You have each been reborn into French society in the 1700s. You are a peasant, urban worker, bourgeoisie, noble, clergy, or the King and Queen.
Respond as one of the following based on your last name:
Peasants/ Urban Workers (A - D)
Bourgeoisie (E - H)
Noble (I - L)
Clergy (M - P)
Queen Marie Antoinette (Q - T)
King Louis XVI (U - Z)
Respond in the voice of your new role. What are your hopes for France? What is your opinion of Enlightenment ideas? What would you like to change and what would you like to stay the same. Why and why not? (This should be a minimum of 2 paragraphs)
You must also reply to the post of at least ONE other person by telling them if you agree or disagree with their view for the future of France and why (Remember you are speaking in your character). (This must be a minimum of 1 paragraph - don't just agree or disagree - JUSTIFY!)
All posts, including your response must be done by 10pm on Thursday, 1-24.
My hope for France is that people, specifically King Louis XVI, will recognize what is wrong within our empire. Our economy is declining out of control and there needs to be a change. Many peasants claim that they are not being fairly treated. They claim the taxes are a burden that isn't helping, as such it needs to be decreased. However, this is not true. I believe that our system concerning the three estates is not the cause of France's near bankruptcy. Rather, the extent of the taxes imposed on the third estate is not to the level that it should be. By increasing the tax, our empire will regain its wealth.
ReplyDeleteFurthermore, I'm a believer that the ideas that have been brought about by Enlightenment are not applicable. The Enlightenment claims that everyone is their own individual and everyone should have equal opportunity. While this may be correct in some respects, it doesn't belong with the Three Estates system. I believe representatives should represent each walk of life, this being the Three Estates. Representatives shouldn't be per head. That is ludicrous.
----Paige Landers/Noble
DeleteExactly! Proposing that we, the second estate, should have to pay taxes or that the working class shouldn’t have to, is preposterous! If we simply ask for more from the majority of our population, we should have enough to rebuild and recover our economy—if the taxes are decreased, how will that help us out of bankruptcy? And the enlightenment movement is for reckless liberals trying to destroy the perfectly adaquate system we already have. The estates must put this to a vote and end the chaos once and for all.
DeleteI completely agree with your statement about King Louis XVI recognizing what is wrong with our empire. Our economy is drastically declining and the lives of peasants are extremely difficult due to us giving up a large sum of our food. As well as us having almost no civil rights. I believe that taxes are a burden and they need to be decreased, peasants already do so much for the rest of France we should not be required to pay this amount of taxes. Therefore, I disagree with your view on the taxing system of France, our taxes should not increase. I also disagree with your view on the enlightenment. The enlightenment allows all citizens of France to be viewed as humans, is that wrong? The enlightenment is helping France build stronger relationships with its people, that will allow the empire to prosper and become more successful due to a united population.
DeleteNicole Datastanyan/ Peasant
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DeleteI absolutely agree! If we want to rebuild our economy, how exactly would lowering taxes for those peasants help? I believe that our need for higher taxes is justifiable, considering that the third estate makes up 95% of our nation's population. Also, that Enlightenment talk?
DeleteC'est un gaspillage, it's an absolute waste. Our system's working fine, and they want to destroy it instead of cooperating and simply paying a little more, which would lead us to a better long-term solution (an actually functioning economy!).
--Noble/Anna Janumov
As a noble of France, I would like to see this country prosper and get out of this financial crisis. I believe the only way we can do that is if we continue to tax and even raise tax on the third estate, which makes up 95% of our population. The vast majority of our citizens are working people, so I am unsure as to why they cannot save our country—taxing 1-1.5% more of the population will not do anything. As a respectable participant of the second estate, I truly hope that we can depend on our people to save our country. Enlightenment is also an unreasonable set of ideals. Dividing our country three ways has worked for many years, and the concept of individualism is a sure way of breaking the unity France has. It also allows any and all people to gain entrance into higher positions, and destroy the concept of the estates! Complete and utter chaos would arise if we allowed our people freedom from castes.
ReplyDeleteChanges must be made in order to save our economy and our people. We as nobles and landowners deserve more financial income from our peasants! How does one expect the second estate to prosper if we must fight for our roles in the royal court against mere farmers and working men. Absolute rule must also be abolished, we must work together in order to make real reforms, instead of leaving it solely up to the beloved King Louis. However, not all aspects of France need changing—the first and second estate should stay untaxed because we do not work like the lower class does, and we are doing just fine riding on the backs of our working men. Actions to make these changes must be voted on using estates, because the idea of per head voting will of course result in whatever the third estate wants. We as higher ups deserve to be heard too, instead of drowned out by the sheer numbers in the third estate. Giving them that much say would be absurd.
—Faith Le, Noble
I agree that our country should resolve our financial crisis and continue to prosper like we have for many years. But taxing us is wrong. Yes, we are the working class, and yes, we do make up majority of the population, but what shall we pay our taxes with? All of our food and money go to the other estates. Why don't you pay taxes? You have the money and food and resources to give, we do not. Yes, your opinions must be heard, it is not right if it is not, but since when have our voices been heard? You estates have been living life with full bellies and happy days; we third estate have experienced no such thing. If our country is still in danger of bankruptcy with three estates and only the third estate receiving all the taxes, then does that method really work?
Delete- Andrei Calinog/Peasant
I agree with the notion that we should change the financial situation we are in but, continuing to tax peasants will only cause further damage. Overworking the underclass and stealing our money and crops via taxes will cause social unrest between estates and make the demographic of us peasants to decline. Peasants should also have a right to vote as allowing only the First and Second estate to vote will cause no economic changes to occur in our country. The ideas of the Enlightenment should be initiated into France to promote the view of the individual rather than the first and second estate.
DeleteI agree, having a small increase of tax on the majority of the population will be more beneficial than taxing a small portion of France.
