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Over the past two decades, la racaille has become les racailles. Ironically enough, while the phenomenon grew and numbers went exponential, the word left its uncountable shell to become fully countable. One should hold on to whatever seems reassuring.
Une racaille is a small street thug. Une petite frappe. Racailles are sociological delights. Fully identifiable. Just like small children, la racaille needs the entire panoply: ghetto accent, ghetto brands, ghetto accessories, ghetto references and ghetto aggressiveness.
While foreigners see these French thugs with nothing but amusement, Parisians are authentically scared of them. As the Parisian male has lost most of his gender’s attributes over the past three decades, all of the city’s testosterone seems to be held by les racailles.
Running into une racaille on the street thus leads to genuine moments of discomfort for the Parisian. Physical discomfort first. Most Parisian men have never been in a fight and fear la racaille’s verbal and physical brutality. Parisian women dread la racaille’s aggressive and disrespectful ways. Social discomfort also ensues: la racaille embodies France’s cultural and social collapses over the past decades. Best not to dig. La racaille hates and despises the Parisian. While most Parisians cannot fully resolve himself to hating and despising la racaille. Which makes la racaille hate and despise him even more. In the end, la racaille if full of misinformed angers. The Parisian is full of guilty angelism. All in all, lots of emptiness all around.
La racaille makes life in France less enjoyable. Parisians enjoy with parsimony outdoor public gatherings for “c’est plein de racailles“. Newly-formed adjective racailleux describes these high density environments. Areas like Les Champs-Elysées or Châtelet are being deserted by Parisians for they are just too racailleux.
A very limited array of adjectives apply to the word racaille. Young Parisian women disdainfully talk about “petite racaille“, or “petite racaille de merde“. Young Parisian men prefer to talk about “grosse racaille“. More fear. ”Fausse racaille” usually applies to white racailles. There is no being tough if you are white in France. Verlan words caille-ra or caille are also used by younger Parisians who listen to rap. Older Parisians vastly ignore the phenomenon. Depending on their upbringing and political beliefs, they will either talk about “des jeunes“, “des jeunes de banlieue“, ou “des loubards“.
While Parisians know better than to look a racaille in the eyes, they love to make fun of them in the discreet comfort of their little apartments. All Parisians have their own interpretation of ”l’accent racaille“. Sentences pronounced in that accent are usually sprinkled with misused verlan words and awkward ghetto-like gestures. Parisians with zero street cred at that point will start saying “zyva” (vas-y in verlan). Zyva was street 25 years ago. When talking in that accent, Parisians will usually bust a “9-3″ in there: 93 is France’s ghettoest département and Parisians are keen to let you know that they know that.
To crown the collapse of the French woman, many young women from la banlieue become “racaillettes” – just as easily distinguishable and aggressive as their homies and also walking in packs. La racaillisation of French youth is a rampant phenomenon. Direct consequence is the massive spread of a ghetto subculture characterized by a certain hatred of France, and a fascination for le rap, le foot et l’islam.
Parisian’s attitude towards les racailles explains the spread of the phenomenon as much as it announces the future of the country. Parisians are right in the end… they should practise that ghetto accent.
Useful tip: Regular French kids wearing brands like Lacoste or Tommy Hilfiger don’t do it to look like daddy; they do it to look more street.
Sound like a Parisian: “Non, c’était pourri, y avait plein de racailles, on est partis tôt.”
Tags: banlieue, ghetto, Paris, Parisian, racaille, rap, social, violence
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Ça c’est franchement bien écrit, surtout dans ce climat de discussion sur l’identité. Tout est bien vu, récapitulé sans tourner autour du pot, sarcasme a souhait…
Racaillettes! I had never heard that funny word before! A employer asap! Et oui, j’avoue, moi aussi je fuis Chatelet les Halles comme la peste, sauf pour une late séance ciné un dimanche soir…
Just a couple hours ago I was about to start hyperventilating when the metro broke down at St-Denis !
