“The story of post-revolutionary America,” writes Rosemarie Zagarri, “is the story of how American women and men sought to define – and ultimately limit and restrict – expansive ideals they had deployed so successfully against Britain.” In this excerpt from Revolutionary Backlash, Zagarri describes the extreme radicalism of the American Revolution, while also suggesting that there were some limits to its extremism. Unlike the normal way of life of European government and society, Americans desired a nation where the inherent rights and freedoms of individuals were recognized and respected. Although these rights and freedoms were eventually achieved, many groups of people were still excluded. Women of all stripes, people of color, and poor men were often unable to enjoy and appreciate the rights and freedoms they found in America. Despite these limitations and restrictions, however, the American Revolution was still extremely radical in the sense that it succeeded in overcoming traditional European political and social ideology. The period of the Enlightenment can be credited with having an impact on the radicalism of the American Revolution. “During the eighteenth century, many educated Americans began to be influenced by the perspective of the European Enlightenment.” Enlightenment thinkers were particularly fond of rationalism and reasoning as the government of human life. John Locke, a philosopher and author of this period, raised in Two Treatises of Government the idea that the government and the governed should have mutual agreement. This agreement, known as Locke's “social contract,” stipulated that men must surrender to be governed and, in turn, the government would recognize men's natural rights. Life, liberty, and... middle of paper..., some women have been able to participate in politics and government issues like never before. People of color had the freedom and opportunity to form communities that likely would not have existed if not for the principles of the Revolution. The inherent rights and responsibilities of all men, women, people of color, and whites were finally recognized and respected, and the Revolution served as a starting point. Zagarri states, “The Revolution established universal ideals as the benchmark by which American society would subsequently judge the fairness and fairness of its policies.” These long-established ideals and this history of extreme change in how people view freedom are nothing short of radical. The successful way in which the Revolution overcame European political and social traditions can only be described as radical. The American Revolution, therefore, was radical.