Re: English Revolution

[Jim Farmelant <farmelantj@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

On Sat, 23 Sep 2000 17:50:29 +1200 Philip Ferguson
<plf13@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> writes:
> Julio wrote:
>
>
> >The point Moore makes in his book is that distinguishing aristocrat
> from
> >capitalist interests has always been difficult in England, even in
> >pre-feudal times, so it's no wonder the English Revolution ended in
> a kind
> >of Historical Compromise.
>
>
> >Re "The Draughtman's Contract": It's essentialy a re-write of
> >"Blowup"(itself based on the short story by our amado Cortazar),
> set in the
> >17th century, but also an allegory of the Historical Compromise to
> which I
> >alluded, viz.the bourgeosie fucks the aristocracy(literally and
> >politically)and the two produce a legitimate offspring.
>
>
> I can't remember who, but I recall someone once said (or wrote) that
> in
> France the bourgeoisie beheaded the aristocracy whereas in England
> they
> married them.

Wasn't it the case that for the first half of the 18th century that
France seemed
to be moving in the same direction as England?  The distinctions between
the aristocracy and bourgeoisie were not entirely clearcut.  For example
France in the 17th century saw the rise of what were known as the
'noblesse de la robe' who were bourgeoisie that had achieved nobility
through bureacratic services to the crown.  At the same time they tended
to be hostile to the 'noblesse d'epee' who were the older nobility that
descended from the warrior aristocrats of medieval times.  Internarriage
between aristocrats and bourgeoisie were not uncommon.  And much
of the France's economic development during the 18th century was
bankrolled by aristocrats who invested in the new capitalist enterprises.
So the question remains why France did not follow the English political
path.

Jim F.
]
>
> Philip Ferguson
>
> PS: Thanks for the bits of lyrics from 'Street Fighting Man'; I
> could never
> catch the words of those particular verses before.
>
>

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