I kind of fear them because of their brutality but at the same time I am kind of sad because they do not have the same opportunities as the rest of the French Youth.
Anyways I always love your witty articles
Ignorance is bliss, I guess. I go to Chatelet-Les Halles frequently – I’m not scared of the place at all. Reminds me of Fulton Mall in Brooklyn. I’m a NY-er, of course we think we have a corner on the scary neighborhood market, but we don’t. I did find your comment on Parisian men losing the gender’s attributes absolutely hilarious – well put.
This dynamic plays out in NY as well, but perhaps it’s more pronounced in Paris, I don’t know.
“Regular French kids wearing brands like Lacoste or Tommy Hilfiger”
“Regular French Kids”? Are you sure Olivier?
I’d say Western Arrondissements Parisian Kids… Or from the 9-2
Interesting observation, but I actually dont hear often this word “racaille” ..only in the 16arr. ))) The “bo-bos” who I know rather use something like “quartier populaire plain de jeunes de banlieue” when refering to their accidental trip somewhere to St.Denis or some areas of 18-19 arr. )))
Jerome… Merci. Je ne peux pas faire que des articles bisounours, ca ne serait pas sérieux!
True true!
Nadia… Le bon côté, c’est qu’à Paris, on peut éviter ces coins-là. Ca n’est pas le cas partout!
Cynthia… Thank you very much. As per the “not having the same opportunities as the rest of French youth”, I fully disagree. Of course, things will be more difficult if you come from the hood and if your parents are poor and don’t speak French. But last time I checked, these kids still have free schools, free universities, free healthcare, free libraries… Many of their classmates do like the rest of us: wake up in the morning, work hard, and try to make it in life. The problem is not opportunities, it’s mentalities.
FN… I wouldn’t say people are scared to go to Chatelet. They just prefer not to go. You most likely won’t get mugged (it’s still central Paris), but the vibe is just not soft and smooth.
David…
Russian Liz… Ah! Yeah, bobos also like to refer to les jeunes de banlieue as “des talents”. Seems like being illeterate and aggressive is the key to get that prestigious bobo label. The bias in their perception comes from the fact that most of them left either mostly white and non violent province or wealthy Parisian arrondissements to come settle in the 10th or 11th. There is a social and ethnic mix of population in these areas, so they feel like they somewhat live in the hood and that they know la racaille. Truth is, they don’t live in the hood and they don’t interact with la racaille. Vacationing in Thailand or eating out in cool restaurants does not help, it’s true. Bobos are the epitomy of the French absence of courage and burning desire to deny reality: packs of violent, aggressive and/or disrespectful kids are not “des jeunes” or “des talents”. They are ill-educated little thugs and it’s not acceptable. Bobos love to be the accepting and tolerant ones. It is indeed easier to accept and tolerate things that do not affect you directly. (yeah – in case you didn’t notice, I’m not a huge fan of bobos!!)
haha this is so true. we don’t understand them and hate them but are still somehow compassionate
What a social dilemma. And interesting picture you’ve got there. Karcher eh?
Hey Olivier,
Nous sommes d’Atlanta et nous aimons ton blog. ‘Y a beaucoup de racailles ici aussie, sauf que nous les appellons “losers.” The comment about wearing Lacoste and/or Tommy Hilfiger etait parfait.
We’re definitely coming to your new Caves while in Paris for two weeks in December 2010. Looking forward to hopefully meeting you.
Well, I did learn something. Here the term is still “la racaille”.
Also learnt some not very nice things about the social attitudes of the person who pens this blog. Not that I like thugs, but I don’t like thugs with money any more than “les racailles”.
et voila:
http://www.vivelesracailles.com/
Not all French men fear la racaille… just a few weeks ago I saw an old man bust a petite racaille in the face with his umbrella on the 14 line. It was hilarious.
