·
· Sociology emerged as a distinct science in nineteenth century Europe. Europe then was passing through a period of immense changes which had set in with the French and the Industrial Revolutions.
Indeed, sociology can be considered above all... a science of the new industrial society.
But before we go on to describe the salient points of the French Revolution and the Industrial Revolution we will explain to you the Commercial Revolution and the Scientific Revolution which took place in Europe between the fourteenth century and the eighteenth century. It was during
these two Revolutions in Europe, covered by what is popularly known as the “Renaissance” period, when there took place a revival of art, literature, music, sculpture, science and so on.
Emergence of Sociology in Europe:
The Commercial Revolution
The “Commercial Revolution” refers to a series of events between 1450 to approximately 1800. These events signaled to a shift from the largely subsistence and stagnant economy of medieval Europe to a more dynamic and worldwide system. The Commercial Revolution in this sense, signified the expansion of trade and commerce that took place from the fifteenth
century onwards.
It was of such a large scale and organised manner that we call it a Revolution. This expansion was as a result of the initiative taken by certain European countries to develop and consolidate their economic and political power. These countries were Portugal, Spain, Holland and England.
Important aspects of the Commercial Revolution were overseas discoveries and conquests. Europe’s trade with the Oriental or Eastern countries like India and China was transacted by land routes. The northern Italian cities of Venice and Genoa were the major centers of trade. The result of the Italian monopoly was that the prices of goods like spices and silks imported from the East were extremely high.
Portugal and Spain therefore, wanted to discover a route to the Orient that would be independent of Italian control. Thus began a shift from land routes to sea-routes. The Portuguese were
the pioneers in adventurous navigation and exploration, you probably know of the historic voyage of Vasco da Gama who, in 1498 landed on the Indian coast after having sailed around the southern tip of Africa.
Christopher Columbus, an Italian under the patronage of the Spanish King and Queen, set sail for India. However, he landed on the shores of North America. This accidental discovery of America was to prove very beneficial to Spain. It laid the foundations of what was to become a Spanish empire in America.
Britain, France and Holland soon followed Spain and Portugal. The parts of India and Africa, Malacca, the Spice Islands, West Indies and South America came under the economic control of Spain, Portugal, England, France and Holland. Commerce expanded into a world enterprise. The
monopoly of the Italian cities was destroyed.
European markets were flooded with new commodities; spices and textiles from the East, tobacco from N. America, Cocoa, Chocolate and quinine from S. America, ivory and, above all, human slaves from Africa. With the discovery of the Americas, the range of trade widened. Formerly, the items sought for were spices and cloth, later, gold and silver were added to the
list.
As the Commercial Revolution progressed, the position of Portugal and Spain declined. England, Holland and France came to dominate Europe and the world.
Expansion of Banking
One of the important features of the Commercial Revolution was the growth of banking. Credit facilities were expanded, making it easy for merchants to do business. The “cheque” was invented in the eighteenth century.
Paper money came to replace gold and silver coins. Growth of companies: As trade and commerce expanded, new kinds of business organizations had to be devised to cope with this growth.
“Regulated companies” arose in the 16th century. These were associations of merchants who bonded together to cooperate for a common venture.
“Joint-stock” companies emerged in the 17th century. In this set-up, shares of capital were distributed to a large number of investors. Some of these were also “chartered companies”, their governments gave them a charter or a contract which guaranteed them a monopoly of the trade in a particular region. Examples of these companies include the British East India Company and the Dutch East India Company.
Rise of a New Class
In this period middle class raised to economic power. By the end of the 17th century, the middle class had become an influential group in nearly every western European country. It included merchants, bankers, ship-owners and investors. Their power, at this stage, was mainly economic.
But later they became politically powerful in the 19th century.
“Europeanisation” of the world
By this term, we mean the transplanting of European manners and culture in other societies. The activities of traders, missionaries and conquerors saw the Europeanisation of the Americas. Later, with the strengthening of colonialism, this process took root in Asia and Africa as well.
Europe produced a “scientific revolution” in the Renaissance period of fourteenth to sixteenth
century A.D. The impact of the scientific revolution was crucial not just in changing material life, but also people’s ideas about Nature and Society.
To begin with, let us clarify what we mean by the “history of science”, which is what we will be describing in this section. The history of science does not mean a list of dates and events to be memorized. It is a story the interconnection between science and society, polity, economy and
culture.
1.3.2.1 Social Functions of Sciences
Science does not develop independent of society, rather, it develops in response to human needs e.g. various vaccines were not developed just out of the blue, but out of the necessity to cure diseases.
Apart from influencing the physical or material life of society, science is intimately connected with ideas. The general intellectual atmosphere existing in society influences the development of science. Similarly, new developments in science can change the attitudes and beliefs in other areas as well. It is important to keep this fact in mind. We shall constantly be demonstrating how new scientific ideas influenced scholars to think about society in new ways.
The emergence of sociology in Europe owes a great deal to the ideas and discoveries contributed by science.
