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Edmund BurkeReflections On The Revolution In France
Nonfiction | Essay / Speech | Adult | Published in 1790A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Section 4Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Section 4 Summary
In this section, Burke stakes his claim that it is necessary to understand human nature in politics. First, he educates the reader on the great difference between power and power that seeks to destroy. In this, Burke draws a fine distinction, meaning he supposes that power corrupts most men, but most men are not discerning enough to recognize the danger that lies in bad men having power.
He begins by discussing the confiscation of land from institutions like the nobility and church by the Assembly. He states, “An enemy is a bad witness: a robber is a worse” (140). By itself, this seems like merely sage advice. However, in context, the Assembly tells the people of France that these institutions are usurpers. Burke cautions readers to examine the persons making these claims before acting. He goes on to state, “In history a great volume is unrolled for our instruction, drawing the material of future wisdom from the past errors and infirmities of mankind” (141). It is not just new governments that can learn from past mistakes, but newly freed citizens as well. Burke suggests that the country’s past might reflect some instances where power, under any name, become a corrupting force.
Section 4 Analysis
The nuance of human nature, especially in the political arena, remains difficult to discern. An experienced politician like Burke offers sharp critique of the National Assembly and the path to liberty the French take. He states, “[…] whilst, under colour of abhorring the ill principles of antiquated parties, they are authorizing and feeding the same odious vices in different factions, and perhaps in worse” (142). Burke believes the Assembly accuses the established institutions it deposes with one hand, while committing the same crimes of neglect, dishonesty, greed with the other.
To this end, Burke believes evil can espouse the principles of man because it is just as easy to hide behind the masks of abstractions as behind the protection of the crown. He states, “Wise men will apply their remedies to vices, not to name, to the causes of the evil which are permanent, not to the occasional organs by which they act, and the transitory modes in which they appear” (142). Burke’s earlier example of King James II illustrates this point; King James II exemplifies a bad man acting as a king, but not all kings are bad, so logic does not dictate that all kings must be dethroned. Equally, it is just as probable that a man may act as a tyrant and never become a king. Further, it stands to reason that a radical may espouse the good words of liberalism, but not have man’s best interest at heart; this does not mean all liberals are bad, and it does not mean all new ideas are good. Burke believes it takes a discerning eye to see the difference.
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By Edmund Burke