“They are ill-educated little thugs and it’s not acceptable.” I love that line!
Henry… Gotta love this Christian heritage!
Lil… Yeah, the Karcher picture is a reference to what Sarko said about “Nettoyer au Karcher”. Couldn’t find anything better: impossible to find good racailles pictures these days!
Rob… Merci merci! Yeah, heard parts of ATL were pretty ghetto!! Dec 2010… well that gives us some time
Lagatta… Not sure when I said I liked thugs with money?
Anait… Funny!! Thx!!
Melissa… Funny!! Yeah, older French men definitely have more testosterone than the ones under 35.
Amanda… Ha! Yep – I have a PhD in grandiloquence!
Non, c’était pourri, y avait plein de racailles, on est partis tôt.
Rhaaa du vécu !! Indeed, it was in Plaisir (close to Ikea…), an Anaïs concert. She wasn’t expected in this place (full of ‘tites cailles’, you now, the fake one who plays hardcore and do not have guts at the end) …that was BAD! She left the place because nobody was getting her jokes.
Olivier, I love your Blog so much.
By the I do have also a PhD both in grandiloquence and parisianism. Soon (heuu 3 years) I’ll get my phD in cancer….this one is not funny
I’m not going to touch this one. But thanks for correcting the spelling of “parsimony”.
“… As the Parisian male has lost most of his gender’s attributes over the past three decades, all of the city’s testosterone seems to be held by les racailles….” : hahaha !
What a good and fair sociological insight.
haha, this too funny and true. my parisian friends (all boys) think les racailles are “super cool” and like to impersonate them. the best part,my parisian friends hide behind me (an american girl) whenever a black person passes by! it seems la américaine is has more balls le parisien!!
Oreste… Wow! If I understood you correctly, all I can say is that all my kindest and most sincere thoughts accompany you during these difficult times. Thanks for your kind words. Trying to refresh Paris, one post at a time!
Barbra… Thank Peter, my official correcteur! As per not touching on this one… this is no fun, I was expecting heated debates, and people calling me names… you know, the French way! But no. Just had one derogatory comment. Depressing!
Delphine… Thx! Rugby players maybe?! Usually not Parisians but still look and act like men. (just trying to help here)
E… You got me thinking… Who on this planet has less balls than le Parisien? Will think about it and get back to you on that one (might take a while).
I will await your response, in that case!
à Olivier, non non non! OMG, I do not have Cancer. I’m doing a phD (for real) in the cancer field.
Nevertheless, I’ll keep your kind words as a boost for my studies (well science is like Le Musée D’orsay et Du Louvre..very frustrating, pas assez de temps pour tout voir – or like la station Chatelet-les Halles, un gros boxon où on se perd bien vite)
Reading this article made me think of the film, “Ne le dis à personne” (2006). “Les racailles” are portrayed as the good guys. The helpers with valor and loyalty. Granted, it’s only a film, but I’m guessing this has helped to bridge the gap a little, or perhaps make people like the subculture more? I live in Chicago in the U.S. and thanks to a few films, much of the world dreams of coming here to become a mobster.
Olivier: I agree with you on some points however you have probably never tried to rent an apartment while having a foreign accent or a foreign name. Unfortunately, discrimination exists :s
So as a cold Parisian in the verge of giving in to this winter’s fashion trend, I’m still waiting, eagerly, for a little something the doudoune Montcler! When is that for? Sometime before the temperature goes back up above 0, I should hope.
E… Been doing some thinking. I think Parisians are world champs. Ouch!
It is though a very good case study of turning an old brand around: ils sont forts ces Italiens!! Bon courage pour le froid!
Oreste… Oh good, thank God. Well, best of luck with your long fight against it nonetheless!!