DeleteJaemin Kim
DeleteFrance, as it is, is not the best that it could be. We are bankrupt and oppressed by an autocratic king. Things don’t have to be this way. We could be rich, powerful, and control vast continents. In my opinion, things in France would be better if we functioned in a parliamentary monarchy, in which a council of nobles would keep the King’s decisions in check and make sure he didn’t go overboard. We should also give nobles the high-ranking government jobs that they held in the past, instead of giving them to unreliable, low-born middle classes. By giving nobles more power and helping them to remain powerful instead of allowing them to languish in filth and poverty (as some of us have), we will ensure that the nobles are better able to maintain power over the peasants and keep them from, I don’t know, revolting and beheading the entire aristocracy? Helping nobles to gain power will help other, more important things, to remain the same. The peasants will still have to support us, but that is but a small price to pay for everything that we do for them on a daily basis.
ReplyDeleteIn order to do this I think we should be wary of this new movement known as “The Enlightenment”. Many of the views held by the followers of this movement are absolutely preposterous. They include the idea that the Government should be focused on serving the masses and the idea that everyone, including lowly peasants, have the ability to use reason to figure anything out for themselves. As if the peasants could make important political decisions for themselves!
Cooper Johnson/Noble
I completely agree with your statement that we are being oppressed by an autocratic monarchy. But I disagree with your reform in which to create a council of nobles because it then gives the Second Estate too much power. The nobles still comprise 10% of the population of our great nation, but are ignorant of the issues that impact the other 90%. Without the voices of various estates, the changes that will be achieved will be shorterm. Essentially, the nobles will become just like the monarchs, continuing the cycle of horrible leadership. Because the nobles are driven by profit and recognition, they will soon become corrupt. Corruption leads to poor judgment, which then leads to the government failing. The peasants will sooner or later uprise against the new oppressor, now the nobles, and force liberation. We are just as capable in taking leadership roles. This is proven by the fact that we have upheld the economy for so long; without our contributions the noble class would crumble. Cooperation is possible, and we will not stop until we get the freedom we deserve.
Delete-- Nicole Attallah/Peasants
DeleteI firmly disagree with your claims on how to “improve” the nation. You are giving far too much power to the nobles; giving them higher positions and creating a council of only “high” people, as if their heads aren’t big enough! Why bother giving so much power to your people when all they’re going to do is continue to oppress 95% of the population? You say we languish in filth and poverty, but who made us that way? What other choice do we have when the other estates are robbing us of what we need to survive? I appreciate your concern for the good of our nation, but your solutions are simply not good for the population. In addition, peasants do hold the intellectual capability to make important decisions as well as hold no bias against others since we’ve been the ones who’ve been prejudiced against this whole time. We feel no malice towards the other estates, we just want equality in our nation and we do, in fact, have the right state of mind to NOT behead an entire group of people. Thanks for reading, noble.
DeleteAmber Cho, Peasant
As King Louis XVI, I believe that your suggestion of introducing a parliament will not benefit the French State. By keeping France as an absolute monarchy, we are ridding all the corruption and all the negative aspects that is part of a parliament. Establishing a parliament will not be in the French people's best interests and will only bring France many more problems. Additionally, as king, I believe that we are not in a state of turmoil, but rather in a state of success. Since you are a noble, you do not have to pay taxes under my reign, and you can be able to live opulently and lavishly. Without my power as King, you would not be able to enjoy so much benefits in life. Additionally, I do not believe that there is sufficient evidence to support the statement that you believe the French state is giving high ranking governmental positions to low-born middle class people. The nobles are enjoying better positions in life than ever and there is no evidence to disregard that. However, I completely agree with you on the fact that the Enlightenment should be stopped and is detrimental to the success of our nation. The people behind these ideas need to be stopped as it is severely hurting our state.
DeleteJames Wang (King Louis XVI)
ReplyDeleteAs a French peasant, life is very difficult. Day in and day out I am subjected to strenuous labor to make ends meet, only to have the higher classes abuse me. Not only do my fellow peasants have limited civil rights, but we are the backbone of the economy. We are over taxed to compensate for the extravagant lifestyle of the monarchs and to fund government affairs that we have no voice in. The state of France is slowly deteriorating with endless economic struggles and poor leadership by officials who are out of touch with reality. A hopeful future for France and its people is achievable. I hope that one day our nation will reform to give every French citizen equal rights and taxation, as well as restructure the government to give more power to the people. One of the major revelations to come from the Enlightenment was the human rights movement in Western Europe. The philosophy that all humans deserve basic rights resonated with a great portion of the French population. I support the Enlightenment’s ideas because it promotes a limited monarch and freedom of expression. If the nation adopted these values, my life would become a lot more stable.
I would like to see the a system be established that allows the Third Estate to express their concerns to the First and Second Estates efficiently. We work just as hard, if not harder than the other estates. Being overtaxed is sending a message that we are not as human as the Nobles or Clergy. Communication would allow for change to be initiated quicker and bring a stronger sense of nationalism to the nation. In addition, the royals should not be able to hold absolute, unchecked power. King Louis and Queen Marie Antoinette are caught up in their inner circle, blind to what is going on. They sit comfortably away from confrontation, while everyone is left to fend for themselves. We would not mind if the monarchy continued, but they should only have a say in the government rather than completely controlling it. The people have been subjected to a government that does not act for them. Stripping their power would share the influence among qualified individuals. Viva la revolucion!
Nicole Attallah/Peasant
As a peasant, I view France as a corrupted land. All day I farm crops for my family and lord. If I didn't do my job for just one day families in France would be on a shortage of food. After working all day I barely even keep any of the food I have cropped. My hopes for France is for the economy to change. Majority of my food should not be going to the lords then being passed to the general, I should keep at least half or more of the supply of food I make so I can feed myself as well as my family. Taxes are also extremely high and should be lowered.
ReplyDeleteMy views on the enlightenment are positive. The enlightenment is giving me as well as other peasants the idea to challenge the government. It gives us a chance to fight back. Something France should keep is its clergies because they give us social services such as food, education, and moral guidance. My hopes for France is for the control from the higher classes to be lowered so we can all be treated equally as humans.
Nicole Datastanyan/ Peasant
As a clergy, I disagree with your views regarding the Enlightenment and taxes, though I agree that the clergeries should remain instated and are highly beneficial. The reason for my disagreements about your opinions on the Enlightenment is because, through the Enlightenment, clergiers which you desire to keep are weakened, since they threatened the morals and religious powers of clergies such as myself. The reason for this is because the Enlightenment took away the power of the Church over education which the Enlightenment shifted greatly towards logic and science rather than morals and religion. As for the taxes, without the taxes which the peasants such as yourself are meant to pay, clergies would not be provided with the income that they have, which provides the social services that you enjoy. Therefore, in order to maintain the social services and clergies in France, which we both agree should be kept, I must disagree with your opinion about the Enlightenment and taxes as it would provide less income and influence over France for myself as a clergy.