Science in the Medieval Period
Medieval society was characterised by the feudal system. The Church was the epicenter of power authority and learning. Learning was mostly of the religious variety. Nothing could challenge the ‘dogmas’ or rigid beliefs of the Church. New, daring ideas could not flower in such an atmosphere. Thus the development of science was restricted mainly to improvements in techniques of production.
*The Renaissance period:
The ‘Renaissance’ period saw the beginning of the ‘Scientific Revolution’. It marked an area of description and criticism in the field of science. It was a clear break from the past, a challenge to old authority.
Let us briefly observe some of the major developments in art and science of this period.
Visual art, Art, literature and science all flourished. A scientific approach to Nature and the human body became prevalent. We can see this in the paintings of that period, which explored the smallest details of Nature and the human body.
Medicine
Dissection the human body became acceptable. Doctors and physiologists directly observed how the human body was constructed. The fields of anatomy, physiology and pathology thus benefited greatly.
Chemistry
A general theory of chemistry was developed. Chemical processes like oxidation, reduction, distillation, amalgamation etc. were studied.
Navigation and astronomy
Vasco da Gama reached the Indian shores in 1498. Columbus discovered America in 1492. Remember, this was the era of expansion of trade and the beginnings of colonialism. A strong interest in astronomy, important for successful navigation also grew.
The Copernican Revolution:
The first major break from the entire system of ancient thought came with the work of the Dutchman, Nicholas Copernicus.
It was generally believed that the earth was fixed or stationary and the sun and other heavenly bodies moved around it. (This is known as a ‘geocentric’ theory.)
Copernicus however thought otherwise . With the help of detailed explanations, he demonstrated that the earth moved around a fixed sun.
(This is a ‘heliocentric’ theory.) The work of Copernicus is considered revolutionary because it drastically altered patterns of thought about the universe. Human being was not at the center of the universe, but a small part of a vast system.
In a nutshell, science in the Renaissance period was marked by a new attitude towards man and nature. Natural objects became the subject of close observation and experiment.
The Copernican revolution shattered the very foundations on which the old world rested.
Some major scientific developments of the post Renaissance era are:
Here we describe the developments in different fields that led to new
methods and perspectives in scientific research.
*Experimental Method in Physics and Mathematics
The work of physicists and mathematicians like Galileo Galilei (1564-1642), Johannes Kepler (1571-1630) and subsequently, Sir Isaac Newton (1642-1727) revolutionised science. It brought to the forefront the experimental method. Old ideas were challenged and alternatives were suggested. If these alternative ideas could be proved and repeatedly verified and checked
out, they were accepted. If not, new solutions were sought. Scientific methods thus came to be regarded as the most accurate, the most objective.
Later these ‘scientific method’ tostudy society was recommended by pioneer sociologists.
*Biology and Evolution:
*Dissection of the human body helped people gain a better understanding of its working:
Circulation of blood was discovered by William Harvey (1578-1657). This led to a lot of rethinking.
The human organism came to be viewed in terms of interrelated parts and interconnected systems. This had its impact on social thought of Comte, Spencer, Durkheim, to name a few.
Let us now come to one of the most interesting contributions in biology, which created a furor in the society of that time. The British naturalist Charles Darwin (1809-1882) published the Origin of Species in 1859. It was based on the observations made whilst traveling for five years all over the world.
Darwin put forward the theory that various living organisms compete for the limited resources the earth has to offer. Thus “survival of the fittest” is the natural law. Some species evolve or develop certain traits, which make their survival possible, other species die out.
Darwin studied ‘human evolution’, tracing it in his work, Descent of Man (1863). He traced the origins of the human species to some ape-like ancestors, which, over the centuries, evolved into modern human beings. This book created an uproar. It was believed that ‘God’ made humans “in
his own image” and conservatives were not willing to accept that they were descended from the monkey.
Darwin’s evolutionary theory did, however, gain wide acceptance. It was applied to the social world by ‘evolutionary’ thinkers, notably Herbert Spencer. Not just organisms , but societies were seen as constantly ‘evolving’ or developing from a lower to a higher stage.
The forces of change set in by the Commercial Revolution and the Scientific Revolution would have now become clear to you by now.
Later French Revolution and the Industrial Revolution, which have together provided the social conditions which led to the emergence of sociology as a discipline.
The French Revolution
The French Revolution, which erupted in 1789 marked a turning point in the history of human struggle for freedom and equality. It put an end to the age of feudalism and ushered in a new order of society.
This revolution brought about far reaching changes in not only French society but in societies throughout Europe. Even countries in other continents such as, India, were influenced by the ideas generated during this revolution. Ideas like liberty, fraternity and equality, which now form
a part of the preamble to the Constitution of India, owe their origin to the French Revolution.
Let us first examine some of the major aspects of this revolution.
