Goldstone, Ch.1/2 What is a Revolution?

Question 1

Define the Heroic Vision of Revolution.

Answer 1

(promotes revolution as needed for freedom and dignity)
Downtrodden masses are raised by leaders who guide them in overthrowing unjust rulers, allowing the people to gain their freedom
GAINS FREEDOM, VIOLENCE IS NEEDED, supports revolution

Question 2

Define the Chaotic View of Revolutions.

Answer 2

(rejects revolutions)
Revolutions are eruptions of popular anger that produce chaos: reformers unleash the mob and demand blood and create extreme violence that destroy the revolutionary leaders themselves
VIOLENCE IS EXCESSIVE AND UNNECESSARY
Promoted by English critics Edmund Burke, Thomas Carlyle, and Charles Dickens: individuals who feared the excess violence of the French revolution –CRITICS OF REVOLUTIONS

Question 3

Define the three markers of revolution. (FMS)

Answer 3

Forcible change in government
Mass participation in whatever “rebellion” is at hand
Severe change in institutions

Question 4

Define Structuralist Revolutionary Theory

Answer 4

Tends to ignore the “subjective” and extremely diverse side of revolutions and the way they are defined
Focuses on easily observed features of conflict and institutional change of revolutions, not motivation based on injustice

Question 5

Criticims of Structuralist Revolutionary Theory.

Answer 5

the pursuit of social justice, which is subjective and diverse, is inseparable from how people define their revolutionary identities and therefore form and frame their actions
You need the subjective driving factors to understand revolution, not just the conflict and changes

Question 6

Define revolution.

Answer 6

he FORCIBLE overthrow of the government through mass mobilization (whether military, civilian, or both) in the name of SOCIAL JUSTICE, to create new political institutions

Question 7

Define rebellion.

Answer 7

any act by a group or individual that refuses to recognize, or seeks to overturn, the authority of the existing government (EFFORTS TO OVERTHROW A REGIME THAT FAIL ARE OFTEN TITLED AS REBELLIONS)

Question 8

Define uprisings.

Answer 8

usually unarmed or primitively armed popular rebellions

Question 9

Define insurrections.

Answer 9

involve some degree of military training and organization, as well as the use of military weapons and tactics

Question 10

Define Guerrilla Warfare:

Answer 10

style of warfare used in rebellions and revolutions; does NOT rely on conventional fighters who are in large scale military units housed and supplied by military, RELIES ON SMALLER NUMBERS OF MOBILE FIGHTERS LIVING OFF LAND OR SUPPLIED BY LOCAL POPULATION
(small forces trying to expel a larger more powerful force by inflicting a steady stream of losses while avoiding pitched battles with the more powerful foe)

Question 11

Define peasant revolts and their goal.

Answer 11

(NOT A REVOLUTION, NOT OVERTHROWING GOVERNMENT, MOTIVATED BY SOCIAL JUSTICE)
Uprising of rural villages; may aim at resisting the demands of local landlords, sometimes at rebelling against state agentS
CALL ATTENTION TO EXCEPTIONAL LOCAL HARDSHIPS
GOAL: to get help from the government to resolve local problems, NOT TO CHANGE the government itself

Question 12

Define Grain Riots, and their goal.

Answer 12

(NOT A REVOLUTION, NOT OVERTHROWING GOVERNMENT, MOTIVATED BY SOCIAL JUSTICE)
Mass mobilizations to protest food shortages or excessively high prices
Involve seizures of grain shipments/stores, attacks on grain merchants
Distribute food to the poor and demands to enforce a maximum price or secure state subsidies; usually occur in cities

Question 13

Define strikes and their goals.

Answer 13

(NOT A REVOLUTION, NOT OVERTHROWING GOVERNMENT, MOTIVATED BY SOCIAL JUSTICE)
Mobilization of workers to withhold work from employers
Focus on issues of pay, work hours, safety, and work regulations: PARTICULAR TO A REGION, INDUSTRY, OR CORPORATIONS

Question 14

Define a political strike.

Answer 14

If workers across the state/nation/country have shared grievances against federal government policies, ALL workers may refuse to work

Question 15

Define social movements and their goals.

