Two Unforgettable Egyptian Revolutions

Between 1919 and 1952, Egypt struggled to obtain independence and develop a national identity (Botman 1991, 55). The majority of Egyptians were peasants or fallahins who were in a cycle of poverty as a result of the structure of landownership and the division of land through inheritance (Botman 1991, 73). The Wafd, a nationalist body in Egypt, espoused the anti-British movement for the masses and expressed the need for legitimate self-rule (Botman 1991, 55). The British had occupied Egypt since 1882 as a way to restore order and safeguard Egypt’s foreign population (Gordon 1992, 15). However, Egypt’s strategic importance led the British to prolong their short stay and after World War I, Britain declared a protectorate over Egypt (Gordon 1992, 15). Thinking that a postwar settlement might lead to Egyptian independence, a committee of

Secondly, the methods of rebellion, the government’s response to the rebellion, and the outcome of both revolutions were alike. One method of rebellion that was prominent in both revolutions was peaceful protest. In the Egyptian Revolution, that lasted 18 days, people peacefully set up tents in Tahrir square to protest Mubarak presidency. One example when the Americans peacefully protested in the American Revolution was when the British implemented the tea act, that put taxes on tea to help the British East India Company financially survive. The Americans peacefully protested by not buying tea. The response by the government in both revolutions were similar they were both destructive (America revolution was also peaceful and destructive but

These three eras of revolution showcase various changes and continuities. The three-hundred year span features revolutions that started because of an assortment of different reasons, while many of them are practically duplicates in their results of the conflict, such as a government being abolished. Although these revolutions present diverse changes over time, the essence of almost every revolution in all three time periods reveals significant continuities between them.

During the !7th and 18th centuries numerous revolutions arose due to strong political leaders and their desire to accomplish ambitious goals. Often, specific policies are enforced by governments in an attempt to reform society. Most changes during these centuries were based on political power and were inspired by other countries’ successes. Specifically, in Russia and France, two strong leaders came to power after a period of weakness for their country with desires of governmental and social change.

The military coup in Egypt was very controversial. I believe that the ousting of Morsi was completely wrong and should never have happened. After the overthrow of Dictator Hosni Mubarak, Mohamed Morsi was democratically voted president of Egypt. Morsi was only president for a year. During his short spell the military illegally took control of Egypt and placed president Morsi under house arrest. This sparked controversy across the globe.

Many times when people revolt against the government, it leaves the country in a worse spot that it was before. Throughout history there have been many revolutions in many different places. Two of the most significant have been the American Revolution, from the 1700’s, and more recently the Egyptian revolution from 2011. Both of these revolutions have many similarities within each other, but they also have many actions to contrast. The topics being compared include; how the revolutions started. The demands of the revolting groups. Lastly, what the two groups did to protest against the government.

In order for a revolution to be successful, there are many components and stages that play into it. Matter of fact, George Didi-Huberman, the author of the article Uprisings argues that there are five different parts: elements, gestures, words, conflicts, and desires. Each part is unique and significant in its own way. Not only are each of these parts displayed during the process of a revolution, but they also make a significant impact prior and after the revolution. This can be noted from analyzing different revolutions and rebellions throughout time and the outcome of them.

No one has ever changed the world by doing what the world has told them to do. In fact, many of our recent inventions, rights, political systems, and comforts have come into existence through the sweats and tears of revolution, an often chaotic and transformative event that attempts to change a nation, society, or world. And though it can be argued that revolution results in the bloodshed of masses, it is imperative to understand that self-aggrandizement of unfair leaders and unequal distribution of rights have often been the case in history when revolution is non-present. And only through revolutions such as the

The latter half of the 20th century was an incredibly turbulent time for Egypt as regimes cycled in and out every couple decades and the country seemed to always be at war. “The Yacoubian Building”, a 2002 film, illustrated how the resulting corrupted government and abysmal economy affected Egypt’s population, especially the lower classes. Additionally, the viewer saw how these two factors led to both the appalling treatment of women and the rise of violent insurgency groups.