Ingo… I’ve seen that movie but I don’t recall seeing any racaille in it. Racailles are pretty far from Al Capone (though they idolize Tony Montana). More racailles-based movies would be “La Haine”, “Ma 6T va crack-er” or “le cercle de la haine”. That being said though, the ghetto subculture is pretty popular in France (especially amongst young people). As an example, France is the second largest rap market in the world. But truly, there is not much to like in the racaille part of the ghetto subculture. Total regression.
Cynthia… I fully agree with you. Discrimination does exist and it does suck. Being of foreign descent should not lead to being dicriminated against. That being said, it should not either be a passport for a social carte blanche. Official France (read media + politicians) over the past three decades have accepted (not to say fostered) the unacceptable. To a point where the unacceptable has become the norm for many of these kids. And now France reaches a situation which would be explosive if it wasn’t for what I was discussing with E. above! This phenomenon finds its roots in a form of very French “mauvaise consicence” (vastly rooted itself in a misreading of recent French history) and a total inability to create the conditions of economic growth (French economy has pretty much sucked for 30 years, thus making it hard for lesser qualified kids to obtain jobs…). So France has a problem – clearly. Andrei Makine sums it up better than I would: « Il faudrait des mots clairs pour parler de l’immigration qui pour la première fois dans l’histoire de ce pays devient un échec, après tant de vagues intégrées par la France pour son plus grand bien. Dire que ces vagues, humaines se sont intégrées dans des conditions cent fois plus dures que celles que connaissent les immigrés d’aujourd’hui. Et que c’était peut-être la chance de ces Italiens, de ces Polonais, de ces Russes, de ces Arméniens, de ces Portugais et de tant d’autres, car, malgré la misère, ils avaient évité l’actuelle machine à transformer l’homme en parasite social, ils avaient échappé à cette broyeuse idéologique qui engloutit un être humain et recrache un assisté bouffi de ressentiment et de haine ».
Geraud… It is freaking cold! As per a post about la doudounde Moncler: thing is, I try to find things that could apply to a good majority of Parisians. Let’s say that this doudoune is more say… circumscribed sociologically
Olivier: about rugby players… hum ok! I’ll watch a rugby play for real, one of these days. I don’t quite understand the rules, though, but I have the impression they don’t fear encountering opponents. Strangely enough, football players seems to lake generally such ability (oh, méchante langue !).
About les racailles, my english is not fluent enough to express my opinions on the matter
I hope you’re excluded, Olivier!
If you want to see scum close up, go to any town centre in the UK on a Saturday night. We’ve cornered the market. French scum seem quaintly subdued and polite in comparison. Splendid young fellows, to a man!
Olivier
I 100% agree we French never faced the consequences of parking people, of asking people to come and work for us and never make integration possible – I believe it is and has nothing to do with religion.
I also think education is better than repression, still we missed the train for one or two generations, and this makes the caillera problem a tough one : betting on education and integration can pay in many years, still we have people left and generating trouble – 100 our fault.
About guts and testosterone, we are facing numerous problems intricated all together :
- we never tried to integrate those people who came to do what we’ll never accept as a job
- we keep on working with companies that “import” them
- we have to face our mistakes as a society
- we as individuals, esp. males, have been taught for years that we do not have to behave like bulls, rule the family etc. Do not misunderstand me : freeing women and enabling them to chose their life was more than important and certainly a great society fight in the 70s. But meantime, this exaggerated the male posture, the needs for a change in behavior, and formerly castrated most of us.
So yes blame us as a society for having no guts for integrating, for solving and facing problems. But blaming us as individuals and that we as individuals cannot face violence while we have been taught to behave so is a bit tough.
I know I cannot accept violence, cannot face it, fear it – maybe I should have played rugby – but I am afraid I am carrying it as a burden and wish and try to make things diferent…
Delphine… We all know what women who watch sports are into: that is men. And in that case, yes, for sure, you’re much better off watching rugby than football!
… might not be the best standard to compare yourself to!
E… Well, me too. But you know, the French scale for testosterone is a bit like the Italian scale for organization
Arch Stanton… Do you work for the UK Tourism Board?