Answer 15

NOT REVOLUTIONARY, NOT OVERTHROWING GOVERNMENT, MOTIVATED BY SOCIAL JUSTICE)
Mass mobilizations on behalf of particular groups or causes
Focus on discrimination/oppression of specific members of a group
Can be disruptive and provoke regime violence (anti-Vietnam war movements in the U.S)
Utilizes sit-ins, marches, boycotts, and occupations of state buildings or public places
GOAL: resolve the grievances of a particular group

Question 16

Define reform movements and their goals.

Answer 16

(NOT REVOLUTIONARY, NOT OVERTHROWING GOVERNMENT, MOTIVATED BY SOCIAL JUSTICE)
EXPLICITLY SEEK TO CHANGE EXISTING GOVERNMENT INSTITUTIONS
May seek new laws to limit corruption, greater autonomy for a region, or further voting rights
DO NOT attempt to overthrow the existing government
Try attain their goals by working through lawful procedures for institutional change: seek to win court rulings or electoral campaigns, pass new laws, or obtain constitutional changes
ONLY BECOME REVOLUTIONARY WHEN THE GOVERNMENT RESISTS OR DELAYS MEANINGFUL CHANGE AND LASHES OUT AT REFORMERS

Question 17

Define Coup D’etat.

Answer 17

(NOT REVOLUTIONARY, BUT DOES RESULT IN THE OVERTHROW OF GOVERNMENT, NOT MOTIVATED BY SOCIAL JUSTICE PRINCIPLES)
“Blows to the state”
Occur when one authoritarian leader or a small group of leaders takes over the government, WITHOUT any large mass mobilization or civil struggle
Military coups against democracies or monarchies produce new political institutions
NOT MOTIVATED BY BROAD PRINCIPLES OF SOCIAL JUSTICE
GOAL: halt economic decay, restore order, and step down once this task is accomplished

Question 18

When does a coup d’etat lead to revolution?

Answer 18

Only lead to revolutions if the coup leaders or their followers present a vision for reshaping the society on new principles of social justice and order: MUST ADD SOCIAL JUSTICE MOTIVATION

Question 19

Define Radical Social Movements.

Answer 19

NOT REVOLUTIONARY, OVERTHROWING GOVERNMENT, NOT MOTIVATED BY SOCIAL JUSTICE)
Seek to forcibly overthrow the state: DO NOT BECOME REVOLUTIONS UNLESS THEY MOVE BEYOND A SMALL CIRCLE OF SUPPORTERS
Easily isolated and suppressed: very radical but have very little support)
Civil wars often produce radical social movements

Question 20

Define Revolutionary Civil Wars,

Answer 20

Arise after the old regime as already been overthrown
Those who enjoyed privileges under the old regime, or those resisting the changes from the new one, may use counterrevolutionary forces to go to war against the new revolutionary government

Question 21

Why is anger NOT the cause of revolutions?

Answer 21

It takes more than anger to overthrow a nation

Question 22

Why is poverty/wealth disparity/class inequality not a cause of revolution?

Answer 22

Revolutions are more often common in middle income countries than poorer nations: poor peasants and workers cannot overthrow the government when faced with professional military forces determined to defend the regime
Revolutions can only occur when significant portions of the elites, and specifically the military, defect or stand aside (elites must first mobilize the population to overthrow)
Relative deprivation may be a factor, when class differences grow unbearable, but may also lead to resignation and despair instead of revolution
^^Deep inequality also leaves the poor without enough resources to create an effective revolutionary force
^^ONLY WHEN THE ELITE BLAME THE CURRENT REGIME AND ORDER FOR FAULTS SUCH AS POVERTY, THEN PEOPLE WILL RISE AGAINST IT

Question 23

Why is modernization NOT a cause of revolution?

Answer 23

modernization has led to some revolutions in the past, but often it strengthens rulers and creates more powerful authoritarian regimes, or creates a smooth transition to democracy

Question 24

Why is the spread of a new ideological idea NOT the cause of a revolution?

Answer 24

does not explain why people would be drawn to dangerous and violent new political ideas, rulers and elites usually enforce their beliefs that justify their rule while harshly punishing those who question their authority
New ideologies produce revolutionary actions ONLY when there has been a shift in elite positions, which creates space and opportunities mobilize people around new beliefs

Question 25

Why do all of these previous ideas not suffice to explain revolutions?