The Basic Picture of the French society: Division into Feudal Estates The French society was divided into feudal ‘estates’. The structure of the feudal French society comprised the ‘Three Estates’. Estates are defined as a system of stratification found in feudal European societies whereby one section or estate is distinguished from the other in terms of status, privileges and restrictions accorded to that estate.
a) The First Estate consisted of the clergy, which was stratified into higher clergy, such as the cardinal, the archbishops, the bishops and the abbots. They lived a life of luxury and gave very little attention to religion. In fact, some of them preferred the life of politics to religion. They spent much of their time in wasteful activities like drinking, gambling, etc. In comparison to the higher clergy, the lower parish priests were over worked and poverty-stricken.
b) The Second Estate consisted of the nobility. There were two kinds of nobles, the nobles of the sword and the nobles of the robe. The nobles of the sword were big landlords. They were the protectors of the people in principle but in reality they led a life of a parasite, living off the hard work of the peasants. They led the life of pomp and show and were nothing more than ‘high born wastrels’; that is, they spent extravagantly and did not work themselves. They can be compared to the erstwhile zamindars in India. The nobles of the robe were nobles not by birth by title. They were the magistrates and judges. Among these nobles, some were very progressive and liberal as they had moved in their positions from common citizens who belonged to the third estate.
c) The Third Estate comprised the rest of the society and included the peasants, the merchants, the artisans, and others. There was a vast difference between the condition of the peasants and that of the clergy and the nobility. The peasants worked day and night but were overloaded with so many taxes that they lived a hand to mouth existence. They produced the food on which the whole society depended. Yet they could barely survive due to failure of any kind of protection from the government. The King, in order to maintain the good will of the other two estates, the clergy and the nobility, continued to exploit the poor. The poor peasants had no power against him. While the clergy and the nobility kept on pampering and flattering the King.
As compared to the peasants, the condition of the middle classes, also known as the bourgeoisie comparising the merchants, bankers, lawyers, manufacturers, etc. was much better. These classes too belonged to the third estate. But the poverty of the state, which led to a price rise during 1720-1789, instead of adversely affecting them, helped them. They derived profit from this rise and the fact that French trade had improved enormously also helped the commercial classes to a great extent. Thus, this class was rich and secure. But it had no social prestige as compared with the high prestige of the members of the first and the second estates. In spite of controlling trade, industries, banking etc. the bourgeoisie had no power to influence the court or administration. The other two estates looked them down upon and the King paid very little attention to them. Thus, gaining political power became a necessity for them. The clergy and the nobility both constituted only two per cent of the population but they owned about 35 per cent of the land. The peasants who formed 80 per cent of the population owned only 30 per cent of the
land. The first two estates paid almost no taxes to the government. The peasantry, on the other hand, was burdened with taxes of various kinds. It paid taxes to the Church, the feudal lord, taxed in the form of income tax, poll tax, and land tax to the state. Thus, you can see how much burdened and poverty stricken the peasants had become at this time. They were virtually carrying the burden of the first two estates on their shoulders. On top of it all the prices had generally risen by about 65 per cent during the period, 1720-1789.
The Political Aspects of the French society:
Like in all absolute monarchies, the theory of the Divine Right of King was followed in France too. For about 200 years the Kings of the Bourbon dynasty ruled France. Under the rule of the King, the ordinary people had no personal rights. They only served the King and his nobles in various
capacities. The King’s word was law and no trials were required to arrest a person on the King’s orders. Laws too were different in different regions giving rise to confusion and arbitrariness. There was no distinction between the income of the state and the income of the King.
1.4.3 The Economic Aspects of the French society
The kings of France, from Louis XIV onwards, fought costly wars, which
ruined the country, and when Louis XIV died in 1715, France had become
bankrupt. Louis XV instead of recovering from this ruin kept on borrowing
money from bankers. His famous sentence, “After me the deluge” describes
the kind of financial crisis that France was facing. Louis XVI, a very weak
and ineffective king, inherited the ruin of a bankrupt government. His wife,
Queen Marie Antoinette, known for her expensive habits, is famous for
her reply, which she gave to the poor, hungry people of France who came
to her asking for bread. She told the people that, ‘if you don’t have bread,
eat cake’.
Now let us examine the intellectual developments in France, which proved
to be the igniting force in bringing about the revolution.
1.4.4 Intellectual Developments in France
France, like some other European countries during the eighteenth century,
had entered the age of reason and ra ionalism. Some of the major
philosophers, whose ideas influenced the French people, were rationalists
who believed that all true things could be proved by reason.
Some of these thinkers were,
Montesquieu (1689-1755),
Locke (1632-1704),
Voltaire (1694-1778),
and Rousseau (1712-1778).
Montesquieu in his book, The Spirit of the Law, held that there should not
be concentration of authority, such as executive, legislative, and juridical,
at one place. He believed in the theory of the separation of powers and the
liberty of the individual.
Locke, an Englishman, advocated that every individual has certain rights,
which cannot be taken by any authority. These rights were :
(i) right to live,
(ii) right to property, and
(iii) the right to personal freedom.
He also believed that any ruler who took away these rights from his people should be removed from the seat of power and replaced by another ruler who is able to protect these rights.
Voltaire, a French philosopher, advocated religious toleration and freedom
of speech. He also stood for the rights of individuals, for freedom of speech
and expression.
