Comparative Questions?

  1. Compare and contrast the three declarations excerpted in this chapter: the Declaration of the Rights of Man (Document 22-1), the Declaration of the Rights of Woman (Document 22-2), and the Haitian Declaration of Independence (Document 22-5). How does each document describe past problems, and how does each present a vision of a new world? What values do all three embrace, and where do the documents diverge?
  2. What is the role of violence in each of this chapter’s documents? According to each, when is violence justified in order to bring about positive social change? Which documents do not address the problem of violence?
  3. Which is the most radical of these documents? Which is the most conservative? Explain.
  4. How might Robespierre (Document 22-3) have responded to the author of the Haitian Declaration of Independence (Document 22-5)? Would he have supported him? Why or why not?

Thomas Madiou, Histoire d’Haïti (Port-au-Prince, 1847–1848), 3:146–150. Excerpted in Slave Revolution in the Caribbean, 1789–1804: A Brief History with Documents, Laurent Dubois and John D. Garrigus, eds. (Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2006), 188–191.