Conditions Endured by the French Working Classes - Essay Example

A Discussion of the Conditions Endured by the French Working es Introduction A study in the working conditions endured by the French through the ages is a discussion in varying philosophies. It is built around social constructs and views of political reforms that are beyond the realm of other cultures inherent throughout human civilization. This can be reflected in the great literature of the day that focused on the conditions of the working class French, the misery that many of them faced, and the hope and model for a more harmonious and equitable society of the future. The essayists discussed in this paper have varying views related to the plight of the French working class throughout time, from Sands fictional portrayal of the life of the working class person, to the concept of the Paris Commune of 1871 as espoused by Bakunin, and the account of the Paris Workers’ Revolution as given by Marx. Each has a different perception, and likely none contributed to garnering tremendous sympathy for the very French individuals they were designed to invoke as such. The Paris Commune is predicated on the premise that the Church and the State are primarily responsible for the plight of the working class in French. As such, they should be abolished, as society would be better off without these institutions. Take from the perspective of an Anarchist, Bakunin makes the effective argument that government exists for the elite and, apart from its complete abolition, the French people would continue to suffer under a sort of tyrannical rule. Sands’ notion of the Black City is reflective of this reality as well, as she paints a picture of French society as being largely reprehensible towards the common man. At the same time, the working class seems to have a misplaced ambition that precludes them advancing in society, held back by Marxist teaching and tendencies1. Her ambition was to support the poor and working class, and she used much of her writings to support this important objective. The Black City itself was a precursor to the newspaper that she started shortly after the 1848 Revolution. Through this fictional account, Sands presented the reality that the French Working Class have no escape from the life that they find themselves in. They have become complacent and accepting of this fact, lending to the reality that a true worker’s revolution would be the only way out of the strife and difficult that the church and state had placed them in. While praising the hard work of this class of people, she knocks their seeming lack of ambition that would make the reality of a Paris Commune all the more difficult to reach. To gain true independence, the worker needs to leave their peasant life behind and move beyond the reality of their current existence2. Sands herself was revolutionary during her time. From the fact that the tended to wear mens clothing combined with her reckless abandon to confront social norms head on, such as her proclivity to smoke in public, she illustrated that revolution was possible when the masses rose up in one voice against what she perceive to be a tyrannical government and church that did not truly represent French people. She frequently challenged behaviors that were reserved for the upper classes of society. She particularly challenged the status quo of women during the mid-19th century France. All of these attitudes are reflected in the essays that she wrote, particularly being true of the Black City. Enter in Bakunin, who although hailing from Russia, seemed to understand the reality of the life that the working class in France faced even better than the French themselves did. He even made the claim that he could see foresee the dire straits that France was now in, and the only cure for that would be a full and all out Social Revolution. He proves this need for such a revolution by tracing the historical development of French society, in conjunction with the reality of what was taking place throughout Western and Eastern Europe. He claimed that the changes taking place were not subtle at all, and that if left unchecked, would leave the working class with even less of a role in society overall. One of the problems in French Society, and elsewhere for that matter, was that the people themselves did not have the propensity to understand what was taking place right before their eyes3. As such, they continued to be taken advantage of, as the elite become more wealthy at the expense of the working class, who seemed to be further declining in stature with every passing year. Not dissimilar to Marx, who touted the need for a more Socialist system, Bakunun was fearful at what the government and religion were combining to force upon the working class throughout the region. The Paris Commune was likely unsuccessful because people did not truly understand the philosophical nature of the argument that writers and activists such as Marx and Bakunin were making. They became the minority who was representing an already disenfranchised minority, and the concept of such a commune never gained much traction. Bakunin, for example. prophetically warned about the established order in society, which consisted of a vast array of religious, metaphysical, political, judicial, economic, and social institutions that were structure in favor of the