Revolutions have occurred throughout history and continue to arise even in the present day. Many revolution happens because of the miscommunication between the government and its citizens. In the end, the outcome of revolutions are usually good but, sometimes it might not be what people want. In the following paragraphs, examples of the general causes and effects that creates a revolution will be discussed in order to illustrate how revolutions are mainly caused by the dispute between the regime and its citizen.

Revolution is to my knowledge the determined and forcible action of overthrowing a government, by the great people they rule amongst, in favor of emplacing a new system. By being familiar of this, I knew the documentary “The Square: The Egyptian Revolution” would not fail my expectation. I expected that the great Egyptians would face a great deal of challenges that they together would overcome. I knew if changes were going to occur it would be in the cost of tears, emotion, pain, and the loss of lives, which is all that the producer added to get the full emotions of the viewer. I also love the way the documentary gave the viewers multiple points of views that explain the reason of action on each side. The Documentary begins in Tahrir square during a sit-in waiting for the resignation of their unfit 30-year dictator Hosni Mubarak. At this time the two groups who religion separated the Egyptians were Christians and Muslims, but at this point of time everyone seemed equal. Finally,

“Our freedom is not up for negotiation.”(Mohamed ElBaradei). The Egyptian Revolution was a battle to take back rights that had been taken away for nearly thirty years.Socially, the main causes were a lack of human rights, and poor living conditions.Economic changes also promoted the development of protests. Political leaders were unjust, provoking citizens to create an uproar of resistance. The Egyptian Revolution has had many harsh social, destructive economic, yet promising political impacts on the Egyptian people while the prospect for peace remains uncertain.

Throughout history many societies have, and will likely continue to have revolutions as we as humans strive towards a utopian society. Each and every one of these revolution follows some pattern, a pattern that most often includes a great number of civilian casualties. But what is it that pushes such revolutions forward? Why have people risked and given their lives fighting against their own leadership? Looking at both the French Revolution and the Arab Spring can help uncover the answer to these questions, as for people to willingly risk their lives, they must have been living in destitute situations. Both of these societies did indeed have many social and economic problems, as well as a poor quality of life, specifically for the bottom class, or in the case of the French Revolution, the Third Estate. It is because of these issues that the people stood up to their leaders and demanded a better life, overtaking the government in the process.

In late 2010, a tidal wave of uprisings and protests in various parts of the Arab world emerged. It began with the Tunisian revolution when the martyr Mahmoud Bouazizi set fire to himself as a result of the deteriorating economic and social. This led to protests and demonstrations that ended with the fall of the ruling regime. In Tunisia which sparked the beginning of revolutions in many Arab countries, this is known as an Arab Spring. The question remains what are the real reasons that led to the Arab Spring and its effects? the causes of the Arabic spring May be varied, depending on the places, however the reasons can be a corruption in economic policies and demand social justice as the key motives and protests in the Arab world. This essay will discuss the most important reasons, and the effects of what is known as the Arab Spring.

Egypt in the 1950s and 1960s was the leader of the Arab world and under the control of Nasser they set out to solve many of the issues of colonialism. Another prominent issue at the time was there was very little infrastructure in Egypt and the infrastructure they had exists mostly to push agricultural commodities to market. Other forms of infrastructure were also lacking. For example, Egypt didn’t have a large school system until the 1950s. There was also economic imbalances, one of which has to do with a small upper-class of ruling elite, the other having to do with how foreign interests capture large sectors of the economy; not a lot of industrial development, and then state-led industrial development. Land is not equitably distributed; there was a lack of an independent army outside of British control; and the country was misrepresented within politics because of the British involvement. Among the newly forming nation states we see Arab countries like Egypt starting to confront these issues and impart emerge as an independent nation state. That is absolute autonomy and sovereignty over their territory. During this time there were two main