DeleteClergy/Nicole Marinch
As King Louis XVI, I disagree with your opinions on taxes as well as Enlightenment. During the beginning of my reign, I believed that taxes shouldn't be raised, but look where that got us. The taxes on the lower estates should remain as we need something to pull our country out of this debt. If the taxes were lowered, our clergy and government would not be able to function as they rely on taxes for income. I do not believe that my control and the control of other high classes should not be lowered. With the way the government is ruled and controlled, monarchs, such as myself, should obtain a majority of the power.
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ReplyDeleteFrance, our beautiful country, is in shambles. Our feudalistic government does not work. Why you ask? The first and second estate depend on us, the third estate, us, the peasants, the work force. Everything we work for goes straight to the other estates. We come home with no money and no food, because you, you higher class citizen, have stolen it for yourselves.
ReplyDeleteYou other estates propose to raise our taxes. Yes, we Third estate make up majority of the population, but we have nothing to give. Again, everything we have goes to you. Why don't you help us because we have nothing. Why don't we make this country great again? Why don't we get paid more, or be given food? Why don't we tax everyone, and the price taxed is based on our income? We need things to change; we need an epiphany of some sort.
This is my idea of an "Enlightenment", and said ideas are agreed by other people in the third estate. If nothing changes, we ourselves will change France. We make up 95% of the population; we easily outnumber the First and Second estate. We are also well educated; the third estate consist of doctors, poets, teachers, architects, et cetera. If we stop working for the lords, then what doctors, caretakers, and farmers will they have? None. We can easily tear apart the other estates, so may our peaceful ways of change go through.
- Andrei Calinog/Peasant
I speak on behalf of the peasant class. As a person that was born into the lowest estate, being a peasant is not something I would wish upon anyone. The economy is extremely unjust in our eyes; we provide all the food, perform all the labor, and what do we get? Almost nothing of our original output. Not to mention our king and queen’s outrageous spending and unfair taxation of just the peasants. How about we start France’s movement on a prosperous empire with a flourishing economy instead of lavish parties and luxuries we truly don’t need? My hopes are simple; for our royal family to realize that 95% of their people are unhappy and suffering the consequences of their actions. For them to equally tax all their people instead of relying on his peasants to provide all the structure. For them to disperse the power among the people to achieve equality and in turn, greatness.
ReplyDeleteThe concepts of the Enlightenment should be put into place immediately. I wholly agree with the ideas of the Enlightenment because it will significantly increase the quality of life of a peasant. First, since the king’s power will be limited and more influence can be from the majority of the population, more of France’s people will be happy with the decisions that are made in the government. This is because the communication between the separations of people will increase and be able to work out conflicts. Second, since taxation would be lessened on the peasant class and redistributed to the nobles and others as well, peasants will no long have to provide all the resources AND pay sums of money or food that they don’t even have. If we can resolve these problems, I believe that not only the peasant class can benefit but also the nation as a whole.
Amber Cho, Peasant
As a member of the Third Estate, I totally agree that the economy is unjust and all people must be taxed equally. I spend my days working and give my earnings in taxes on food and goods my family and I need to the ruling class. My family's starving, and my starving, are all to support the lavish lifestyle of the monarchy and Second Estate as well. As the people of France, we should determine how we are governed and taxed. All French citizens deserve to pay equal taxes. This is the idea of enlightenment, and all should embrace it. As the people of France, we need to challenge tradition in order to make our country, and our people, strong.
Delete--Bourgeoisie/Kristana Ferguson
DeleteAs a peasant of France I hope for France's economic crisis to pass as it has been completely destroying our lives in the lower classes. As the peasant population makes up 3/4 of France I believe it is paramount that we reverse this situation as the peasant class has suffered from the poor harvests and tough taxation. If the current regime continues to keep throwing their lavish parties and no progress is made on our country's crisis, I'm afraid the only possibility is for the people of France to take matters into our own hands. I also believe the Enlightenment would be a beneficial concept to incorporate in our country's administration - preserving individual liberties and promoting equality are definitely something the peasant class needs in light of the past two decades of intense conscription, drought and taxation.
ReplyDeleteI would like to take away the aspects of France that places the minority with the majority of the wealth when the majority gets the minority of the wealth. For example, Manorialism should be abolished so that peasants can't be locked into a horrible cycle of sharecropping. The Tithe must be abolished and the prosperous First and Second Estates should be taxed harder, since the already-poor Third Estate is not going to cover for France's debt. Furthermore, the Third Estate should get two votes (or possibly a vote per head system should be established based on Enlightenment ideas) which would allow the Third Estate to be finally heard in our parliament. I also believe that the King and Queen are important symbols and they can be kept as long as they are able to ease the burden on the population of peasants, since they were the figures who have lead France to glory before, and they can continue to do so. If the royalty cannot reverse our crisis then they may be kept while delegating the powers to the Parliament, since it is showing recently that the monarchy is starting to grow incompetent.
~Ryan Chanthapadith, Peasant
As a peasant from France, I can say that our country is slowly degrading compared to the outside world. My only hopes for France is for prosperity centuries to come and to stop the elite class from relying on the peasant class. Our countries economy continues to fall and a majority of the population live in poverty barely finding enough food and money to survive. The second and first estate however ignore our pleas and stay on top of a pedestal, spending money and food resources to satisfy there gluttony for parties and luxury foods. We are not being treated fairly compared to the nobles as they have almost all food resources and we are the only ones being taxed.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the Enlightenment was overall positive for us, Peasants. It promotes an individualistic view on politics with each person getting a vote rather than by official. This will cause voting to be more fair and unbiased as its not based upon official who make up the upper class but, instead the population as a whole. Equality between the three Estates should be established in France. This would change the established rules of taxation with the Lords and Clergy being taxed the same amount as us Peasants.
