Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité

There's no bread, let them eat cake

There's no end to what they'll take

Flaunt the fruits of noble birth

Wash the salt into the earth

- Peart/Lee/Lifeson (Rush), Bastille Day

Bastille Day masquerade ball, July 15, 2017

I find it curious that we celebrate other nations' holidays. Why is St Patrick's Day so popular in the U.S. and Canada when it was traditionally just a minor religious holiday in Ireland? Cinco de Mayo, the 5th of May, celebrates the Mexican army's defeat of the French at the Battle of Puebla (1862) against long odds. In the U.S., it has become a commercialized celebration of all things Mexican. Bastille Day, July 14, is celebrated in countries throughout the world. This one might be a little more understandable ... most modern Western systems of government are based on the ideals over which the French Revolution was fought. Still, it seems a little odd to me that last week we went to a French cheese tasting at our local market, and in the evening a Bastille Day masquerade ball hosted by the Alliance Française de Palmerston North.

French cheese tasting at our local market

The French refer to July 14 as la Fête nationale, but most everyone else calls it "Bastille Day". It is a celebration of the 1-year anniversary of the storming of the Bastille on 14 July 1789, a turning point in the French Revolution. The Bastille was a fortified prison, holding political prisoners and pretty much anyone else who pissed off the monarchy at the time. It also held weapons, powder, and ammunition. The people of Paris stormed the Bastille to gain access to the weapons, fearing that their representatives in government were under imminent threat of attack by the royal army and foreign mercenaries.

These home-made costumes were amazing.

As usual, Kari was our social coordinator. Always looking for unique cultural experiences, she had asked me a month or more ago if I was interested in going to the Alliance Française Bastille Day ball. I thought that was a great idea and suggested she invite some of our friends. Unfortunately, Bastille Day falls during the school winter break and most of our friends would be away. When we threw some feelers out, Holly was all over it. "How the f@*$ do you find all these things?" ... and so began our night out to the Bastille Day masquerade ball.

The entertainment consisted of a number of dancers and a singer who crooned a long list of French cafe songs. Somehow we ended up seated at the front table. More than once, I was dangerously close to catching a high-kick to the head or a dancer in my lap. Dinner was a multi-course meal, but it was really the company and laughter they engendered that were the most memorable parts of the evening. It was over too quickly, so we made plans to get tougher for dinner again later in the week. By that point, both our literal and figurative masks were long discarded.

Who are those masked women, anyway?

Holly and Matt are returning to the U.S. after living here in Palmy for the past three years. We sent Matt off in grand style with a tramp (Link: The Long Goodbye), and it was great to spend a night out with Holly and Corene, her temporary flat mate. Matt has returned to the U.S. already to get their son settled in to school there, and Holly has stayed behind until their daughter finishes school here. I see Holly in the ED as she works with people affected by domestic violence and substance abuse in our community. She is also Little H's gymnastics coach. Matt and Holly's daughter sits for LH when Kari and I need a grown-up night out. Holly and her family have become more than just friends; they have become a part of our family and we will miss them greatly when we all go our separate ways in a couple of months.

Corene, Holly, and a mysterious stranger.

The Siècle des lumières (Enlightenment) ideals that lead to the French Revolution were integral in shaping modern society. While the American Revolution (1765-1783) preceded the French Revolution (1789-1799) by 20+ years, it was the principles of scientific progress, religious tolerance, natural rights, and equality espoused by the English philosopher/physician John Locke, and French writers such as Rousseau and Voltaire, upon which the American founding fathers structured their new society. The French Revolution had far-reaching effects and influenced the global decline of absolute monarchies, leading to the establishment of republics and liberal democracies (Link: Liberal Democracy).

The French Revolution was triggered by the people's fear for their future and anger with the church and aristocracy. The people, the peasants and the bourgeoisie, saw those who were responsible to be much less affected by the suffering around them. In revolutionary France, the aristocracy and the Catholic Church didn't pay their share of taxes; it was the peasants and middle class who paid to support the structure of their society. While the "Third Estate" was the largest segment of society in terms of size and economic importance, their needs and concerns were largely ignored by the Ancien Régime.

Writing about the mood in America in 2014, James Spurgeon wrote:

The bulk of the population, the working class, is feeling as though it's paying more than its fair share and being asked to bear more and more of the burden while the wealthy get off and religious institutions are exempt.

When we return to the U.S. in a month, I certainly don't expect to see guillotines in the town square. I do, however, heed the warning of George Santayana who in The Life of Reason wrote "Those who cannot remember the past are doomed to repeat it."

Vive la France. Vive la liberté ...