Rousseau wrote in his book, The Social Contract, that the people of a country have the right to choose their sovereign. He believed that people can develop their personalities best only under a government which is of their own choice.
The major ideas of these and several othe r intellectuals struck the
imagination of the French people. Also some of them who had served in
the French army, which was sent to assist the Americans in their War of
Independence from British imperialism, came back with the ideas of equality
of individuals and their right to choose their own government.
The French middle class was deeply affected by these ideas of liberty and equality.
This was the basic picture of the French society just before the Revolution.
Now we will describe some of the major of the major events that took place during the Revolution.
Important Events
i) In France there was a parliamentary body called the Estates-General in which all the three estates were represented but which had met last in 1614. It was in 1778 that the King, Louis XVI, was forced to impose a tax on everyone irrespective of his or her social status. The French government had become bankrupt due to the extravagance of the King, as well as, the help that they had given to the Americans in their War of Independence.
This imposition of tax led the rich nobles and the clergy to demand a meeting of the Estate-General, which they felt, was the only body, which could levy tax. The Estate-General met on May 5, 178, but in this meeting, unlike the earlier practice, the representatives of the third estate wanted all the estates to meet and vote as one assembly. But the first two estates did not agree to this.
The refusal of the first two Estates to meet with the third Estate as a single body led to the formation of the National Assembly. The meeting of the National Assembly led by middle class leaders and some liberal minded nobles was met with stiff resistance. On 20th June 1789 when a meeting was to be held in the Hall at Versailles near Paris, the members found that it was closed and guarded by the King’s men.
Therefore, the National Assembly members led by their leader Bailey went to the next building which was an indoor tennis court. It was here that they took an Oath to draw a new constitution for France.
This Oath, which marks the beginning of the French Revolution, is
popularly known as the Oath of the Tennis Court.
Storming of the Bastille
ii) On July 14th, 1789 took place one of the most important events of
the French Revolution. It was the storming of the Bastille, an ancient
royal prison that stood as a symbol of oppression On this date the mobs of Paris, led by some26 Early Sociology middle class leaders, broke open this prison and set its inmates free.
The causes for this event were the shortage of food, on the one hand,
and the dismissal of a very popular minister called Necker, on the other. The mobs of Paris rebelled against the ruling class, especially the King. This day is celebrated in France as its Independence Day.
iii) Declaration of Rights of Man by the Constituent Assembly, (1789-
1791), comprising the members of the third estate and some liberal
minded members of the other two estates, guaranteed :
*freedom of speech,
*freedom of religion, and
*freedom from arbitrary punishments.
It abolished the special rights and privileges of the clergy and the nobility.
The King was no longer to rule by Divine Right and several important social and economic changes were brought about.
According to this declaration ‘all men were born and remains equal before law.
They have a right to choose their government and to resist oppression.
Personal liberty becomes a right given to all individuals. Thus, the
ideas of liberty and equality put an end to the age of serfdom, despotism
and hereditary privileges found in the old feudal society.
iv) In 1791 the king tried to escape from France but was recognised at
the frontier and brought back. Since then he become a virtual prisoner.
v) In Paris, the new Legislative Assembly (1791-1792) was formed. It
comprised two very radical groups, namely the Girondin and the Jacobin. These groups considered the king a traitor and were in favour of establishing a Republic.
vi) The King, Louis XVI, was beheaded in public on 21st January 1793
after being proved guilty of treason. The Queen was also beheaded
later in the same year. France was declared a Republic.
vii) A period referred to as “Reign of Terror” took place in France when
several of the nobles, priests, some of the revolutionaries themselves
were guillotined i.e. beheaded. This period lasted for three years.
viii) Establishment of the Directorate took place in 1795. It lasted for four
years till a young artillery officer from Corsica, a neighbouring island,
overthrew the Directorate in 1799. He was Napoleon Bonaparte. He
made himself the new Director and provided a much sought after stable
government to the people of France. Thus the French Revolution ended
with the overthrow of the Directorate by Napoleon.
You would have by now developed a rough idea of what the French
Revolution was and how significant its role has been in the history of
human civilisation. It changed the political structure of European society
and replaced the age of feudalism by heralding the arrival of democracy.
There were many significant themes, which arose due to the impact of this
Revolution, which have been the focus of interest of the early sociologists.
These significant themes included the transformation of property, the social
disorder, caused by the change in the political structure and its impact on
the economic structure. A new class of power holders emerged - the
bourgeoisie. In order to understand more about these themes, we need to
learn the details of the Industrial Revolution.
The Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution began around 1760 A.D. in England. It brought
about great changes in the social and economic life of the people first in
England, then in the other countries of Europe and later in other continents.
In Europe, especially England , the discovery of ne w territories ,
explorations, growth of trade and commerce and the consequent growth of
towns brought about an increase in demand for goods. Earlier goods (i.e.
consumer items like cloth, etc.) were produced at domestic levels. This
means that there existed a domestic system of production. With increased
demand, goods were to be produced on a large-scale.