elite, at the growing expense of the working class4. As an Anarchist himself, he considered this social order to be evil and destructive to all of mankind. True liberty, he felt, could not be dispersed or regulated by any state or church. It had to begin from within, yet French society was predicated on just the opposite reality. In the mind of Bakunin, Marx, and to a less extent Sands, true liberty and freedom can only come through the development of one’s intellectual and moral capacities. In the working class, these elements are lying dormant and, unless called upon in dramatic doses, will never contribute to the betterment of society now or in the future. During the age that Marx and Bakunin wrote, liberty was a foreign concept and a construct of only the elite. Liberty, however, could triumph over the might and power of the state and church is the masses could form together, gather their combined intellect, and move towards a true and lasting revolution. Sands, however, downplayed this notion by almost ridiculing the idea that the working class had any hope of accomplishing this mighty feat, instead focusing on individual, rather than collective, freedom. She pushed for reforms from the outside in, by espousing the notion that individuals take it upon themselves to begin to challenge social norms and mores. As opposed to rallying the masses, she seemed more interested on individuals making their own voices heard, and over time this would result in revolutionary change. She never really gave the idea of the Paris Commune, or the musings of Marx, any really opportunity to make an impact on French society. There is a reality that even Bakunin acknowledges in that economic and social equality is necessary in the world because, without it, the components of liberty, justice, human dignity, morality, and the overall well-being of individuals will never be actualized5. In essence, these components of society do impact the prosperity and general sense of well being that the nations of the world rely upon, but they do not create true liberty for the individual. In that sense, Bakunin and Marx argue, true equality can only be established globally when labor spontaneously organizes and forces the collective ownership of property, leading to the establishing of communes that will ultimately replace the domineering component of the state once and for all. It is important to note that what Bakunun, and to a lesser extent Sands and Marx are proposing, is not to be confused with a Communist mindset and way of life. In fact, Bakunin provides the notion that communist work to attain their goals specifically by organizing the collective and political power of the working classes, that will then serve to support the elite classes more fully. The parallel is then drawn to the revolutionary socialists that feel they will only be successful when the non or anti political social power of the working classes is organized and developed to include individuals from the upper classes who shed their propensity towards wealth building and decide to join the working classes in their revolutionary efforts to gain true equality, freedom and liberty. So, while the communists see it as being necessary to organize the working class in an effort to seize the political power that now belongs to the state, the revolutionary socialists organize the same group of individuals with the express purpose of destroying the state. Communists strongly believe in the power of those in authority, while revolutionary socialists work to put their faith in the attainment of lasting liberty. All of these notions are interesting and serve to support the premise that a Paris Commune, at this particular stage in the history of France, was certainly a plausible effort aimed at rehabilitating the working class and shifting the balance of power within the country6. Sands, and other radical writers of the day, however, did not necessarily contribute to this movement towards a lasting workers revolution. Sands even provides the premise that people who desire to leave the city in search of a more harmonious life is being selfish, and they are foolish for doing so. While she appears to work tirelessly for the working class, and is a model for challenging the social norms that have seemingly served to destroy much of French hope and ambition in the lower classes, she stops short in this particular essay of support the challenges and admonitions that writers such as Marx and Bakunin have implored upon the people. In the end, it is not likely that Anarchy would have ever worked in France, or any country for that matter, so Bakunin and Marx are fundamentally flawed in their approach7. That being said, the call for revolution is well heeded, and the need to challenge that church and state is particularly timely. Society is predicated on the elite holding onto power at the expense of the working class. That is the way it has always been, but that does not mean that this norm cannot be challenged and one day expunged altogether. Bibliography Chapman, Jane. “George Sand: Thwarted Newspaper Publisher or Pioneer Literary Journalist?” Modern & Contemporary France 15 no. 4 (2007): 479-495. Ducange, Jean-Numa. “Marx in France.” Socialism and Democracy 24 no. 3 (2010): 169-174. Morris, Brian. “Bakunin: The Creative Passion.” Anarchist Studies 15 no. 2 (2007): 189-211. Read More