Semester II - Week of 04/23
French Revolution
Vocabulary - Be sure that you understand these key terms from the Introduction and Part I of your reading
economic conditions
dictatorship
human rights
politics
democratic republic
social class
absolute monarchy
hierarchies
monarchy
nobility
bourgeoisie
peasants
clergy
agriculture
poverty
mortality rates
low productivity
unskilled workers
commerce
trade
social status\elite
administrative
parliament
literate
What were the three main social classes in France?
List three characteristics of the lives of peasants
a
b
c
What was a “public office”?
Why did the bourgeoisie invest in education?
List three functions of the Catholic Church in French society.
a
b
c
What were the parlements?
France was changing during the reign of Louis XVI. What role did the bourgeoisie play in this change?
How did France’s political structure complicate the task of governing?
What general political principles did Montesquieu, Diderot, Rousseau, and Voltaire have in common?
TV France
You and your group members are going to create a television report about life in France BEFORE the French Revolution. Each group member should assume one of the following roles:
Television Reporter
Peasant
Servant
Member of the Bourgeoisie
Member of the Nobility
Member of the Clergy
Enlightenment Writer
Use the reading to gather information to help create your character. You should communicate as many historical details as possible. Your performance should be dramatic, energetic, AND brief.
The questions below will help prepare you for your interview:
What is your social class?
What is your name, age, and gender?
Where do you live?
Is life easy, difficult, or something else?
What is your most basic daily concern?
What do you do every day?
What do you think about people from other social classes?
Are you optimistic about the future?
TV Reporter - While your classmates research and prepare their characters, you should review each of the categories listed above. Before you interview each character, be prepared to give an important fact in a single sentence about the character’s social class. For example, before you interview the peasant, you could say, “In France, there were approximately 22 million peasants out of a population of 26 million.”
Who are you?
What is life like for you?
What are your hopes and plans for the future?
Review and rehearse the interviews before your group presents to the whole class.