Compare and Contrast Essay Sample: The French Revolution vs. The Mexican Revolution

The Mexican and French Revolutions were each inspired by ideologies that share significant similarities even though the events and situations preceding each conflict have key differences. Multiple comparisons can be drawn between the economic inequality in France due to the 3 estates as well as the deeply ingrained economic inequality under Porforio Diaz’s rule in Mexico. While the division between peoples inspired revolution in each case, the Mexican and French Revolutions each had their own unique additional sources of tension.  The desire of the Mexican Revolutionaries to replace a democracy headed by a bad president combined with racial tensions between indigenous and hispanic people is different than the structural class tensions which lead to the French Revolution. The root cause of the Mexican and French Revolutions were both a result of economic inequality resulting in a large disparity between peoples, however, each display notably different sources of conflict. 

France’s economic inequality was blatantly apparent between the 3 estates (nobility, clergy, and commoners). The commoners made up 98% of the population, yet had the same representation as the clergy and nobility. Overall, commoners were looked down up and excluded from honor and political positions. When the French Government went into debt by sponsoring the American Revolution, taxes skyrocketed in order to compensate for the lost money. However, the only part of the population being taxed were the commoners. While the wealthy lived lavish lifestyles, the poor were struggling to make ends meet. The disconnect between classes angered the commoners, resulting in them resenting their positions in French society. This led to the coming together to launch the French Revolution in 1789. The representatives of the French people wrote a constitution called “The Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen.” This document outlined the basic rights that every French citizen should receive. In the document it says, “For maintenance of public authority and for expenses of administration, common taxation is indispensable. It should be apportioned equally among all citizens according to their capacity to pay.” Before the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen was written, taxation disparities were huge and unjust. 

The economic inequalities between the 3 estates show similarities with the economic inequalities under Porfirio Diaz’s rule in Mexico. Under Diaz’s rule, power was concentrated in the hands of a select few. Citizens of Mexico had no power to express their opinions or select their public officials. As well as power, wealth was concentrated in the hands of few, resulting in injustice everywhere. Porfirio Diaz showed a disregard for Mexico’s indigenous people. He only truly cared about the wealthy, doing anything to keep them happy. Indigenous people had their land stolen from them and placed in the hands of the wealthy. When liberals and intellectuals began to challenge the discriminatory and unfair way of ruling, the Mexican Revolution began. Francisco Madero ran for office in order to replace Porfirio Diaz. In one of his most famous speeches addressing the problem he states, “numerous small landowners(mostly indigenous people) have been dispossessed of their land in accord with this government and the rulings of the courts. It is in the interest of justice to restore these lands to the original owners and as such who has acquired land by immoral and illegal means must return it to its owner,”

“Plan de Luis San Potosi '' (p. 125 Truitt and Slaughter). Francisco Madero recognizes the inequalities implemented by Porfirio Diaz. If I were Francisco Madero, as a Maderista, I would have a bias towards land reform and equality because I believe that in order for a country to succeed, it must be through diversity of opinions from a broad group, including indigenous people. Although Francisco Madero came from a wealthy family, he had liberalist views and spoke up for land reform. Francisco Madero had no choice but to step up and attempt to implement a moderate form of democracy that portrayed equity and equality. These two examples of economic inequality relate because they both show the disregard for a large minority. In the French Revolution, the commoners were being overlooked, and in the Mexican Revolution, it was the indigenous people.

Along with their similarities, the revolutions had notable differences within them. At the time, Mexico was failing their people with a democracy and France was failing with a monarchy. During the Mexican Revolution, the main goal was to overthrow the Porfirio Diaz democracy. Diaz had a term of more than 30 years and was not looking to step down. The Mexican Revolution had to happen to abolish unlimited terms and remove Diaz from power. The goal of The French Revolution was to abolish the monarchy and implement the First Republic. The monarchy in France led to food shortages, economic crisis, and poverty. Another difference was the motivation behind the tensions within the people. France was an entirely European nation, everyone being of the same ethnic group. The tensions came from the discrepancy between classes. In Mexico, the inequalities stemmed from the racial tensions between the indigenous people and the Hispanics. 

The causes of the Mexican and French revolutions share a plethora of similarities, as well as noteworthy differences. Economic inequality portrayed itself in both revolutions, however the overall goals differed. A contemporary example of economic disparities would be the division between the wealthy and the poor in Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia is home to the wealthiest family in the world, yet 20% of the population lives in poverty. This is similar to the French Revolution due to the blatant disconnect between the wealthy and poor.