Life Of A Simple Man (Essay Sample) 2023


Life of a Simple Man

From a keen look at the book by Emile Guillaumin, a character in a foregone tale of the French revolution appears. This man by the name Etienne Berlin, is so instrumental in the cast of the writer. Just but to mention, it was during the reign of Napoleon Bonaparte in France. This is a man who grew as a peasant, in the then days of the mighty France where barbarism was the order of the day. Knowledge about urban life was history to him since it was a foreign concept all together. This is a gentleman who did not have an exposure to formal education because, the father was equally a peasant farmer. This notwithstanding, not much was a hype, for the said education, since not much was said about it. As an excuse, the family therefore was not in a position to afford his education.

The book is an epitome of classical fiction as per the time, though, it serves the actual reason for analysis. There is something about the book that is of significant value to the reader, since it reveals to the reader the real scenario in the rural setting of France, something that has been least talked about. Peasant life is not something that many French want to talk about based on their improved state of living. More importantly, so is the fact that history has a way of manifesting itself in the present. This is why there is much to relate to given the fact that the demographics of the early French family is quite different from the neo patterns of a family setup. Contrary to what is manifested in today’s life, so much is left to be desired. Since farming was the order of the day, having many sons was always a welcome idea for many French families. This was an actual scenario in a peasant family. Sons were expected at some time, to move out of their father’s abode to fend for themselves the moment they could stand on their own feet, as young men.

During Napoleon’s reign, many peasants did not have much of a choice but to join his army. One of the biggest challenges during the French revolution was education. Etienne was one of the unlucky few during this regime. Industrialization came as a blessing to Etienne since he secured himself a job at a factory when all the systems were not functioning right by then, especially the crop production sector. This is probably the most amazing thing that ever happened to Etienne and his peasant community because for the first time, the pay was same regardless of the social class.

During these days, the most outstanding thing was land ownership, working skills, education, wealth and whether one’s dwelling place was rural or an urban setup. Despite the fact that Etienne missed out on the opportunity to have a decent education like the rest of his siblings, he had an experience like no other. Though fictitious, Etienne made the book equally interesting and have meaning at the end of the day. His depiction in the book, created an excellent actor who drove the imagination of the reader to the wall. This story has prompted many readers to yearn for more as pertains the history of rural France. The man did not have a complicated life based on his humble beginnings- he was a simple man.

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