Stephan… Thank you for getting into that discussion without dodging it. I disagree with most of what you’ve said but I’m happy to discuss it!
First, regarding your “parking people, asking people to come and work for us and never make integration possible”. This is indeed what many French people think – thus basically just repeating what French media have been saying for years. Which is I’m afraid very far from the truth. Not sure how cheap housing, free schools, free university, free healthcare qualify as “not making integration possible”. I’m not saying it’s going to be easy, but I’m saying it’s doable. And over the years, hundreds of thousands of Vietnamese, Eastern Europeans, Chinese or Pieds Noirs could testify of this fact.
Then as per immigration, most of immigration into France since the 80′s is not about France asking for people to come work here – at all (for the record – France’s unemployment rate has been between 9 and 12% for 30 years). Today, approximately half of legal immigration is regroupement familial. I’m not even speaking of illegal immigration. Truth is: France hasn’t been asking for people to come for at least 40 years (but we’ve accepted and coped with the phenomenon – at high financial and social cost). And that is when massive immigration has been happening – since the 70s. The myth of the immigrant who came to rebuild France is I’m afraid again vastly inexact. And, to be precise, France was “rebuilt” before massive Arab or African immigration, and mostly, of course, by French people (that again you never hear on TV for some reason). Interesting to that respect to read impartial and well-documented “Pour en finir avec la repentance coloniale” by Daniel Lefeuvre. I’m not here to judge immigration, which is always a hard and painful endeavor for people who emigrate. I’m just saying that if we want to solve problems, it’s good to start with a fair vision of reality.
Same goes for education. I’m all for education. Absolutely. But that also we’ve given up a lot on. The cultural level of French students (and therefore people in general) has plummeted since the war. Kids today have no clue about litterature, let alone spelling or history. Fourty years ago, French maitres-a-penser were Sartre, Bourdieu or Aron. Today, it’s Thuram, Diam’s and Djamel. So yeah, I’d love to believe we can turn things around but we’d better hurry up. Because both collective intelligence and courtesy are shrinking in France at a preoccupying rate.
Now, as per physical and verbal violence, well that’s one of the prices we’re paying for failing to look at reality and acting upon it. I fully agree with you regarding la féminisation des hommes. And de la société for that matter. But as both social and education system have failed over the past 30 years, we find ourselves with hords or brutal people all around. And we as individuals are of course not prepared for this. So we can continue and say that it’s our fault as French people, that these kids are victims and that we need to promote “education”. But by doing so, we’ll just continue the chain of habits and behaviours that has led to the mess France is in right now. I wish nothing but for France to live in prosperity and harmony. But I know for sure that it’s not going to happen if we keep pulling our pants down. Call me old school in my vision of harmony
Olivier, thanks for sharing your views.
I certainly have a biased judgement on that, just like anything in France that is based on beliefs instead of facts.
On that last point, it is like saying Jack Lang was a great Education Minister, or that BHL is a philosopher.
Let me continue…
I have a good friend who’s been actress and director in theater for more that 30 years. She told me about how we raised mediocrity, amateurism and bullshit to the highest level of creation and artistic behaviour.
Same for education – I was born in 78 – where the level, the program, and the means to reach society “official” goal to raise kids and make citizens out of them has been sadly turned into making good sheeps…
I am rather left wing than right wing, rather de Gaulle than Mitterand, Rocard rather than Chirac, never been Sarko, but to be fair, I feel that those year where Mitterand was in place were, in terms of symbols, very strong, but also the worst for education, arts, etc.
We forgat that our laic society has values that have to be respected, and also has to make things possible for all of us.
I know this is a dream, a lie…
Still, on one point I disagree. We french created the ghetthos by not listening to le Corbusier, by not understanding his Cité Joyeuse and making a monster out of it : les cités, a place where happiness, mixity, stores and habitations do not co-exist.