Answer 25

these views of revolutionary causation are inadequate because they treat society as a passive structure, that will crumble when sufficient force is applied: if enough poverty, modernization and ideological change occurs then the social order will collapse
^Society is NOT a passive structure: societies consist of millions of active people and groups whose actions continually re-create and reinforce the social order

Question 26

Define the “Stable Equilibrium of Society”.

Answer 26

Popular groups engage in economic activities that generate sufficient income to support themselves and their families: therefore paying taxes and rents that support elites and the government
Elites (those working for the government and those leading other organizations) act as critical intermediaries between the state and populace
Rulers provide rewards and recognition for elite
Rulers aim to protect the populace from banditry, invasions, famines, etc. so that the people can continue paying their rents and taxes
Loyal military forces, bureaucratic and religious elites suppress opposition, and most groups are invested in the status quo and don’t take major risks to change it
^^ ROOTED IN PRINCIPLES OF PHYSICAL SCIENCE: THE RESPONSE TO A MODERATE DISTURBANCE IS A RETURN TO THE ORIGINAL STABLE CONDITION

Question 27

Define the Five Elements Crucial to Create Revolution or the “Unstable Equilibrium”. NAWSF

Answer 27

National economic crisis/strain that cause leaders to increase taxes or borrow heavily, in ways that often seem unjust and hinder ability to reward their supporters and pay their officials
Alienation and opposition among the elites
Widespread, popular anger at injustice: people feel they are losing their proper place in society for reasons that are NOT inevitable and not their fault (popular groups may lead boycotts, strikes, protests, organize guerrilla forces, rebellions begin to spread
Spread of an ideology that presents a shared narrative of resistance: unifies people as they reach a mutual understanding of the injustice occurring and a shared identity (the most successful revolutions also utilize examples of successful revolutions from the past and may attempt to recreate them)
Favorable international relations and may depend on foreign support for the action being taken (if foreign support intervenes with counterrevolutionary forces, the revolution will likely not succeed)

Question 28

Define Structural causes of revolution.

Answer 28

LONG-TERM and LARGE-SCALE trends that undermine existing social institutions and relationships

Question 29

Define the Structural cause “large demographic change” in revolutions.

Answer 29

^^As population grows too rapidly for generations, the cumulative effects of the population can cause the institutions of social order to suffer (land and jobs grows scarce, rents rise and real wages decline, prices rise, competition among elite)
^^Essentially the natural downfall of capitalism at work

Question 30

Define the Youth Bulge, and its relation to demographic change and the revolutionary causes.

Answer 30

individuals who find difficulty in obtaining suitable jobs and are easily drawn to new ideologies and mobilized for social protest

Question 31

Define Shift in Pattern of International Relations (Structural Cause):

Answer 31

wars/international economic competition/changing demographics and population in neighboring international relation WEAKENS STATE AUTHORITIES AND EMPOWERS NEW GROUPS IN SOCIETY, SPREADS REVOLUTION FROM ONE REGION TO THE NEXT

Question 32

Uneven/Dependent Economic Development (Structural Cause)

Answer 32

the poor and middle class fall further behind while a small elite grows rapidly richer, or economic growth is so dependent on foreign investment that it only benefits the foreign investors and not the citizens

Question 33

New Patterns of Exclusion/Discrimination as a Structural Cause

Answer 33

entire groups face legal discriminations, new or differently enforced discrimination UNDERMINES THE LEGITIMACY OF THE REGIME (discrimination must be well established and consistent to be accepted as part of the normal order)

Question 34

Personalist Regime as a structuralist cause

Answer 34

the leader becomes increasingly entrenched in the system, views themselves as the indispensable leader of the nation: WEAKEN OR ALIENATE THE MILITARY AND ELITES–rely on a small circle of family/supporters who grant personal favor–PRODUCES PERSONALIST DICTATORSHIP

Question 35

Define personalist dictatorship.

Answer 35

he leader becomes increasingly entrenched in the system, views themselves as the indispensable leader of the nation

Question 36

Define the Dictator’s Dilemma.

Answer 36

monarchies and personalist dictators fall prey to this idea that they are the only indispensable leader, create an illegitimate regime that people lose faith and trust in, rely only on close supporters

Question 37

Define transient factors.

Answer 37

Sudden events that push a society out of stability (inflation, defeat in war, riots/demonstrations that challenge state authority, poor state responses to citizen uprisings) LEAD PEOPLE TO TURN AGAINST THE STATE MORE OPENLY IN LARGER NUMBERS