-Caden Arai, Peasant
My hopes for France are aligned with yours, excluding the part about the elite relying on the peasants. I don't think this is a fair statement to make;although the peasants often provide the food for the nobles/elite, the elite provide for the Third Estate in a different way. We are codependent, and to be quite frank the nobles and elite play essential roles in the lives of peasants in a positive way. Furthermore, these taxes are pivotal in the economy's well being. Without them, our country would be even more on the verge of bankruptcy.
Delete---Paige Landers/Noble
As a noble of France, I hope to see this country prosper. The working class of our country, the peasants make up 95% of our population. With a little more taxing, I believe that our country can make it through this dark era. After this, I believe that if our country can just push through this bad harvest, that we will be okay.
ReplyDeleteEqual taxing will just cause strain on the more important citizens. I believe that to resolve this, farmers and other peasants working to produce income should not be heavily taxed. However, to balance this out, others such as doctors, cobblers, and more should have a small increase in tax.
Jaemin Kim, Noble.
As a noble of France, I believe that my country shouldn't have an economic crisis such as the one we are experiencing right now, and there absolutely needs to be a change. Now, the third estate has been complaining that their treatment is unfair, and that the taxes are a burden on them and should be decreased. From my view, when these peasants are making up 95% of this country's population, where is the struggle? I don't believe that their struggle is a fact, it is not our system of three estates that is causing the bankruptcy of France. No, I believe that we are not taxing the third estate enough; if we were to increase these taxes, we would start clawing our way out of this unruly financial crisis!
ReplyDeleteWe, as members of the second estate, believe that we deserve more income from our peasants, not less! How can we prosper and flourish if we are expected to fight against those lower than us just to be a part of the Royal Court? On the topic of power, I also believe that we should abolish this absolute monarchy that is being imposed on us. Why should we leave the choices that could affect the entire country's future to one, single man, AKA King Louis? We should have a voice, as we are just as well citizens of the same country as him. Now, I don't think we should necessarily change everything, the second estate is fine without being taxed. What would the point be taxing us when we get our goods from the peasants, just directly tax the source! We're fine riding their backs. If we want to implement these changes, we'll need to vote by estates. I think that if we were to vote by heads, we'd be absolutely outnumbered, I've already mentioned before that these lowlifes make up 95% of the population in this nation. We deserve to be heard, we may not have the same power as the King and Queen, but by God we are certainly above these peasants and we will not be drowned out!
--Noble/Anna Janumov
I disagree with you on your proposal to increase the taxes imposed on the peasants. You don't see our struggles of paying taxes because you yourself is not taxed. You expect that taxing us even more would solve the problem, but we cannot even pay the tax that we have now. Your proposal would just add fuel to the fire and make the economic crisis even worse. Like you said, we make up 95% of the population. If your proposal comes into play, we will revolt. This revolt would have more firepower than you can ever imagine. Our revolt would be enough to take down all of the first and second estate. So, if you would like to keep your "power position", then I suggest that you don't anger us with your outrageous proposal.
DeleteThe only point i can agree with is the fact that we should not be in this financial crisis. But your inability to see the true problem. You purposely ignore the suffering of us peasants so that you may continue to live a life of luxury without paying dime. It makes no sense that us peasants should pay more taxes when we already pay all of the taxes with the little money we have. You should callout to your fellow nobels on their ignorance of our struggling. We can’t even afford the simple mnessicity of bread. I feel that you nobel should start pitching to help the debt and encourage less reckless spending. Although we see eye to eye when it comes to abolishing the absolute monarchy you need to rethink how we as a country are going to survive these tough times.
Delete-Peasant, James Baker
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ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteI am of the 3rd estate and more specifically a French peasant who spends all my time doing back breaking labor only for my spoils to be taken away by those higher up on the social ladder. I would like to see changes in france that promote enlightenment ideas like life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Many of my personal liberties are violated on a daily basis by those of the second estate first estate and the monarchy. Those who are above be suppress education, any democratic thoughts or diplomacy and the right to speak out against the unfair treatment of those in my social class. We are unfairly taxed while the church and nobles don't get a single penny subtracted from their income. Not to mention the rising bread prices due to war, drought and poor management of the economy. I hope that france will become a republic that protects the personal liberterties of all citizens while stabilizing the economy and taxing all member of our society fairly.
In order for my ideal france to take form we as the people of france must make changes to our society if we are to have any hope of becoming a great power again and allowing the people of france to be happy in life. First and foremost we must overthrow the monarchy or create a constitutional monarchy. As when one person has absolute power it has shown to create suffering among the people and silence their cries for help. Then we should tax the nobles and demand better pay for the workers on their farms so that the 3rd estate is no longer the crutch of france's finances and can help alleviate all the financial pressure we are under. With the higher pay from the nobles more people can afford food, better housing and actually be a more reliable source of tax income. Last we should cease all offensive military operations and war and purely use military for self defense as these previous wars with england have completely destroyed our economy not to mention the young men of our estate dying on the battlefield. If we implement these changes then france will become a more equal and stronger country.
-Peasant,James Baker
I am a Bourgeoisie and member of the Third Estate in France. As a working-class citizen, I am growing tired of losing nearly all my earnings to pay taxes on all of the food and other goods my family needs. I work all day, every day in order to support my family of five. My hope for France in the near future is that the First and Second Estates will have to pay taxes equal to what I must pay. I also hope that France becomes a prosperous country, with my estate controlling the majority of what occurs in the government. After all, we comprise almost the entire population of France! Yet we must live under the laws and pay for the luxurious lifestyle of the Second and First Estates? I think not! In terms of enlightenment, I believe that all estates must share enlightenment. If the country as a whole embraced enlightenment, all people, including myself, would be represented in the government.
ReplyDeleteIf given the chance through enlightenment, I would change the top five percent of the population in our country having total control over the other ninety-five. After, it’s the French people that make France, not their rulers. If the Third Estate gained power in government, I would tax all people equally regardless of their social class or estate. The First and Second Estates would be denied their lavish parties so those supporting the ruling class don’t starve. To my family and I, this seems fair. I would not change the monarchy, as they are symbols of French power. However, the monarchy should not have total control over the people, with each person in France playing a role in government.