Even if people came from “regroupement familial” they arrived in those ugly places…
Well I am afrzaid we could discuss this for years
http://www.winerendezvous.com/?p=93
word.
I’m glad Olivier shares my opinion on those racailles, those ppl are just illiterate and full of hatred. When they, for instance, complain on colonization, they NEVER seem to be bothered by the fact that arabs have been colonizing northern africa for centuries and that their ancestors were the biggest slave owners of all times… http://bombistan.blogspot.com/2010/01/la-v-sur-l-esclavagiste-envoy-par-ben.html. They are just damn STUPID! Zero excuse!
The list goes on, I gave interesting links, now LEARN!!!
Stephan… Well, I guess our responsibility is just not to hide and pretend like things are fine or will be. We have some massive problems with these kids and need to be much less lenient than we currently are. Same goes with education. The culture of BS and PC is extremely damageing for France. If we want these kids to respect France or its people, we need to start acting like real men (and I’m not talking physically here). It’s our generation’s duty to end this trend of bien pensance. But I must say I’m not super hopeful when I see French kids my age. They are the heirs to la bien-pensance. Des tout, tout, tout petits princes.
Hoodrat… I grew up in Compton, what can I say?
Aeros… Well, talking about breaking the chains of BS and PC…Thanks for your independance d’esprit. Keep it up! Interesting link BTW.
Olivier, are you on twitter?
Oliver
Bien pensance and pensée unique will kill us…
Stéphan
Aeros… I’m afraid my life is not quite fascinating enough!
Stephan… Resistance!
yes… tough to sound like an old ‘reac’ or someone not convinced by bien pensance, while you are sure this is the way to progress and tolerance…
yes, resistance !
La racaille… what a joke. I’m a frenchman who grew up all over Southern California, but has been back to France to live for a short period several times in the past decade. Let me tell you, France is such a safe country compared to where I now live, Long Beach, or for that matter most places in the US! The only reason that “la racaille” are a menace to people now is because the French have been running away from les arabes et les noirs for the past thirty years. If you keep treating a group of people like thugs, they will in turn identify with the image you keep giving them! When I walk around in France (I’m half French, half Lebanese “Not a muslim, so don’t panic!”) without a collared shirt and tight pants, say in my everyday wear out in the LBC (I’m 27, rockin a ponytail, loosefitting jeans and a t-shirt) old woman cross to the other side of the street and clutch their handbags when passing me! And I make 70k a year as a food broker… une vrai racaille!!! As for the emasculation of French males, I agree. I’m French at heart, yet how the men there run for fear from a 120lb soaking wet little arab guy in a sideways lacoste hats always cracks me up. I lived in Marseille for 6 months in 2008 and in Paris for 8 months in 2004, I weigh 145 and I’m 5 ft. 8 and I never had worries. I even procured some of my much needed California medicine (that lovely herb) from some of the cités in both cities, never felt any fear. When you cross a racaille, look him in the eye and don’t show fear and they will leave you alone. Not like in Southern Cali, where if a thug stares you down you look at the ground. Blogs like this only perpetuate the climate of fear that Parisians currently live in. Fuck the racaille, just ignore them and walk right by them next time your at Chatelet and you’ll survive, I swear. If they really stress you, at least be happy you won’t end up shot like in the USA.
it would also help to have the french police grow some balls… They’re half the reason for the racaille feeling so empowered. Try telling the LAPD there are neighborhoods in the city they can’t enter. They’d be there the next day with grenade launchers, burning the residents cars for fun!
Stephan… What’s funny is that everybody agrees that PC and bien-pensance are bad. Yet most people are outraged when you speak or think outside this narrow path.
