Without A Cause

In a revolution, many people try to change something that they think is a bad way to equalize. What many of those people don’t know is that revolting and going in a war with the government isn’t’ really going to change anything intended. Maybe just getting a few rights, but never getting what the people desired. In a revolution it is also intended to keep the revolution going on forever in the state of mind that there will always be that lower class to be revolting for something. In Mariano Azuela’s, The Underdogs, the author of the book is trying to show that violent revolutions don’t solve the problems.
In the book, Demetrio Macias was fighting in the revolution to gain revenge from the federals that burned down his home. After a while in the fight he didn’t know what he kept on fighting for, “some of the soldiers, gazing at the spire of the church, sighed sadly. They marched forward through the canyon, uncertain, unsteady, as blind men walking without a hand to guide them,” (Azuela 141) but he managed to change some things. Leader Porfirio Diaz was eliminated out of power, which has been in power for over thirty years. Although he managed to take Diaz out of the race, soon there were other discussions on who is going to be the next leader, and a whole mess rose up from that. Once the leader was chosen, people still had a disliking of the persons decisions of laws he had to offer. So, some people had to revolt again to get what they wanted. The revolution has its special loop that continues forever, some people don’t like something that others like.
In the Mexican Revolution, many things tend to change, but other times things don’t change at all. In the real Mexican Revolution, the people of Mexico were getting tired of the dictator rule of President Porfirio Diaz. People of all classes were fighting in the Revolution. “The middle and upper classes were dissatisfied with the President’s ways. The lower and working class people had many factors such as poor working conditions, inflation, inferior housing, low wages, and deficient social services.”(Davies). Sometimes people can have different thoughts than others and that can create a segregation of ideas between those two societies. When one group decides to revolt, something in that time period changes, which makes the other group, want to change it back or lead it to something else. A Revolution is just a big loop hole never ceasing to exist, even for those more peaceful than ever.
The long-vilified image of Porfirio Diaz has slightly improved. His accomplishments include economic development, a low crime rate, and a peso on par with the pound sterling. Madero was mostly in agreement with Diaz’s policies, but he thought the old dictator had been in office too long. To this day Mexican congresspersons and senators aren’t allowed to succeed themselves.The Mexican revolution actually lasted more than it should of. All the violence and bloodshed mostly happened from 1910 to 1920, but still went on after. In 1940, Cardenas voluntarily gave all his power to his heir Manuel Avila Camacho, a legal shift that was recorded in the Mexican history. “Firstly, there’s the problem of the non-peasant leaderships who play such a prominent part in the affair. Secondly, there’s the problem of actually describing some of the popular forces which fought in the revolution in agrarian terms.”(Anthro). In 1942, Avila Camacho and all living ex-Presidents appeared on stage in the Mexico City Zocalo, in front of the Palacio Nacional, to encourage the Mexican people to support the Americans and British in World War II. This demonstration of political unity among various basics signaled the true end of the Revolution.
As the revolution came to an end the Mexican government became more of a democracy with legitimate elections than a monarchy. The lower class received land on which they could farm on and generate revenue from. When the lower class finally had the ability to generate a profit and afford food once again the economy quickly began to recover. But as soon as those people became richer, poor classes soon started to rise from the ground. Francisco I. Madero, who started the Revolution and served as president, was overthrown by Victoriano Huerta, who in turn was overthrown by a coalition, which then broke up into warring factions. Many leaders had to leave and come into power because they didn’t satisfy the people. One little mistake or idea can cause millions of people to revolt. “The Mexican Revolution destroyed a regime of poverty, inequality and authoritarianism” but also “constructed another regime of poverty, inequality and authoritarianism.”(Smitha). It’s all a big loop that keeps the cycle going and never ending.
In the revolution and the book, the story of taking someone out of power for more rights is the similar thing. Both talk about how the revolution is just a waste of time or is just a long road to change something that could have been changed in a faster way. The revolution is a big sacrifice that people have to make for the better being of others in the same rank. Someone participating in the revolution can waste his life trying to make his life better, but a single shot can get his life ended and his effort to change his life ruined. “Leaders of the rebel armies in Mexico City were unable or unwilling to conclude an agreement, and, in the coming months, war for power erupted between Carranza and Villa.”(Smitha). The revolution is a big ninety to ten chance that you will probably die and if you end up not dying, it is a big leap on their life.
In conclusion, the revolution is a dark road to death. It takes courage for someone to walk down that road, and especially walk out with your head up high. The revolution is and always will be a never ending cycle in which different classes use to advance in life. There will always be a poor class, a rich class, and the struggle for the poor class to go into the next level. This essay showed to you why a revolution doesn’t solve the problems.