--Bourgeoisie/Kristana Ferguson
As being the member of the French Catholic clergy, I somewhat disagree with your views on enlightenment. The Enlightenment is threatening to everyone in this country. This has led to more violence and conflicts against the royal family, which shows a bad influence to this country. There's a rebellion in opposition to authority will only become worse to this country. I can only believe in how the concept of Enlightenment will destroy our society and make certain its descent into anarchy. To conserve the country of France, I wish to offer to you to give more control to the clergy to make us have the ability to stop the enlightenment and ban books completely. By doing this, we can influence everyone to have Christians beliefs and to manage France's nation.
DeleteI am a Clergy and member of the French Catholic clergy. The king and I share the same religious values. My job is to provide all religious information to the French people. I give weekly services, which was managed by the head of the church. I would give weekly services such as marriages, baptisms, and funerals. I also keep in track of records during the service to read the scriptures. My hope for France in the near future is hopefully in return, no one will get taxed. After all, we also provide the poor with social services like food, education, and moral guidance. When it comes to the topic of enlightenment, I believe that all estates should help spread enlightenment. If more people accepted the idea of enlightenment, everyone, including me, would benefit us to be more logical to improve our society such as using science to prove how certain things are actually right or wrong.
ReplyDeleteRest of the French Catholic members and I would like to see the system to be more fixed to the point where it will allow the Third Estate to share their worries to the First and Second Estates. Being overtaxed is sending a negative message that we aren't allowed to be a person or human as Clergy. More communication among others will allow faster and better sense of nationalism to be recognized. I would change how the royals shouldn't be able to hold more control/power. The royals such as King Louis and Queen Marie Antoinette are too uncomprehending to recognize the problems and solve it or even realize what is happening. Everyone is left alone to defend themselves, while these royals don't assist with guidance since they're too afraid with conflict. I wouldn't change the monarchy, but they should only influence the government once awhile or share their opinions instead of completely having power. Everyone should be able to be forced into a government that doesn't do something terribly to them. Everyone being able to have power will impact among qualified individuals.
--Clergy/Victoria Melgoza
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DeleteHello, member of the clergy.
DeleteI disagree with your point of the total abolition of taxes. Although I wouldn't understand the struggle of paying taxes itself since I'm the queen, I do understand that the concept of taxes is essential to the economy. My husband has already attempted to reform the taxation structure once before and caused severe damage, causing social uproar. Imagine what would happen if we were to make changes as drastic as getting rid of taxes completely. Yes, the concept itself is pleasant, however our economy would go from bad to significantly worse. The members of the royal family appreciate the church's service towards the public, but if the basic need of food is not fulfilled then the people would be less inclined to worry about education.
-Queen Marie Antoinette/Claire Ting
King Louis' XIV rule over France wasn't very fair to us peasants. Our lives are as expected. We are responsible for farming crops and providing it for the high class and the rest of the people. All day, everyday, we work on our crops. Once we give our crops to our respected lords, those crops are then given to the controller general to be redistributed. When our lords come back, not everyone receives a ration of food. Not only do we receive very little food, despite growing them ourselves, but we are also the only estate in France that is taxed on pretty much everything. We live unfair lives and my hopes for France are to close the social gap between estates, to have everybody hold the same financial responsibility, to have a government system that listens and considers the problems of the people, and many others. Basically, I want France to turn into the opposite of what it is now.
ReplyDeleteI believe an Enlightenment would be great for France. It would give the majority of the population a voice and would make the King listen to our problems and what we want to be changed. What I want to be changed is the economic system of France and the government officials. All citizens of France should have to pay an equal tax, this way, we would avoid a financial crisis and future peasant revolts. Advisors should be added to the government system. The absolute monarchy that we currently have in place gives all of the power to the king. With advisors, the king will be able to reform the land based on the well being of the kingdom and its people rather than what the king feels like is best. I would not change the clergy members and the power that they have. Religion plays a huge role in French life. Religion unites everyone ,no matter their social status, under the same attitudes and beliefs. However, clergy officials should still be taxed just like everyone else.
- Liana Bartolome / Peasant
DeleteAs a member of the Catholic Clergy, I disagree with your statement of the Enlightenment being beneficial to France. Being a member of the clergy, I am not taxed. This is due to the services that I provide such as moral guidance, education, and food to the peasants. Our services help to enhance the lives of the peasants to help them live more fuller lives which allows them to be taxed. Also, the Enlightenment has caused some unrest within the royal family that could ultimately lead to the impact upon our country as well as impact the involvement within the Catholic Church by denoting its power causing new religions to be explored. Therefore as a member of the clergy, I believe that the Enlightenment would negatively impact France.
Delete-Clergy/Brooke McManus
As a contributor of the Christian Church in France, a clergy, my hopes for France include purifying its people and continuing to teach the practices of Christianity to both the nobles and the peasants of France. Though my focus is on converting and encouraging the peasants of France to believe in the Christian faith. In hopes that their beliefs will translate to their forms of artistic expression, literature, and education. As the peasants continue to convert and practice the Christian belief, the Christian Church which I serve will continue to thrive as well as myself.
ReplyDeleteThe movements and ideas which the Enlightenment began must be stopped immediately. Philosophies and discoveries which arose during the Enlightenment threaten the ideologies and reform of the Church and attacked many of my colleagues, other fellow cergy such as myself, claiming that we are lazy and incompetent. Additionally, the Enlightenment questioned my involvement in politics and my sensitivity and unfair treatment of those who opposed my beliefs and involvement throughout France. Therefore, I am opposed to the Enlightenment and its ideas since I, a representative of the Christian Church, am threatened by its presence and believed that it weakened religion and its morals.
I would like for there to be few changes in the manner in which France is being run. As a clergy I would enjoy for the conversion rates to rise in the Christian Church, specifically of the peasant class. The reason for this being that the clergy is provided with the majority of their income through the money with the peasants were expected by pay, the tithe which is 10% of one's income which is given to the church by peasants, as well as from the land they owned. The clergy did not lose much profit since we are exempt from taxes, a process which would be beneficial if it remained the same. Additionally, the Church's influence over the arts, literature, and education should stay the same, since it would allow for the clergy to maintain influence over the French population and the Church's overall power in France. Therefore, as a clergy I would prefer for there to be few changes but continuities in the politics, education, and social statues throughout France.
