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  • Essay / Future Of Revolutions - 1845

    “What is the probable future of revolutions? asks Jack Goldstone, an eminent contemporary sociologist and one of the major figures in the study of revolutions and long-term social change, at the end of his work. masterpiece entitled “Revolutions: a very short introduction”. “It depends…” (150), replies Charles Tilly, another emblematic sociologist of modern times, before adding “… it depends on which countries, which claimants and which objects of demands we have in mind”. Goldstone believes that revolutions will continue to happen, simply because we still have a long way to go as humanity to achieve justice, freedom and equality in our societies. Both authors agree that social movements will develop in completely new frameworks. This article will take a close look at Tilly's predictions regarding how they will be designed. In his book, Goldstone argues that revolutions will continue to occur as long as we face the five conditions that typically lead to state collapse: an economic or fiscal crisis, elites divided or alienated from the regime, a coalition between popular groups with diverse grievances, the emergence of a persuasive narrative, of an international environment favorable to revolutionary change. As if to pick up the “ball” where Goldstone left it, a quintet composed of Immanuel Wallerstein, Randall Collins, Michael Mann, Georgi Derluguian and Craig Calhoun, eminent global sociologists, came up with “Has Capitalism a future”, a compilation of their contributions on the near future of humanity. The main difference from Goldstone's masterpiece lies in their scrupulous analysis of capitalism as a system which, in their view, is going through a great crisis. What are their main arguments and demands? How will it happen... middle of document ...... predicts that revolutions are more likely to occur in sub-Saharan Africa in the future; a subject that our quintet did not deal with much in “Does capitalism have a future?” Goldstone continues to predict a peaceful framework for the evolution of future social movements, thanks to humanity's legacy of "color" revolutions (Goldstone 132). It highlights how the sanctity of human life has always won over the past 30 years in its compromise with ideological purity. It is likely that more wisdom and heroism will be manifested. It is necessary to adjust our expectations regarding the results of the revolution. An example of this is the American Revolution of 1776, which took the United States on a long journey toward democracy. He concludes by saying that there are many more revolutions to come, given how far we are from achieving absolute social justice as humanity..