Would you agree with the view that the message of universal rights was beset with contradictions ? Explain.

Would you agree with the view that the message of universal rights was beset with contradictions ? Explain.

Ans.

Yes, the message of universal rights was beset with many contradictions. The Declaration of Rights of Man and Citizen with which the Constitution of 1791 began, was the first attempt towards the making of universal rights on a large scale. However it had many ideals which contradicted that being said in the Declaration of Rights :

(i) Not all citizens had the right to vote, only men above 25 years of age who paid taxes equal to at least 3 days of a labourer’s wage were entitled to vote. Thus, it denied the voting rights to majority of the common people who led the revolution.

(ii) Women who were the active participants in the revolution did not enjoy the same political rights as men. They were denied the right to vote and even their wages were not equal to those of men.

(iii) The French Revolution popularised the ideals of liberty and democratic rights, however it ended in France becoming conquerors instead of liberators. This was contradictory to the ideals laid down in the Declaration of Rights.

(iv) Slave trade existed in France till the 19th century. This was also contradictory to the ideals of equality.