Clergy/Nicole Marinch
I disagree about your idea that the enlightenment has to stop, because as a peasant the enlightenment has brought light to the many problems with our government and how they treat us. The way you speak it is as if you would rather the problems be ignored and swept under the rug. But we should focus on bettering France instead of pretending that everything is fine just because the king and queen can host parties. If your main goal is to spread and encourage christianity, then you shouldn't have a problem with helping the peasants. The peasants make up the biggest class of France, I would think that you would be focused on making us happy so then your church could have a bigger following. You could help your church so much if you helped us gain a voice but I guess you are more worried about the broke upper classes.
Delete-Peasant/ Delaney Deisinger
DeleteSimply stated, as Queen Marie Antoinette my hopes for this country is for it to regain its previous economic stability. The means in which this is achieved can vary, but I believe the continuation of taxing the lower estates would help pull us out of this crisis, especially since the third estate is so large in population. Overall, the concept of taxation itself is cooperation as a country with everyone contributing a small amount in order to better the economy as a whole.
ReplyDeleteSomething I’d like to see be changed is the distribution of power itself. I sympathize with the lower estates of France since like them, I have no capability to make decisions for the future of this country as well. My official duties in the royal family are so insignificant they practically don’t exist. I too, have no voice. It is for this reason specifically that I agree with John Locke, an Enlightenment philosopher’s idea of the social contract between a monarchy and the people. In order for the people to better serve the monarchy, the monarchy must better serve the people and there is no better way of achieving this than giving lower estates a say in economic matters rather than speaking over them. Therefore, I would like King Louis XIV to hold the majority but not all of the power in terms of ruling this country.
-Queen Marie Antoinette/Claire Ting
I disagree with you claim that you should tax the third or lower estates more for a economic gain. This is because as a peasant in the third class I can tell you we are all already really poor, and barely just getting by. If you in the upper class higher all of the third estate's taxes I guarantee that the third estate will collapse. And I assure you that you don't want that because the will actually cause a bigger economic problem than we already have. Also, the fate of the upper estates lies within our hands remember because you rely on us for resources. I actually think you upper estates should pay for the most amount of taxes because you have the money to afford to
Delete-Peasant/Minwoo Cho
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DeleteI agree with you, your majesty, that I and the Church hope for our country's economy to heal and come back better than ever. I also agree that taxation is good idea and that our country needs to work together in order to be healed and to achieve its goals. Everyone should contribute to help make our country better, that's what makes us stronger. I do however respectfully disagree that the peasants should continue to be taxed as heavily as they are. They should continue to be taxed but I believe we should lessen the amount because they live in such harsh conditions and are always hungry. The people should not have to live like this. They are a big group but they have very little to give, so lessening the amount they are taxed but still continuing to tax seems like the best compromise.
DeleteClergy/ Avi McGaughey
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ReplyDeleteAs a peasant my hopes for this country is for everyone to have more equal rights and have more benefits for the especially, for the third estate because we are struggling to make a living more rather have food to eat or to feed our families. I think that one way we can address the issue of deficiency of food in the lower estates is by dividing the food supply more evenly. So everyone is only provided with the necessary food they need. I also feel that we should be taxed less and the upper estates pay more of the taxes since they have the money to. I just feel like there should be more rights and equality spread throughout the estates.
ReplyDeleteSomething else I'd like to be changed is the way we vote. I feel that we should do voting by head count so everyone's opinion is accounted for. This would help increase the amount of rights that the third estate gets. This would cause the majority of the nation's people to be happier because the majority of the nation's people are in the third estate. Right now, however this is not what is happening. Things such as voting is done mostly without the popular opinion of the third estate, but rather only the first and second estates. I agree with John Locke's philosophy that in order of the monarchy to be successful they have to treat its citizens fairly and naturally they will follow the monarchy , and that is why I feel like it you be necessary to make these implications in our nation.
-Peasant/ Minwoo Cho
I disagree on your viewpoint regarding voting. If you own land, you have the ability to vote. To own and manage one's own estate take some skill and a higher level of intellect. Us members of the upper estates usually have a better understanding of the government since we are within closer vicinity of it. If we vote based on heads and not owners of estates, members of the upper estate will be outvoted nearly every single time since the peasants don't seem to understand the viewpoints of the first and second estate. If we were to implement voting by heads rather than estates, what’s to stop misinformation from spreading within the third estate? What's going to happen when it in turn, ruins our country even more? What will we do when France descends into utter chaos?
Delete- Queen Marie Antoinette/Claire Ting
As a member of the Catholic Clergy in France, my hope is to continue the spread the of the religion of Christianity to each one of its citizens to benefit our growing civilization. I will continue to spread the Christian religion throughout France from the noble to the peasants to help encourage the continuation of their education and the culture of France through literature and artistic expression. I believe that the Enlightenment was an absurd idea and should be dealt with immediately. The Enlightenment questioned the practices and power of the Catholic church. With the Enlightenment came bishops and archbishops that acted through their personal interest rather than the interests of God or through the church. This caused the residents of France to gain a lack of trust in the Church itself and leading them to other Protestant religions. Also, the Enlightenment caused unrest among my fellow members of the clergy that lead to ranks among the clergy itself with priests at the bottom being treated the poorest.
ReplyDeleteThe changes that I would like to see in France is to see a difference in the way it is ruled over. I would like to see an increase in the Catholic religion within peasants and the nobility. The increase in religion will benefit the peasant class by enhancing their education and providing with a sense of literature and artistic expression through the church itself. I also believe that we, members of the clergy, should continue to be exempt from paying taxes as we are only among the top 5% of the population while the peasants pay taxes at which 10% of the profit goes to benefit the church. Therefore, I believe that France should continue the practice of not taxing the members of the clergy, but should change the power in which France in ran to benefit in politics, economics, and culture.