New Invention
During Industrial Revolution, new tools and techniques were invented,
which could produce goods on a large-scale. During 1760-1830 A.D., a
series of inventions in tools and techniques and organization of production
took place and it gave rise to the factory system of production. Thus, a
change in economy from feudal to capitalist system of production
developed. Subsequently, there emerged a class of capitalists, which
controlled the new system of production.
Due to this revolution society moved from the old age of hand-made goods to the new age of machinemade goods.
This shift heralded the emergence of Industrial Revolution.
One of the significant mechanical inventions, which led to a quicker and
better method of production in various industries, was the Spinning Jenny,
invented in 1767 by James Hargreaves, an English weaver. It was a simple
machine rectangular in shape. It had a series of spindles, which cold be
turned by a single wheel.
In 1769, Arkwright, an English barber, invented another tool, which was named after the name of its inventor and called Arkwright’s Water Fame. This Water Frame was so large that it could not be kept in one’s home and a special building was required to set it up.
Thus on account of this it is said that he was responsible for introducing
the factory system. Another invention called “the Mule” was by Samuel
Crompton in 1779 in England. There were several other inventions, which
all contributed to the industrial growth of European society.
Impact of the Industrial Revolution on Society
With the change in the economy of society several social changes followed.
As capitalism became more and more complex,
*the developments of banks, insurance companies, and finance corporations took place.
*New class of industrial workers, managers, capitalists emerged.
*The peasants in the new industrial society found themselves with thousands
of other people like themselves, winding cotton in a textile mill. Instead of
the famous countryside they found themselves in unhygienic living
conditions.
*With the increase in production, population started increasing.
*Rise of population led to the increased rate of urbanisation.
*The industrial cities grew rapidly. In the industrial cities socio-economic disparities were very wide. The factory workers were involved in repetitive and boring
work, the result of which they could not enjoy.
In Marxist terms the worker became alienated from the product of his/ her labour.
*City life in the industrial society became an altogether a different way of life.
These change s moved both conservative and radical thinkers . The
conservatives feared that such conditions would lead to chaos and disorder.
The radicals like Engels felt that the factory workers would initiate social
transformation.
Though the judgement of values differed, social thinkers of the time were
agreed upon the epoch-making impact of the Industrial Revolution. They
also agreed upon the importance of the new working class. The history of
the period from 1811 to 1850 further indicates that this class increasingly
agitated for their rights.
Significant Themes of the Industrial Revolution
The significant themes of the Industrial Revolution, which concerned the
early sociologists, were as given below.
i) The condition of labour: A new population earning their livelihood
by working in the factories arose. In the early years this working class
lived in poverty and squalor. They were socially deprived. At the same
time they were indispensable in the new industrial system. This made
them a powerful social force. Sociologists recognised that the poverty
of this class of workers is not natural poverty but social poverty. Thus
the working class became during the nineteenth century the subject of
both moral and analytical concern.
ii) The transformation of property: The traditional emphasis on land
lost its value while money or capital became important during the
Industrial Revolution. The investment in new industrial system came
to be recognised. The feudal landlords became less significant while
the new capitalists gained power. Many of these new capitalists were
the erstwhile landlords.
Property was one of the central issues that were raised in the French
Revolution too. Its influence on the social order is considerable.
Property is related to economic privileges, social status and political
power. A change in the property system involves a change in the
fundamental character of society. Sociologists have grappled with the
question of property and its impact on social stratification since the
days of Marx, Tocqueville, Taine and Weber.
iii) The industrial city, i.e. urbanism: Urbanisation was a necessary
corollary of the Industrial Revolution. Industries grew and along with
it grew great cluster of populations, the modern towns and cities. Cities
were present in ancient period too, such as Rome, Athens, etc. but the
new cities, such as Manchester in England, famous for its textile, were
different in nature. Ancient cities were known as repositories of
civilised graces and virtues while the new cities were known as
repositories of misery and inhumanity. It was these aspects of the new
cities, which concerned the early sociologists.
iv) Technology and the factory system: Technology and the factory
system has been the subject of countless writings in the nineteenth
century. Both the conservative and radical thinkers realised that the
two systems would alter human life for all times to come.29
Shift from Domestic to Factory Work
The impact of technology and factory system led to large-scale migration
of people to the cities.
Women and children joined the work force in the factories.
Family relations changed. The siren of the factory seemed to rule peoples’ life.
The machine rather than man seemed to dominate work. As mentioned
earlier the relation between the labourers and the products of their labour
changed.
They worked for their wages. The product was the child of everybody and of the machine in particular. The owner of the factory owned it. Life and work became depersonalised.
The intellectual influences affecting the emergence of
Sociology:
Sociology emerged as a response to the forces of change, which took place
during eighteenth and nineteenth centuries in Europe. The ideas, which
...See more
The French Revolution
The French Revolution, which erupted in 1789 marked a turning point in the history of human struggle for freedom and equality. It put an end to the age of feudalism and ushered in a new order of society.
This revolution brought about far reaching changes in not only French society but in societies throughout Europe. Even countries in other continents such as, India, were influenced by the ideas generated during this revolution. Ideas like liberty, fraternity and equality, which now form
a part of the preamble to the Constitution of India, owe their origin to the French Revolution.
