PRETENDING TO BE A JOURNALIST IN THE FRENCH REVOLUTION

(WITHOUT MIC AND CAMERA, OF COURSE :)

 

French Revolution was full of dramatic episodes such as the storming of the Bastille, the excution of Louis XVI, etc.

Pretend that you are a reporter sent to cover these events. In a short newspaper article of five paragraphs or less, describe the event choosen.  You may also choose to write an article from the first-person perspective as if you were a witness of or participant in the event.

You can use details from the information you have read in this website or pursue additional research at the library or using the Internet.

TASK 2

ARE YOU ABLE TO FILL THE BLANKS?

 


At the seat of the French monarchy in ___________, an alliance between ________________ and __________________was created as King Louis XVI married Marie Antoinette. The king had inherited a financial crisis as France had sent millions of dollars and resources overseas to support the ___________________. Poverty and malnourishment devastated the nation as the population in France continued to increase. Unrest was brewing as King Louis XVI called a meeting of the Estates-General to be held in May of __________. Meanwhile, a brilliant orator who will later become a leader of the French Revolution named ____________________ sharpened his debating and political skills.
There were three major social groups in France, referred to as “estates.” The three estates were the nobility, the clergy, and the common people known as the _______________. This estate comprised over 95% of the French population. A political and philosophical awakening spearheaded by thinkers such as Voltaire and Rousseau inspired the members of the Third Estate. This transformation, known as _________________, created rising expectations among the French people at the same time that malnourishment and harsh taxes turned them against an inept crown. Politically inspired, the Third Estate demanded popular representation, forming a political body known as the _________________. They demanded that France become a Constitutional Monarchy in which the Third Estate would be more fairly represented politically.
After declaring their wishes to reorganize the French government in the “Tennis Court Oaths,” the Third Estate was met with violent repression. Though he recognized the need to compromise politically, Louis XVI soon started a campaign to re-establish power and put an end to the Revolution. The king’s repression incensed the French people, and hundreds of protestors stormed the ______________ on July 14, ______. Later that summer, the National Assembly outlined a basic human rights platform in a document written by the Marquis de Lafayette entitled __________________________. Furious at the monarchy, a group of Parisian women marched to Versailles and demanded that the king and queen return to Paris.
The Revolution continued over the next few years, as the king ordered repressive measures against protestors and as factions emerged among the Third Estate. In 1791, Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette attempted to flee Paris but were recaptured and, in ___________, Louis XVI was executed by _______________. Robespierre, who had been a major leader in the Revolution, responded to the chaos in France by handing over power to the ________________ with the goal of returning order. This attempt spiraled out of control as thousands of people suspected to be traitors of the Revolution were executed by guillotine. This chapter of the Revolution is known as the _______________.
Toward the end of the Revolution, in __________, Robespierre himself was put to death by guillotine and a more moderate group assumed a leadership role. This transfer from radicalism to a more moderate form of government is known as a ____________________. Overall, the Revolution had transformed France. The era of divine right was over, the monarchy had been
eliminated, and basic standards of human rights were established. The next phase of French history started shortly thereafter, as ______________________ took over through a coup in 1799 to become Emperor of France.

 

TASK 3

IT´S YOUR TURN

 (TASK LINKED WITH: "FRENCH REVOLUTION THROUGH PICTURES AND TEXTS")

 

- Identify the historical moment or the well-known person of each painting: clues can be very useful.

 

- Search information for each of them. These issues could help you: historical moment (or well-known person) which (or who) it depicts; why this accurate moment (or this well-known person) is so important in the context of French Revolution; identification of its artistic style and its symbols.

 

- Organize them in chronological order and add each painting to your timeline of French Revolution.

 

- Share your results with the rest of us!

 

 

DO YOUR BEST! IT IS THE RECIPE FOR SUCCESS!

PICTURE 1

 

Clue 1: To someone he was a murderer who, finally, was murdered

Clue 2: He was betrayed by a Woman, Charlotte Corday. It is a romantic way to die, isn´t it?

PICTURE 2

 

Clue 1: The canvas was painted by Jacques-Louis David, the official painter of our unknown person. 

Clue2: This unknown person was crowned by himself.

Clue 3: He was one of the most important conquerors of the History

PICTURE 3

 

Clue 1: Has anyone said clothes are not important?

Clue 2: In the picture there is just one person depicted, but he shapes the most aggressive group of French Revolution

The sans culottes have become of the better-known revolutionary movements in European history. The term itself means ‘without britches’ and was originally used to ridicule married men who found themselves in compromising situations with women. By the early 1790s it was being applied to any worker, artisan or small businessmen who supported the revolution - See more at: http://alphahistory.com/frenchrevolution/sans-culottes/#sthash.fR8wQGzk.dpuf
The sans culottes have become of the better-known revolutionary movements in European history. The term itself means ‘without britches’ and was originally used to ridicule married men who found themselves in compromising situations with women. By the early 1790s it was being applied to any worker, artisan or small businessmen who supported the revolution - See more at: http://alphahistory.com/frenchrevolution/sans-culottes/#sthash.fR8wQGzk.dpuf

PICTURE 4

 

Clue 1: We are in Spain, in Madrid, in Puerta del Sol! That´s all, my folks.

PICTURE 4

 

Clue 1.: He didn´t hear the last words of Louis XVI. He "loves" beheading. In fact, he said one of the most famous sentences of French Revolution: "Louis must die, that the country can live.”

Clue 2.: He made a new calendar for France. For him, it wasn´t, for example, 30th of August, it was 30th of Fructidor.

 

TASK 4

FRENCH REVOLUTION AND CONSTITUTION OF UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

 

 

One of the most important documents to emerge from the French Revolution was the “Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen” written by the Marquis de Lafayette in 1789. This document was based on the United States Constitution, which had just been drafted and stood as a model for the French republic. There are many similarities between these two documents, but there are also ways in which they are distinct.


- Break up into groups of four or five. At the library or using the Internet, locate these two documents. The first of them is in this web site. Remenber it.

 

- Read the first sections of both documents and explore their similarities and differences. Then, on a piece of posterboard or large construction paper, create two columns, one for each document. In each column, list the five major rights each document secures for its citizens. Be sure to note as well which members of society were afforded these full citizenship rights and which were not.

"If you have got a new point of view about the World, you’ll have to find new ways of showing it”

Mark Rothko

 

Pilar Sánchez  has a double Degree in Literary Theory and Comparative Literature (2010), a Degree in History (2002), both by Salamanca University. She also has Advanced Studies in Philosophy.

 

She has been working as a teacher and researcher in  the Salamanca University, Art and Aesthetics Department, as an Art critic, a team member in specialised publications, teacher of Spanish as a foreign language in other countries (Ireland), Secondary teacher of Social Studies and Spanish Language and Literature in Madrid and Head of Department in SEK Les Alpes International School.

 

Her main goals when teaching are setting up the latest educational methodologies based on cooperative and blended learning, relying on emotional intelligence as one of the best means to enhance teacher and teenage students’ relationship.