A Very Short Reading Group discussion

Some positive reviews for this, apart from "it's not what it was like in les miserables"...

A revolutionary discussion at the library last night. William Doyle got a general thumbs up for his VSI – a very readable and well-structured Introduction. The opening chapter was particularly strong. Framing the revolution through key cultural representations set the scene nicely for the detail and analysis to follow. Topics that cropped up:

the point when history starts to become myth, the contrast with the Russian Revolution, a VSI we discussed way back in October 2017. Conditions for revolution then and now – decisions made by those in power led to starvation 200 years ago, does relative wealth insulate us from political upheaval? The cultural differences between the English and the French. Did England get its civil war out of the way early? The attachment to the concept of monarchy. Is terror / dictatorship inevitable with revolutionary events? And also the influence of technology on history. As Doyle pointed out, publishing influenced public opinion in the lead up to the revolution. How does social media affect public opinion now and is revolution more or less likely with our current technologies and the influence they can have on us? Which might just lead on to our next title for June…