Let us first examine some of the major aspects of this revolution.
The Basic Picture of the French society: Division into Feudal Estates The French society was divided into feudal ‘estates’. The structure of the feudal French society comprised the ‘Three Estates’. Estates are defined as a system of stratification found in feudal European societies whereby one section or estate is distinguished from the other in terms of status, privileges and restrictions accorded to that estate.
a) The First Estate consisted of the clergy, which was stratified into higher clergy, such as the cardinal, the archbishops, the bishops and the abbots. They lived a life of luxury and gave very little attention to religion. In fact, some of them preferred the life of politics to religion. They spent much of their time in wasteful activities like drinking, gambling, etc. In comparison to the higher clergy, the lower parish priests were over worked and poverty-stricken.
b) The Second Estate consisted of the nobility. There were two kinds of nobles, the nobles of the sword and the nobles of the robe. The nobles of the sword were big landlords. They were the protectors of the people in principle but in reality they led a life of a parasite, living off the hard work of the peasants. They led the life of pomp and show and were nothing more than ‘high born wastrels’; that is, they spent extravagantly and did not work themselves. They can be compared to the erstwhile zamindars in India. The nobles of the robe were nobles not by birth by title. They were the magistrates and judges. Among these nobles, some were very progressive and liberal as they had moved in their positions from common citizens who belonged to the third estate.
c) The Third Estate comprised the rest of the society and included the peasants, the merchants, the artisans, and others. There was a vast difference between the condition of the peasants and that of the clergy and the nobility. The peasants worked day and night but were overloaded with so many taxes that they lived a hand to mouth existence. They produced the food on which the whole society depended. Yet they could barely survive due to failure of any kind of protection from the government. The King, in order to maintain the good will of the other two estates, the clergy and the nobility, continued to exploit the poor. The poor peasants had no power against him. While the clergy and the nobility kept on pampering and flattering the King.
As compared to the peasants, the condition of the middle classes, also known as the bourgeoisie comparising the merchants, bankers, lawyers, manufacturers, etc. was much better. These classes too belonged to the third estate. But the poverty of the state, which led to a price rise during 1720-1789, instead of adversely affecting them, helped them. They derived profit from this rise and the fact that French trade had improved enormously also helped the commercial classes to a great extent. Thus, this class was rich and secure. But it had no social prestige as compared with the high prestige of the members of the first and the second estates. In spite of controlling trade, industries, banking etc. the bourgeoisie had no power to influence the court or administration. The other two estates looked them down upon and the King paid very little attention to them. Thus, gaining political power became a necessity for them. The clergy and the nobility both constituted only two per cent of the population but they owned about 35 per cent of the land. The peasants who formed 80 per cent of the population owned only 30 per cent of the
land. The first two estates paid almost no taxes to the government. The peasantry, on the other hand, was burdened with taxes of various kinds. It paid taxes to the Church, the feudal lord, taxed in the form of income tax, poll tax, and land tax to the state. Thus, you can see how much burdened and poverty stricken the peasants had become at this time. They were virtually carrying the burden of the first two estates on their shoulders. On top of it all the prices had generally risen by about 65 per cent during the period, 1720-1789.
The Political Aspects of the French society:
Like in all absolute monarchies, the theory of the Divine Right of King was followed in France too. For about 200 years the Kings of the Bourbon dynasty ruled France. Under the rule of the King, the ordinary people had no personal rights. They only served the King and his nobles in various
capacities. The King’s word was law and no trials were required to arrest a person on the King’s orders. Laws too were different in different regions giving rise to confusion and arbitrariness. There was no distinction between the income of the state and the income of the King.
1.4.3 The Economic Aspects of the French society
The kings of France, from Louis XIV onwards, fought costly wars, which
ruined the country, and when Louis XIV died in 1715, France had become
bankrupt. Louis XV instead of recovering from this ruin kept on borrowing
money from bankers. His famous sentence, “After me the deluge” describes
the kind of financial crisis that France was facing. Louis XVI, a very weak
and ineffective king, inherited the ruin of a bankrupt government. His wife,
Queen Marie Antoinette, known for her expensive habits, is famous for
her reply, which she gave to the poor, hungry people of France who came
to her asking for bread. She told the people that, ‘if you don’t have bread,
eat cake’.
Now let us examine the intellectual developments in France, which proved
to be the igniting force in bringing about the revolution.
1.4.4 Intellectual Developments in France
France, like some other European countries during the eighteenth century,
had entered the age of reason and ra ionalism. Some of the major
philosophers, whose ideas influenced the French people, were rationalists
who believed that all true things could be proved by reason.
Some of these thinkers were,
Montesquieu (1689-1755),
Locke (1632-1704),
Voltaire (1694-1778),
and Rousseau (1712-1778).
Montesquieu in his book, The Spirit of the Law, held that there should not
be concentration of authority, such as executive, legislative, and juridical,
at one place. He believed in the theory of the separation of powers and the
liberty of the individual.