Gregoire… French men all need to start acting like real men – be they police, politicians, journalists, teachers, or your average Joe. That I agree with. Yet where you and I disagree is that I don’t think it’s acceptable to let little thugs impose their tribal and backwards vibe. A civilized modern society (as in one where you don’t get shot on the streets for no reason) doesn’t work according to the same principles as the ones that prevail in the jungle. In a civilized modern society, the police guarantee your safety – not your membership to a gym or your willingness to look someone in the eyes or not. The question is not to be scared of les racailles or not. It’s to decide as a society what is acceptable or not. Where you draw the line. France has virtually given up on even having a line on these subject matters. So mechanically, things just deteriorate. My point is: I just don’t think that “ignore them, walk by them and you’ll survive” is a constructive way forward as a society. Because that is called la loi de la jungle. If you don’t like it in America, there should be no reason for you to encourage it in France.
@olivier Do u come to London sometimes? send me a mail if u do?
so true… see how the climategate is treated in France… or even my fellow citizen Georges Frèche (ok ok he is going far most of the time)…
Aeros… Not enough. But ok – 2010 resolution!
Stephan… Politicians and journalists are so deeply into this self-destructive non-sense that even if -for instance- Frèche gets elected with a vast majority (meaning people don’t care – and possibly kind of like his spontaneous and gaulois ways), they won’t even consider amending their approach to this sort of things. These people are intellectually comatose. Not sure what that says about people who watch their news or vote for them!
Cher Olivier,
Il est triste que quelqu’un qui écrive si bien ne se sente pas plus de responsabilité quant au contenu de ce qu’il se propose de faire entendre.
L’ennui, justement, c’est qu’il le fera toujours avec esprit.
Le XVIIIème siècle français vieillissant avait élevé au rang d’art le “sarcasme” littéraire. Clouer au pilori les petites facilités, les ridicules des contemporains, les poncifs à la mode, n’épargner rien, parfois en profitant de l’occasion pour de légers règlements de comptes, l’effet était, est toujours, souvent délectable. Pourtant, telle mémorialiste est éblouissante de drôlerie et de finesse lorsqu’elle rapporte les travers des membres de la Cour de Louis XV et de Louis XVI, qui ne voit dans la Révolution rien d’autre qu’un désordre sans aucun sens.
Que l’on traite à l’emporte-pièce le Parisien, voire le Bo-bo (quoique pour moi cette catégorie soit le fantasme par excellence de ces dernières années – croisez une telle absence de réflexion et une telle rigueur à respecter le diktat de l’ouverture d’esprit, il ne vous reste rien, ou plutôt personne), passe. Il ne s’agit après tout que de types que tu as choisis, construits, et que tu t’emploies à définir chaque jour un peu plus avant, en te moquant gentiment de leurs prétentions de toutes natures.
Mais à côté des types et des billets d’humeur, il y a des phénomènes sociaux. Il y a les angoisses irraisonnées, les projections grossières, et oui, la violence, la crise d’un certain modèle d’intégration, la perte de repères. Dénoncer les premières, voir ce que cela révèle sur celui qui a peur, si montrer la distance à la réalité qu’elles impliquent semble délicat, c’est intelligent. Les défendre et les présenter comme avérées à tout point de vue, jouer de connivence avec les pires penchants des citadins imbus de leur sûreté, c’est inconvenant.
Je m’en voudrais de te conseiller de limiter l’application de ton humour à des sujets “sucrés” et pas trop exposés ; je me permettrai de t’engager à prendre la mesure de la rigueur dont doit faire preuve celui qui écrit, l’auteur, lorsqu’il s’empare du fait social.
Je te félicite pour ton contrat d’édition.
Lionel…. Ah… La police de l’esprit… Qu’elle vienne me tancer ici devrait j’imagine m’honorer. Que les grands décreteurs de l’intelligent et de l’inconvenant viennent se pencher sur mon petit cas du haut de leur grande humanité et de leurs immenses humanités devrait me valoir un certain frisson de fierté.
Ça n’est pas le cas.
