NCERT Book Class 9 Social Science (History) Chapter 2 Socialism in Europe and the Russian Revolution

Socialism in Europe and

Chapter II
the Russian Revolution
1 The Age of Social Change
In the previous chapter you read about the powerful ideas of freedom
and equality that circulated in Europe after the French Revolution.
The French Revolution opened up the possibility of creating a
dramatic change in the way in which society was structured. As you

Revolution and the Russian Revolution
have read, before the eighteenth century society was broadly divided
into estates and orders and it was the aristocracy and church which
controlled economic and social power. Suddenly, after the revolution,
it seemed possible to change this. In many parts of the world including
Europe and Asia, new ideas about individual rights and who
controlled social power began to be discussed. In India, Raja
Rammohan Roy and Derozio talked of the significance of the French
Revolution, and many others debated the ideas of post-revolutionary
Europe. The developments in the colonies, in turn, reshaped these
ideas of societal change.

Not everyone in Europe, however, wanted a complete transformation
of society. Responses varied from those who accepted that some
change was necessary but wished for a gradual shift, to those who
wanted to restructure society radically. Some were ‘conservatives’,
others were ‘liberals’ or ‘radicals’. What did these terms really mean
in the context of the time? What separated these strands of politics
and what linked them together? We must remember that these terms
do not mean the same thing in all contexts or at all times.

Europe
We will look briefly at some of the important political traditions of
the nineteenth century, and see how they influenced change. Then inthe Russian
we will focus on one historical event in which there was an attempt
at a radical transformation of society. Through the revolution in
Russia, socialism became one of the most significant and powerful
Socialism in Europe and

ideas to shape society in the twentieth century.
Socialism

1.1 Liberals, Radicals and Conservatives
One of the groups which looked to change society were the liberals.
Liberals wanted a nation which tolerated all religions. We should
remember that at this time European states usually discriminated in

25