-Clergy/ Brooke McManus
As I Peasant, and someone who has learned of the ideas of the enlightenment, I disagree with you. The enlightenment was not a bad thing. It gave us the concept that everyone should be equal. The problem with France right now is that the majority of the population isn't equal to the two other estates. You say that we should continue taxing the peasants, yet you want to avoid taxes for yourself altogether. Not only is this going to make France go to chaos because the peasants don't have the money, but it is downright selfish. You claim that you want to help the people by spreading religion and education, but right now that would not help. What would help is if you agreed with us to help fix France, because until we are out of our current situation, no one really cares what religion you are trying to spread.
DeleteAmanda Durand/Peasant
As a peasant, I hope that France can give us peasants a greater chance to succeed in life, by lessening our taxes. We should not have to struggle to have enough food to feed our families. The entire country of France shouldn't weigh on our shoulders, everyone should have to work hard, not just us. The third class should not have to fund the entire country, after all we are the poorest. Also, we are the biggest class yet we have the smallest voice. I believe that the taxes should be more evenly spread throughout the nobles and the clergy. Everyone should have to contribute to our failing economy and it would help our work load and our lives would be better. The peasants should also have to divide their food up better because as of now most of us are starving.
ReplyDeleteAs for enlightenment, I don't have a problem with it. I think that it has done great things such as bringing recognition to certain occupation specialties. The enlightenment in my opinion has caused the peasant to begin to question the upper class and why we are carrying the countries economy on our shoulders. We have realized the economic troubles and the political structural problems of France. We should have a spot in the government because we have a big population and a voice that needs to be heard. This would not only benefit us, but it would benefit the government because they wouldn't have as many conflicts with the peasants because we wouldn't have much to fight over if they listened to our concerns and ideas.
-Peasant/ Delaney Deisinger
DeleteFirst of all, I believe you underestimate the difficulty involved in governing a nation and protecting its subjects. We nobles work very hard ensuring that you peasants are safe and cared for. Without us nobles to help keep order everybody would be at each other's throats and there would be general chaos. Giving equal power to everybody just ensures that nobody has the power that they may want. As the wise Bill Watterson once said, "A good compromise leaves everybody mad". Besides, the way things are currently, more than 95% of the population is already on fairly equal grounds, and you can rest assured that the first and second estates are putting your resources to good use. Nobody expects a peasant to understand the complexities of politics, so I would expect you to be upset about these things, but , were our roles reversed, I believe you would see things in much the same way that I do.
DeleteFellow people of France, we all understand that we are in a crisis. We have no money, we have had a bad harvest, and people are starving. We know what we need to do to get out of this issue, but the problem is that the 3% that makes up the first and second estate don't agree. They believe that they need to tax us, the poorest of the 3 estates for all our money. They are fools if they don't see the problem with this. Many of us can't even pay for food for our families yet they expect us to pay even more taxes. If we let them win, France will for sure start a riot.
ReplyDeleteThis is why I propose we change the way we vote. If we vote by head instead of by estate, all the people of France will be on a more equal playing field. We have all heard the ideas of the enlightenment and if you are from the 3rd estate, you should agree with them. We have had enough of being on a unequal playing field. We make up a majority of the population! My hopes for France are that we become the best nation that we can possibly be and this is why I propose and agree with those who say we should tax all at a fair, especially the 1st and 2nd estates who have thus far escaped any taxes for their decisions that got us into this mess, and that we should change to a voting by head to give the people more of a say, for after all, we are a majority of the population.
Amanda Durand/pesant
DeleteAs a member of the clergy my hopes for France are that the Church continues have an influence on different cultural aspects of France such as art and literature. I also hope that the Church continues to gain income so it can perform its many tasks like wedding and baptisms and other various ceremonies. Another hope I have is that the Church can convert more people in France. I do not like the ideas of the Enlightenment. They stray from the ideas and values of the church by making people think scientifically instead by the word of God. No one needs reason and logic when you have the church and its officials like me to help guide the people.
ReplyDeleteIn the future I would like to change how much the peasants are taxed. While I do agree that they should be taxed, the amount they are taxed now is unfair because they are already so poor. I know a lot of the income comes to the church and it's true people should give to their church. However the people live in such poverty that I am starting to see that this is not what is good in God's eyes and it is not good for France. The peasants should be taxed less in the future so that the people can live better lives. However I would like the way we vote and how the government is structured to stay the same. With the three estates it makes sense and is fair. The officials of the church should be at the top and should continue to not be taxed. The nobles have power and money, it makes sense that they are in the second estate. Everyone else that makes up the third estate have no power or influence and no experience on making decision that are good for our country. The voting should stay the same because each group has one vote, the peasant should not have multiple votes because they have many people, each group has many people but we still come to an agreement and vote as one. The third estate needs to do the same just like the rest of us, it wouldn't be fair if they had multiple votes.
Clergy/ Avi McGaughey
As King Louis XVI, I believe that reforming tax systems again would just cause even more of a problem within our government; therefore, we should continue doing what we're doing and keep the tax for the lower estates and increase it a little. To help France out of our financial problems, I think that it would be best to support my ministers in their attempts to solve everything. I; however, refuse to let all three estates meet concurrently. Through my institutions, I hope to re-establish the French parlement positions. I want to help reform the French government based on the ideas of Enlightenment.
ReplyDeleteThe changes that I would like to see in France is serfdom being abolished and there should be more tolerance towards other religions. As of now, there is very little tolerance towards non-Christians. I originally believed that taxes shouldn't be raised for the people, but I have changed my mind. It would be better to start taxing more, so our country could get out of the debt that I have caused. If a change is not made, France will remain in disorder as there is not enough money. Although taxes will be raised, we should continue to tax lower estates to help bring us out of this mess.
King Louis XVI/kacie
As a noble, I completely respect your efforts as our beloved king; however, I think that it would be beneficial for one person from each estate to meet and discuss issues in our government in order to get a better understanding of what each of us wants instead of just one person. Your taxation ideas are in line with what I was thinking as well. Since the third estate does make up about 97% of the population, it would be much easier to collect funds from a bigger group of people which will ultimately help our economic crisis.
