The Intermediary Groups in 1791

For Sociology of the Public Sphere

Abstract

Of the many influences that the French Revolution exerted over modern political culture, one in particular cannot be overlooked by sociological thought : a series of measures concerning the intermediary groups taken by the Constituent Assembly in 1791. The abolition of the traditional trade associations was carried out in March and the prohibition of any new labor unions in June. They received a bad reputation through the social movements of the 19th and 20th centuries. Moreover, the free gathering of citizens (most often called “popular societies”) suffered from several legal limitations in the same year. It is nothing other than the revolutionaries' lack of sympathy or their hostility (and probably held by modern men in general) that can be Observed throughout the discourses within and outside of the Assembly during this period. The intermediary groups never found their proper place because their social view consisted solely of individuals and the total society. Thus, while the former communities disappeared completely, an alternative public sphere failed to emerge. This is recognized as one of the starting points for the birth and development of modern sociology, indirectly or negatively. However, there are some contemporary sociologists who seem to make an erroneous assumption of the facts or confuse the facts with the norms. In order to reconstruct sociology of the public sphere, it is crucial to clarify what really happened to the intermediary groups in 1791 and then rectify one's recognition of the history of sociological ideas.