Incoherent, Contradictory, Self-serving Definitions of 'the Right'

Chapter 2.2: Political labels: The Beginning of an Error

Why this book | Title Page | Table of Contents
Preface | Introduction
PART 1
Chapter 1 (1.1) (1.2) | Chapter 2 (2.1) (2.2) | Chapter 3
PART 2
Chapter 4 | Chapter 5 | Chapter 6
PART 3
Chapter 7 | Chapter 8 | Chapter 9 | Chapter 10 | Chapter 11 | Chapter 12 | Chapter 13 | Chapter 14
PART 4
Chapter 15 | Chapter 16 | Chapter 17 |
PART 5
Chapter 18 | Chapter 19 | Chapter 20 | Conclusion
Appendix | Works Cited

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Chapter 2: What the Left Says the Right Is

Monarchists and fascists and reactionaries, oh my!

2.2

Political labels: The Beginning of an Error

• It all depends on where you sit…

• A (relatively accurate) definition of the left

• Incoherent, contradictory, self-serving definitions of the right

Political labels: The Beginning of an Error

Unfortunately, the labels “left" and “right” did not arise to describe the political manifestations of the American and French revolutions. Instead, they came into being to describe the players in the drama of the French Revolution. This has given our definition of “the right” a hangover from which we still have not recovered. 

It all depends on where you sit…

The simple version of the story goes like this:

Prior to the Revolution, supporters of the king, the church, and the Ancien Régime sat in the seats on the right side of the National Constituent Assembly. Those who favored political reform sat on the left.

In 1789, the winds shifted in favor of revolution, and by 1791, France’s absolute monarchy was no more. And within a few years, the king, his wife, and thousands more were dead.

Concerned by growing radicalism of the revolution, and the undemocratic influence of political clubs, a group of moderates, the Feuillants, split from the Jacobins in July of 1791. They did not advocate for a return to absolute monarchy and the Ancien Régime—their goal was to limit the power of the king and establish a constitutional monarchy similar to that in Britain. 

The Feuillants still believed in the core ideas of the revolution, but because they sought a more temperate course, they were deemed “conservative” relative to the Jacobins. As such, they became the new “right,” and took their seats on the right side of the Legislative Assembly.

Their influence and existence were short-lived. A faction of the Jacobins, the Girondins, forced them out in 1792. After the fall of the monarchy, the Feuillants were cast as “royalists,” and hundreds were tried for what was deemed, ex post facto, to be “treason.” In November 1793—in a trend that was becoming all the rage—Feuillant leader Antoine Barnave was beheaded.

The Girondins would soon run afoul of their own rival faction, the fanatical Montagnards. In theory, they were as radical as the Montagnards, but they became increasingly disturbed by the violent way in which theory was being put into practice. Though they were radical in comparison to most other movements throughout world, these misgivings were enough to get them labeled as “conservatives.” As such, they became the new “right” and took their seats on the right side of the assembly, now called the National Convention.

The Girondins were not long for this world either.