"what does the conflict over the role of the third estate in the estates general tell us about the broad goals of the leaders of the third estate in the early years of the french revolution"

The conflict within the Third Estate over its role is a reflection of its membership and their own goals. Working-class people just wanted to escape grinding poverty and have a chance to thrive and survive, whereas the more middle-class members wanted to ascend into the ranks of the nobility by means of their material success. It leads to the work of the leaders of the revolutionary factions to "equalize" how society functioned by reigning in aristocratic privilege and making the overall governmental style more egalitarian so that all can interact and benefit from the actions of the government.