Political Theory of French Revolution

The objective of this course is to understand the political theories at the core of the French Revolution - both the ideas that set it in motion, and the novel thinking about democracy, equality, liberty, and rights that emerged from it. To this end we read a diverse range of texts. We discuss: the theories that flourished in the decades before the revolution and that laid the foundations for it; texts from the major thinkers and actors of the revolutionary period; and responses to the Revolution from liberal and non-liberal thinkers in the nineteenth century. All texts are available in English translation.