitimacy is that governments should have an electoral system to gain high degrees of popular. Justice means that all citizens receive equal treatments, equal opportunities for success, political participation, and representation, so legitimacy in the government can be achieved. As for freedom, there must be the freedom of speech, and religion. And, everybody has the rights to rule themselves. Liberal democracies are organized with these four elements to promote a stable government (AustralianPolitics, 1995~2014).
The Americans successfully rid themselves of tyranny of Britain and became an independent nation after signing the Treaty of Paris. They formed a new government with several conventions: The Articles of Confederation, the U.S Constitution, and the U.S Bills of Rights. The Articles of Confederation were ratified in1781 to avoid abuses of power. However, the original government run under the Articles of Confederation was too weak and had few powers and had no jurisdiction over American citizens. The Articles provided no authority to tax citizens even. Until the U.S Constitution was ratified in 1789, which created a federal system of the government. Also, it divides the government into three branches, creating a balanced political system. (U.S History, 1995~2014) Later on, the U.S Bill of Rights was added to promote freedom of speech and religion, and equality. By this point, the American Revolution was a pretty successfully democratic revolution because these outcomes match the definition of liberal democracy. However, there were still unequal rights between men and women, and between white people and African Americans, even the U.S Bill of Rights promised equality! (U.S History, 1995~2014) This is the reason that American Revolution was not a completely democratic revolution.
As for the French Revolution, Napoleonic Code promoted freedom of press and religion. It also promoted equality before law and a representative system of government. And, Napoleon submitted a plebiscite asking whether the French people wanted France to be an empire or not before he crowned himself. (LR Swartz, 2007) This action was the first step of the creation of electoral system in French. These were the democratic outcomes of the revolution. However, France was still a monarchy instead of democracy because Napoleon had crowned himself, and the plebiscite was not completely an electoral system. There were neither any conventions created to limit the ruler's power nor a balance political system. Also, Napoleon even reinstituted slavery although he promised equality (Robert Wilde, 2014). The French Revolution was not a very successful democratic revolution.
In conclusion, both American and French Revolution had democratic outcomes in some ways based on the definition of liberal democracy, but they were not completely successful democratic revolution because both of them have still lacked some elements of liberal democracy, such as racism appeared in American even though the U.S Bill of Rights promised equality; and France was still a monarchy because there were no convention created to limit Napoleon's power.
Bibliography:
1. "Liberal Democracy." AustralianPoliticscom. N.p., 1995. Web. 07 Dec. 2014.
2. Nussbaum. "Weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation." «. N.p., 2014. Web. 07 Dec. 2014.
3. "Constitution of the United States." Ushistory.org. Independence Hall Association, 1995. Web. 07 Dec. 2014.
4. Wilde, Robert WildeRobert. "The Devastating Impact of the French Revolution on the Rest of Europe." About. About Education, 2014. Web. 04 Dec. 2014.
5. Swartz, LR. "French History the Outcome of the French Revolution."Humanities 360. Helium Incorporation, 6 July 2007. Web. 07 Dec. 2014.
“Democracy is the theory that the common people know what they want, and deserve to get it good and hard.” (H.L. Mencken, 1920). What is liberal democracy? Liberal democracy is a form of government that representative government operates under the ideas of liberalism, in which contains the factors: power, justice, legitimacy, and freedom. Power means the government should have a written convention to limit and define power, while a balanced political system that separates legislative, executive and judicial power is instituted. Legitimacy is that governments should have an electoral system to gain high degrees of popular. Justice means that all citizens receive equal treatments, equal opportunities for success, political participation, and representation, so legitimacy in the government can be achieved. As for freedom, there must be the freedom of speech, and religion. And, everybody has the rights to rule themselves. Liberal democracies are organized with these four elements to promote a stable government (AustralianPolitics, 1995~2014).
The Americans successfully rid themselves of tyranny of Britain and became an independent nation after signing the Treaty of Paris. They formed a new government with several conventions: The Articles of Confederation, the U.S Constitution, and the U.S Bills of Rights. The Articles of Confederation were ratified in1781 to avoid abuses of power. However, the original government run under the Articles of Confederation was too weak and had few powers and had no jurisdiction over American citizens. The Articles provided no authority to tax citizens even. Until the U.S Constitution was ratified in 1789, which created a federal system of the government. Also, it divides the government into three branches, creating a balanced political system. (U.S History, 1995~2014) Later on, the U.S Bill of Rights was added to promote freedom of speech and religion, and equality. By this point, the American Revolution was a pretty successfully democratic revolution because these outcomes match the definition of liberal democracy. However, there were still unequal rights between men and women, and between white people and African Americans, even the U.S Bill of Rights promised equality! (U.S History, 1995~2014) This is the reason that American Revolution was not a completely democratic revolution.
As for the French Revolution, Napoleonic Code promoted freedom of press and religion. It also promoted equality before law and a representative system of government. And, Napoleon submitted a plebiscite asking whether the French people wanted France to be an empire or not before he crowned himself. (LR Swartz, 2007) This action was the first step of the creation of electoral system in French. These were the democratic outcomes of the revolution. However, France was still a monarchy instead of democracy because Napoleon had crowned himself, and the plebiscite was not completely an electoral system. There were neither any conventions created to limit the ruler's power nor a balance political system. Also, Napoleon even reinstituted slavery although he promised equality (Robert Wilde, 2014). The French Revolution was not a very successful democratic revolution.
In conclusion, both American and French Revolution had democratic outcomes in some ways based on the definition of liberal democracy, but they were not completely successful democratic revolution because both of them have still lacked some elements of liberal democracy, such as racism appeared in American even though the U.S Bill of Rights promised equality; and France was still a monarchy because there were no convention created to limit Napoleon's power.
Bibliography:
1. "Liberal Democracy." AustralianPoliticscom. N.p., 1995. Web. 07 Dec. 2014.
2. Nussbaum. "Weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation." «. N.p., 2014. Web. 07 Dec. 2014.
3. "Constitution of the United States." Ushistory.org. Independence Hall Association, 1995. Web. 07 Dec. 2014.
4. Wilde, Robert WildeRobert. "The Devastating Impact of the French Revolution on the Rest of Europe." About. About Education, 2014. Web. 04 Dec. 2014.
5. Swartz, LR. "French History the Outcome of the French Revolution."Humanities 360. Helium Incorporation, 6 July 2007. Web. 07 Dec. 2014.