Venture into the chat rooms of French cyberspace or onto the streets of Paris, and the impression this summer is of a country on the brink of totalitarian rule or civil collapse, or both
”. Michèle Rivasi, a Green politician, called it “apartheid”. Protesters clutched placards with slogans such as “False pandemic, real dictatorship” and “Pass Nazitaire”, or photos of Mr Macron with a Hitler-style moustache. A few wore yellow stars on which was written “non-vaccinated”, eliciting widespread indignation. Joseph Szwarc, a 94-year-old Holocaust survivor, called the comparison “odious” and said he shed tears at the sight: “I wore the yellow star; I know what it was.
Why is France so often convinced it is on the brink, and so prone to rhetorical hysteria? The country’s disjointed and rebellious history is one answer. “Are we in 1789?” is still a periodic headline in the press. And indeed, the prospect of disorder is not wholly fanciful. A culture of mass protest is deeper-rooted in France than in any other European country, and reasoned debate often gives way to factional theatrics and sabotage.
Inflating fears of violence or totalitarianism may also suit some politicians. Many a French election campaign has been won on the promise of calm after chaos. Over four-fifths of the French say that feelings of “insecurity” will influence their vote at the presidential election next year, even though violent crime has been falling for years and the murder rate is stable. Some 200,000 people grabbed headlines on August 7th by marching against the new health rules.
This article appeared in the Europe section of the print edition under the headline "1789 and all that"
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