Question about Robespierre and The Terror

[fromrequired.livejournal.com]

 I don't have much knowledge about the French Revolution (as you can tell by looking at my userpic, I'm more of a WWII fangirl) but I'm greatly interested in it. 

So in my AP Euro History class, we had to watch this documentary about the French Revolution. I'll post a part of it below:

I'm sort of lost because I thought Robespierre originally was for the rights of the poor and the ordinary people? It doesn't seem plausible to me that he can just turn into a sanguinary dictator overnight. Even in my textbook it says that Robespierre killed everyone whom he deemed unfit for his "Republic of Virtue," but history is never that simple. I know, I study WWII ;)

Anyways, can y'all people enlighten me about the cause of The Terror and Robespierre's role in it? Sorry if I'm asking too many questions.


EDIT: Here's the part that succeeds it. It basically describes the fall of Robespierre and says he inspired later dictatorships and revolutions. 

Comments

[fromrequired.livejournal.com]

Your English is quite good!

I haven't read any of his works yet, and by the sounds of it, I don't think I want to.
As for the forbidden documentary, I got curious and watched the first 2 minutes of it on Youtube; I think I'm traumatized for the rest of my life. I don't know much about the French Revolution, but it's a common sense that there were no emos during the 18th century (referring to the guy with the emo hair; think he might be Robespierre's secretary or something?).

But yeah, I probably shouldn't have watched it...

[gwynplainee.livejournal.com]

Oh, seriously? Thanks! :3 but it take to me forever to write a comment: I translate some words, revise the conjugation of some verbs and reread it ten times before post it.
And the emo guy supposedly is... Saint-Just! ;___; He was a very prominent revolutionary like Robespierre, but this documentary make you think that he was Robespierre's valet. That is how they are destroying him.
There is an essay (http://community.livejournal.com/revolution_fr/88673.html) here about this. I found this community googling for something like it.

[fromrequired.livejournal.com]

You're welcome! And I also preview my comments before I post them, as I tend to make the stupidest grammar and spelling mistakes. Haha, you're not alone.

But how does one go from this: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/59/Saint_Just.jpg/200px-Saint_Just.jpg to this: http://content2.myyearbook.com/zenhex/images/quiz47/231395/231395_res1_sexy.jpg
? I don't know much about this Saint-Just person, but if he was a prominent Revolutionary, I doubt that he would have acted like Robespierre's valet... Thank you for the link, by the way!

[gwynplainee.livejournal.com]

That's a very big difference ._. my theory is that they though that was cheaper to make him an emo hairstyle >.>
Or maybe... *inserts a paranoid theory here*

[fromrequired.livejournal.com]

I have nothing against "emo" people per se (heck, I myself used to dabble in the "scene" subculture when I was younger D:), but seeing a French revolutionary depicted with the hairstyle of my douche ex-boyfriend from 9th grade is cringeworthy. Not to mention that the actor playing Robespierre doesn't resemble him at all.

Or maybe... they're trying to depict Saint-Just as a pissed-off teenager in a deliberate attempt to discredit him. I don't know. Either way, the documentary sucks.