Je n’ai pas pour habitude d’attendre les validations des chagrins et autres petits policiers de l’esprit pour faire ou dire ce qui me semble juste. A l’évidence, ma lecture du problème évoqué ici ne t’aura pas semblé juste.
Dans un élan infiniment français, tu as la gentillesse de venir me recadrer et bien redire a chacun la façon juste de penser. La façon éclairée. Alors quoi? Un merci? Un grand merci? En mon nom et au nom de ceux qui lisent ce blog?
Ton injonction a me limiter “aux sujets sucrés” m’interpelle. J’hésite a la trouver nauséabonde ou simplement comique. J’apprécie en tout cas que tu me laisses le droit, malgré mon écart, de m’exprimer encore. Mon avocat a ce petit procès essaierait sans doute de creuser comment mes analyses de justes pour le sucré puissent soudainement devenir inintelligentes et inconvenantes pour le salé. Malheureux tour de passe-passe. Mais je l’en dissuaderais. Face aux policiers de la bien-pensance, l’argumentation est une vaine mascarade. Ils détiennent tout a la fois la vérité, la solution, la culture, l’intelligence et – a l’évidence – le courage. Le courage de dénoncer les vrais problèmes: tu le dis mieux que moi. Je te cite: “jouer de connivence avec les pires penchants des citadins imbus de leur sûreté”.
Alors oui, merci Lionel, de pointer du doigt les vrais problèmes, les vrais périls, les vraies menaces. Ton courage et la finesse de ton jugement t’honorent.
Merci de tes remontrances, j’en avais bien besoin. Comme tous ceux sans doute qui ont vu du juste dans cet article. Au nom de notre engluement intellectuel pourfendu, je te rends grâce. Je repars plein de confiance pour mon pays et pour sa police de l’esprit.
Je peux dormir tranquille – les gens intelligents veillent.
Je serai sage maintenant.
hey Olivier,
The article was, one more time, excellent.
So true that parisian men and women are afraid of people des banlieues. And that they perceive their coming in Paris intra-muros as an invasion. (the famous intra vs. outer muros cold war)
Though I do go sometimes at Les Halles ( the cool foreign stores always open their first store there), it’s true that you don’t feel very well at ease, especially as walking in the streets around Les Halles I have encountered many guys who were passed out, and for some of them pretty verbally aggressive (strange enough: those guys were not the traditional racaille you describe). The thing is: and I speak for women, parisian women don’t like to go in places where it’s racailleux because they don’t like to be checked out and said “Mademoiselle, t’es très charmante” (vécu), what they perceive as an agression (in French culture being within the 1.2m perimeter circle when first meeting someone is considered rude) and feel like sluts, which as you have so well said in one of your previous post: is a disgrace. Most importantly, as French men are such pussies, who will help them and come to their rescue if attacked? That would explain their fear.
What I would underline though is that there’s a certain contradiction there: as so many hipster parisians go shopping in one of the nearest areas around les Halles: rue Etienne Marcel.
Forgot to mention: about the Moncler.
yeah, it’s pretty confined to certain arrondissements, compared to Italy, the doudoune phenomena is pretty much non existent in Paris.
In Milan, I’ve seen all winter long people wearing bright colours padded coats: and I’m talking of bright and extra shiny purple! Felt strange as for parisians there’s only 4 colours: black, beige, dark brown and grey.
But trying to learn to use more colours in my everyday wear at the contact of Italians! They’re really good at it!
So, I think that the conventional wear of parisians may be a better subject.
Capucine… Racailles don’t explore, they hang. When they hang at Les Halles, they would never venture out to Etienne Marcel (not even speaking of going into Pompidou). What’s interesting though about the Parisian is that even though he can tell his situation overall is deteriorating (less jobs, outrageous rents, expensive cost of living, more and more aggressive people on the streets…), he keeps on voting for the same people. Social issues seems to be the only field where Parisians are happy to be unreasonably optimistic. Everything else is or will be shit. Except for the racailles situation – that is not really an issue.