Jean Ferrat – Ma France

When I was a kid, I read a great children’s book about the life of a little girl who discovers she is a witch. And at one point in the story, her dad wakes her up during the night, takes her with him in his car, and begins to drive with no precise direction, just to drive, to talk, to enjoy the moment. I’ll always remember this scene. And during this car trip, he talks with her about the French national anthem, La Marseillaise, and how violent (and anachronic, in the XXIst century) its lyrics are. And he mentions this song, saying “this should be the new national anthem : this is the real France I like”.

It took me many many years before I actually listened to this song, but I’m glad I did. “Ma France”, published in 1969, is a vibrant and poetic tribute to our country, its landscapes, its people and its history. It’s also very marked on the far-left, which may surprise and shock those of you who are not familiar with French political history, and which gave him trouble with censorship : it was forbidden in the French TV (which was ruled by the state at the time) during two years.

A last remark : this song evokes many episodes of French history and many aspects of French political life at the time, so I will make very (very) long notes to explain you all of that, and it’s really useful to read these notes if you want to understand all the depth and power of this song and what it recalls for French listeners.

[More about Jean Ferrat]

Notes (sorry for the length haha !) :

1. When this song came out, it was the last few months of Charles De Gaulle‘s power. Even though he’s not directly addressed, listeners at the time assumed it was a critic against him. De Gaulle was accused to be an usurpator for the way he came to power in the late 50’s, his nearly authoritarian way to lead the country, and his bad image for young generations. Indeed, even though the figure of the Resistant is nearly unanimously respected, the politician is more criticized (especially by the communist party who was his main electoral rival), even though he’s also super respected as a politician, especially by the right. He’s considered a hero and one of the greatest French figures of the XXth century.
2. Maximilien de Robespierre is one of the main figures (and one of the most controversed ones) of the French revolution. He’s one of the most radical revolutionnaries, and after the king was overturned and the Republic was proclaimed, he belonged to the people who voted for the king’s death. At the time, the new regime was very fragile because not only they were threatened by the war with Prussia and Austria, but also on the inside, they had to face many counter-revolutionnaries. It may explain why when he became the leader of the regime, he slowly installed a real dictature called the Terror : all suspects were killed and didn’t have the right to a fair trial. By this manoeuvre he also destroyed nearly all of of his political ennemies (his former friends and allies). More than 15 000 people are said to have been beheaded during these few months. Then Robespierre was beheaded himself. He’s generally very impopular and a symbol of the excesses of the Revolution, but his reputation was also built by the next regimes who were very conservative and wanted to discredit the Revolution. That’s why it’s complicated to have a really complete idea of this character. So even though not many dare invoke him as an exemple, it’s not surprising to see Jean Ferrat praise him, because he’s kind of the ancester of alt-left. Robespierre was indeed nicknamed “the Incorruptible” (he always resisted to the forces of money) and everything that he did was said to be for the people and only for them (against their ennemies). And it’s also a provocation against the gaullist power.
3. Victor Hugo is probably the most famous and iconic French writer and artist of the XIXth century. But he also frequently used his art as a tribune for his ideas. His political course is very changing and typical of many artists of his time. Born during a monarchist time from a bonapartist father and a royalist mother, he began to be an ultraconservation royalist, then he began to criticize the monarchy’s authoritarianism and its politics, when he realised the extent of people’s misery in France, an issue he always cared about until the end of his life. Then he began to write against death sentence, against slavery, in favour of the freedom of the press, and became a republican. Then when another Revolution occured (the third one), in 1848, the Republic was proclaimed, and Hugo became representant, first in the conservatives and then more on the left. He wanted to fight against poverty and for a free education for children. But three years later, the President, Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte (Emperor Napoléon’s nephew !), made a state coup and became Emperor too (you didn’t know that, eh ! Did you ?) and installed an authoritarian regime again. Victor Hugo went in an island in exile until the very end of the regime, and fought endlessly against Napoléon III (nicknamed “the Small Napoleon” in comparison to his ancester that Hugo kind of admired) through his art, published abroad in the clandestinity. When Napoléon III abdicated after the defeat against Germany in 1870, the Republic was proclaimed again (and for good this time). And Victor Hugo came back, an old man already. He became a national hero, was very celebrated and kept fighting, until the end, for social justice. His funerals gave way to a national mourning and a state funeral even though he had asked modest funerals. The ceremony drained two million people in Paris, which is undoubtedly one of the largest crowds ever assembled in Paris.