Delete- noble / Tammy Lam
As a noble, I truly love my country; however, the state of France has been chaotic and out of control recently. Our king's efforts to help the New World in their battle with Britain had expended the nation's wealth leading to great debt and civil unrest. In order to fix this issue, I believe we have to first start by dealing with the people of the third estate so they can start pulling their weight, too. They should be taxed higher in order to help build up our economy once again. They are the majority of the population, and it would be much more beneficial for 97% of France to be contributing to the nation's debt by paying taxes. Us first and second estate folk don't make up nearly as much of the population as the third estate, so what financial impact could we possibly make? As for the Enlightenment, I believe that these new ideas are just mere distractions to what is really going on. The third estate just needs to focus on themselves and getting enough money and food to the first and second estates since we are the ones who keep the country in order. Our traditional ways of social structure have worked perfectly for years and years, so there is no reason to change something that isn't broken.
ReplyDeleteIn order to restore France to its previous prosperity, we need to change our tax system. The third estate has to take more responsibility by paying more taxes. They can keep complaining, but nothing will get fixed if they don't contribute. No offense to our great king, but ruling as an absolute monarch is not in the best interest for our country. We, in our respective estates, want our voices heard, so I propose that we become more parliamentary based where each estate gets a vote on how things are run in government. This way things are more fair with much more diverse perspectives. Our other traditional values should be kept, however, such as having our three estates social structure. Each person belongs in their estate for a reason. It helps keep people in control. I am a noble in the second estate because I deserve to be here. In fact, if a person in the third estate really worked hard, they would get the title of "noble" venally, so there is no excuse. Also, it is our job to control those who are below us, so we should stay exempt from taxes.
- noble / Tammy Lam
DeleteAs a Bourgeoisie and member of the third estate, I have to completely disagree with your views on our social structure and tax payments. According to article one of the Declaration of Rights of Man and Citizen, all men are born and remain equal. Therefore, why are you a noble whilst my family and I work hard simply to afford taxes and feed ourselves? You are not above us, yet we support the entirety of you and your state's lifestyle. The only way to make our country great is to tax everyone, as all citizens of France are equal and must be taxed as such. My estate and I are those you claim to control, yet we outnumber you greatly and you maintain more political power than my friends and family. We must change this if we are to unify ourselves and truly improve France.
Delete--Kristana Ferguson/Bourgeoisie
As King Louis XVI, I wish for the absolute best for the first estate, the clergy, as well as the second estate, the nobles. I believe that it is imperative that Versailles continues to be a monument of the opulence and grandeur that is the French Monarchy. I believe that the third estate, the commoners, should still pay taxes and work hard for the benefit of the French state. I think that the Enlightenment is foolish and that it hinders the well-being and success of our state. These ideas and the people behind them bring no good to the French people and should be considered treasonous. The Enlightenment very well could be the greatest threat in our well-being as a state.
ReplyDeleteWhat I would like to change is that the first estate, the commoners, should be taxed even more. There is a very urgent need for money in order to pay off national debts. Taxes on the commoners will definitely be able to assist in this issue. One thing that I want to stay the same is for the first and second estates to continue to be able to avoid paying taxes. Additionally, a large portion of the money of the state should go to keeping Versailles as the most opulent palace in the world. It is imperative that we continue to show the world our power through the palace.
James Wang
My fair King, I do not mean for this to be an act of treason, but I am afraid that my opinion differs from yours. If you were to tax the First and Second Estate, you would have more financial gain, bringing the country further out of debt. A stable country will make the citizens happy, making you more popular in the long run. Also, I believe that a large portion of the money should not go to the Versailles palace. As we are still in a big financial crisis, I feel that making the palace look prettier will send the opposite image, as other nations will think that our country is more obsessed with looking fancy and flashy than being stable and secure. Please do not be hostile with me my King, as I am only stating my simple opinion.
DeleteTommy J. Garringer/Bourgeoisie(Merchant)
As a merchant living in France, I hope that France will become a better country where people will be able to live more easily. Us bourgeoisie have some wealth and work harder than these nobles, but we cannot get into the Second Estate due to our birthright. The entire Third Estate works harder than both the Second and First Estate combined, but they don't get taxed a cent while we get taxed a fortune! Completely unfair if you ask me. On another note though, the Enlightenment sure is interesting. Question the authority of the monarchy and the Church? Honestly, it doesn't seem that bad of an idea. What have they done for us? Give us more taxes? Raise food prices? Leave us to suffer while they celebrate with shows and feasts and reckless spending? The Enlightenment is more sensible than this entire monarchy!
ReplyDeleteThis country needs change, and I have some ideas of how it could. First of all, taxes should not be for only the Third Estate, but also the First and Second Estate. They have a ton of wealth to spare, so they should be able to afford a measly tax that the Third Estate can afford. Unless they don't want to help their country, which honestly, sounds awful. Second idea, lower the bread prices. You would think higher prices would help merchants, but you can't get more money if people can't afford the new prices. Raising the price is essentially killing off your own people, genocide! The Third Estate is the majority, so it deserves as much respect as the other Estates that do less than half the work that we do!
Tommy J. Garringer/Bourgeoisie(Merchant)
As a Bourgeoisie, I totally agree with the articles outlined in the Declaration of Rights of Man and Citizen because they will benefit myself, my country, and my fellow members of the third estate. Prior to the creation of these articles, the third estate were treated as second class citizens. We were taxed so heavily that simply feeding our families meant working constantly and spending our earnings on a loaf of bread. This was allowed to happen by the second and first estates, who had more rights and political power than the largest estate: the third estate. The articles support ideals that will change this, so I support them in their entirety.
ReplyDeleteThe Declaration of Rights of Man and Citizen will affect change in France by giving citizens the opportunity to incite change on the basis that men have the freedom to share his opinion, all men are born equal, and that the aim of political association is the preservation of the rights of man. According to article eleven, one of the most precious rights of a man is the freedom to share his opinion. Therefore, if citizens believe the government should change, then they have the right to say so. Change will also be affected as, according to the first article, all men are born and remain equal. Therefore, those in the second and first estates are no better than my people and I. They should have to pay taxes with us, and this document supports that idea. Additionally, the second article states that the role of political association is the preservation of the rights of man. These include liberty, property, security, and resistance from oppression. If the people feel that we are oppressed, we are at liberty to change this. All in all, I know this document will affect change in that the people, including myself, have the ability to change our government and our country if we feel that our rights are being infringed upon.
--Kristana Ferguson/Bourgeoisie