Locke, an Englishman, advocated that every individual has certain rights,
which cannot be taken by any authority. These rights were :
(i) right to live,
(ii) right to property, and
(iii) the right to personal freedom.
He also believed that any ruler who took away these rights from his people should be removed from the seat of power and replaced by another ruler who is able to protect these rights.
Voltaire, a French philosopher, advocated religious toleration and freedom
of speech. He also stood for the rights of individuals, for freedom of speech
and expression.
Rousseau wrote in his book, The Social Contract, that the people of a country have the right to choose their sovereign. He believed that people can develop their personalities best only under a government which is of their own choice.
The major ideas of these and several othe r intellectuals struck the
imagination of the French people. Also some of them who had served in
the French army, which was sent to assist the Americans in their War of
Independence from British imperialism, came back with the ideas of equality
of individuals and their right to choose their own government.
The French middle class was deeply affected by these ideas of liberty and equality.
This was the basic picture of the French society just before the Revolution.
Now we will describe some of the major of the major events that took place during the Revolution.
Important Events
i) In France there was a parliamentary body called the Estates-General in which all the three estates were represented but which had met last in 1614. It was in 1778 that the King, Louis XVI, was forced to impose a tax on everyone irrespective of his or her social status. The French government had become bankrupt due to the extravagance of the King, as well as, the help that they had given to the Americans in their War of Independence.
This imposition of tax led the rich nobles and the clergy to demand a meeting of the Estate-General, which they felt, was the only body, which could levy tax. The Estate-General met on May 5, 178, but in this meeting, unlike the earlier practice, the representatives of the third estate wanted all the estates to meet and vote as one assembly. But the first two estates did not agree to this.
The refusal of the first two Estates to meet with the third Estate as a single body led to the formation of the National Assembly. The meeting of the National Assembly led by middle class leaders and some liberal minded nobles was met with stiff resistance. On 20th June 1789 when a meeting was to be held in the Hall at Versailles near Paris, the members found that it was closed and guarded by the King’s men.
Therefore, the National Assembly members led by their leader Bailey went to the next building which was an indoor tennis court. It was here that they took an Oath to draw a new constitution for France.
This Oath, which marks the beginning of the French Revolution, is
popularly known as the Oath of the Tennis Court.
Storming of the Bastille
ii) On July 14th, 1789 took place one of the most important events of
the French Revolution. It was the storming of the Bastille, an ancient
royal prison that stood as a symbol of oppression On this date the mobs of Paris, led by some26 Early Sociology middle class leaders, broke open this prison and set its inmates free.
The causes for this event were the shortage of food, on the one hand,
and the dismissal of a very popular minister called Necker, on the other. The mobs of Paris rebelled against the ruling class, especially the King. This day is celebrated in France as its Independence Day.
iii) Declaration of Rights of Man by the Constituent Assembly, (1789-
1791), comprising the members of the third estate and some liberal
minded members of the other two estates, guaranteed :
*freedom of speech,
*freedom of religion, and
*freedom from arbitrary punishments.
It abolished the special rights and privileges of the clergy and the nobility.
The King was no longer to rule by Divine Right and several important social and economic changes were brought about.
According to this declaration ‘all men were born and remains equal before law.
They have a right to choose their government and to resist oppression.
Personal liberty becomes a right given to all individuals. Thus, the
ideas of liberty and equality put an end to the age of serfdom, despotism
and hereditary privileges found in the old feudal society.
iv) In 1791 the king tried to escape from France but was recognised at
the frontier and brought back. Since then he become a virtual prisoner.
v) In Paris, the new Legislative Assembly (1791-1792) was formed. It
comprised two very radical groups, namely the Girondin and the Jacobin. These groups considered the king a traitor and were in favour of establishing a Republic.
vi) The King, Louis XVI, was beheaded in public on 21st January 1793
after being proved guilty of treason. The Queen was also beheaded
later in the same year. France was declared a Republic.
vii) A period referred to as “Reign of Terror” took place in France when
several of the nobles, priests, some of the revolutionaries themselves
were guillotined i.e. beheaded. This period lasted for three years.
viii) Establishment of the Directorate took place in 1795. It lasted for four
years till a young artillery officer from Corsica, a neighbouring island,
overthrew the Directorate in 1799. He was Napoleon Bonaparte. He
made himself the new Director and provided a much sought after stable
government to the people of France. Thus the French Revolution ended
with the overthrow of the Directorate by Napoleon.
You would have by now developed a rough idea of what the French
Revolution was and how significant its role has been in the history of
human civilisation. It changed the political structure of European society
and replaced the age of feudalism by heralding the arrival of democracy.
There were many significant themes, which arose due to the impact of this
Revolution, which have been the focus of interest of the early sociologists.
These significant themes included the transformation of property, the social
disorder, caused by the change in the political structure and its impact on
the economic structure. A new class of power holders emerged - the
bourgeoisie. In order to understand more about these themes, we need to
learn the details of the Industrial Revolution.
The Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution began around 1760 A.D. in England. It brought
about great changes in the social and economic life of the people first in
England, then in the other countries of Europe and later in other continents.
In Europe, especially England , the discovery of ne w territories ,
explorations, growth of trade and commerce and the consequent growth of
towns brought about an increase in demand for goods. Earlier goods (i.e.
consumer items like cloth, etc.) were produced at domestic levels. This
means that there existed a domestic system of production. With increased
demand, goods were to be produced on a large-scale.
New Invention
During Industrial Revolution, new tools and techniques were invented,
which could produce goods on a large-scale. During 1760-1830 A.D., a
series of inventions in tools and techniques and organization of production
took place and it gave rise to the factory system of production. Thus, a
change in economy from feudal to capitalist system of production
developed. Subsequently, there emerged a class of capitalists, which
controlled the new system of production.
Due to this revolution society moved from the old age of hand-made goods to the new age of machinemade goods.
This shift heralded the emergence of Industrial Revolution.
One of the significant mechanical inventions, which led to a quicker and
better method of production in various industries, was the Spinning Jenny,
invented in 1767 by James Hargreaves, an English weaver. It was a simple
machine rectangular in shape. It had a series of spindles, which cold be
turned by a single wheel.
In 1769, Arkwright, an English barber, invented another tool, which was named after the name of its inventor and called Arkwright’s Water Fame. This Water Frame was so large that it could not be kept in one’s home and a special building was required to set it up.
Thus on account of this it is said that he was responsible for introducing
the factory system. Another invention called “the Mule” was by Samuel
Crompton in 1779 in England. There were several other inventions, which
all contributed to the industrial growth of European society.
Impact of the Industrial Revolution on Society
With the change in the economy of society several social changes followed.
As capitalism became more and more complex,
*the developments of banks, insurance companies, and finance corporations took place.
*New class of industrial workers, managers, capitalists emerged.
*The peasants in the new industrial society found themselves with thousands
of other people like themselves, winding cotton in a textile mill. Instead of
the famous countryside they found themselves in unhygienic living
conditions.
*With the increase in production, population started increasing.
*Rise of population led to the increased rate of urbanisation.
*The industrial cities grew rapidly. In the industrial cities socio-economic disparities were very wide. The factory workers were involved in repetitive and boring
work, the result of which they could not enjoy.
In Marxist terms the worker became alienated from the product of his/ her labour.
*City life in the industrial society became an altogether a different way of life.
These change s moved both conservative and radical thinkers . The
conservatives feared that such conditions would lead to chaos and disorder.
The radicals like Engels felt that the factory workers would initiate social
transformation.
Though the judgement of values differed, social thinkers of the time were
agreed upon the epoch-making impact of the Industrial Revolution. They
also agreed upon the importance of the new working class. The history of
the period from 1811 to 1850 further indicates that this class increasingly
agitated for their rights.
Significant Themes of the Industrial Revolution
The significant themes of the Industrial Revolution, which concerned the
early sociologists, were as given below.
i) The condition of labour: A new population earning their livelihood
by working in the factories arose. In the early years this working class
lived in poverty and squalor. They were socially deprived. At the same
time they were indispensable in the new industrial system. This made
them a powerful social force. Sociologists recognised that the poverty
of this class of workers is not natural poverty but social poverty. Thus
the working class became during the nineteenth century the subject of
both moral and analytical concern.
ii) The transformation of property: The traditional emphasis on land
lost its value while money or capital became important during the
Industrial Revolution. The investment in new industrial system came
to be recognised. The feudal landlords became less significant while
the new capitalists gained power. Many of these new capitalists were
the erstwhile landlords.
Property was one of the central issues that were raised in the French
Revolution too. Its influence on the social order is considerable.
Property is related to economic privileges, social status and political
power. A change in the property system involves a change in the
fundamental character of society. Sociologists have grappled with the
question of property and its impact on social stratification since the
days of Marx, Tocqueville, Taine and Weber.
iii) The industrial city, i.e. urbanism: Urbanisation was a necessary
corollary of the Industrial Revolution. Industries grew and along with
it grew great cluster of populations, the modern towns and cities. Cities
were present in ancient period too, such as Rome, Athens, etc. but the
new cities, such as Manchester in England, famous for its textile, were
different in nature. Ancient cities were known as repositories of
civilised graces and virtues while the new cities were known as
repositories of misery and inhumanity. It was these aspects of the new
cities, which concerned the early sociologists.
iv) Technology and the factory system: Technology and the factory
system has been the subject of countless writings in the nineteenth
century. Both the conservative and radical thinkers realised that the
two systems would alter human life for all times to come.29
Shift from Domestic to Factory Work
The impact of technology and factory system led to large-scale migration
of people to the cities.
Women and children joined the work force in the factories.
Family relations changed. The siren of the factory seemed to rule peoples’ life.
The machine rather than man seemed to dominate work. As mentioned
earlier the relation between the labourers and the products of their labour
changed.
They worked for their wages. The product was the child of everybody and of the machine in particular. The owner of the factory owned it. Life and work became depersonalised.