4. In the XIXth century, with industrialisation, a lot of people worked in the mines in quite horrible conditions, including little kids, because their families were very poor, education was not obligatory, and there were no regulations on an age limit. Many public figures fought against these various injustices, including Victor Hugo himself of course (especially with his poem Melancholia about working children), but also the very famous (and socially engaged) writer Emile Zola, who wrote the book Germinal about the living conditions of miners. Finally laws were made and school became obligatory (and also free and laic) for kids in the 1880’s with the Ferry laws.
5. The French Commune was a revolutionnary episode of the French history that happened in Paris in 1871. In the context of the defeat against Germany and of the new regime that was pretty conservative, while Paris was often an insurrectionnal place, a bunch of people proclaimed it an independant city and made their own government. These people made some violent actions (they executed some people, for example two army generals). But the repression of this movement, during the “Bloody Week” (may 1871) was even worse : led by Adolphe Thiers (who was the chief of the state at the time) under the commandment of general Mac Mahon (who would later become President), the regular army is said to have killed at least 10 000 people. A lot of revolutionnaries, when captured, were executed without trial, and some others were exiled abroad (such as the anarchist Louise Michel, nickamed “the Red Virgin”). This movement was a bog inspiration for communists in Russia and their revolution in 1917.
6. Even though he’s in fact Spanish, Pablo Picasso spent the biggest part of his life and of his career in France. He was inspired by a lot of French artists and inspired them in return. He was the center of the French avant-garde in Paris in the first half of the XXth century. He’s also famous for his political commitment with the communists : he’s the one who drew doves to symbolize peace, at a moment when the USSR wanted to appear as a peaceful contry against the United States.
7. Paul Eluard was a very famous French poet around the same era as Picasso. He’s one of the most influencial members of the surrealist movement in the 1920’s. He was also close to the communist party like a lot of avant-garde artists at the time. During the German Occupation he went in the Resistance movement and wrote many poems in favor of freedom, justice and peace.
8. It is a tribute to the communist party and especially its main newspaper, L’Humanité, a very famous newspaper. Jean Ferrat mentions those who sell these newspaper and stick posters for the communist party.
9. This verse is a very complex where you have to know not only French history but also French expressions ! The imaged expression “voir trente-six chandelles” (= to see thirty-six candles) is used when someone is not in a really good state of consciousness, like if you are very very drunk or if you’ve just been hit on the head or something like that, and you’re slowly recovering from this but your vision and your mind is not very clear yet. But this mention of 36 and 68 candles goes beyond, it’s also a political stance. In 1936, the “Front Populaire” won the elections and created their government, directed by the socialist Léon Blum. They were the first real majority of the left (socialists, communists and radical united) to be elected with a real consistant program. They managed to set their differences apart in the context of the rise of fascism in Europe. They were the firsts to do real social laws for workers in France : for example it was the firts time that workers had the right to two weeks of holidays per year while still being payed. This electoral victory was celebrated by a general strike, which was followed by other social laws. Even though the Front Populaire didn’t last very long (less than a year actually), it’s still a very bright landmark in French collective memory. And in May 1968, there was a huge social contestation with also a general strike, demos, barricades… The movement lasted a month and nearly made De Gaulle leave power. It’s also seen as a quite memorable event in French recent history. So this sentence is a tribute to those who fought for more social rights in France.