Revolution
Instead of change, revolution is a more appropriate term for one of the major themes of this book. Of course, the main talking points, the American and the French Revolutions, were both revolution's, but a revolution is much more than simple change. In a revolution, one or multiple of the key values of society is at stake, and usually changes for the better. This is the case with the American Revolution, but the author argues that the French Revolution was not as successful. Saying it was simply a "disaster", Arendt wants to show that revolutionaries didn't always leave that much of an impact.
Liberty
Again, liberty is a more "profound" term to describe a theme of the book. Freedom is like liberty, but liberty is more like a newfound freedom in which you truly feel "free" and "liberated". In any sense, it is hard to explain, but the author continues to say how each country fought for liberty. She says that the Americans were more successful at getting liberty than their French counterparts, mainly because they were more dedicated. This, indeed, is a very controversial statement, but for sure one of the driving points and ideas of Arendt's work.
Immediate Gratification
The main point Arendt uses to criticize the French is that they only started a revolution to get immediate relief from their problems - that is, bread. The French lower classes were going hungry from ever-rising bread prices, so they stormed the elite and chopped their heads off. This isn't what you would typically think of when a sophisticated Frenchman or Frenchwoman comes to mind, but is indeed what happened. Arendt emphasizes the point that the Americans fought for true liberty, while the French only wanted relief from hunger.
