I wrote the following journal entry a year ago. It seems just as relevant one year later. Alas. So I will simply run it again.
Happy Bastille Day.
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From 14 July 2024
Are humans naturally drawn to Authoritarianism? Or, rather, do people yearn to live free? For centuries, historians and philosophers have studied various peoples living under monarchs, dictators and thugs. Why do some people prefer "to just let Daddy take over"? In 2024, we still do not know this answer.
Throughout history, there have been moments of people standing up to overwhelming Authoritarianism. Most of these moments have been bloody, deadly, and have spawned unpredictable results. Ultimately, history will be the judge of whether these revolutionaries are labeled "Patriots" or "Criminals." Remember: the winners write the history.
On this day in 1789, an angry French mob stormed the Bastille in Paris. This Fourteenth Century fortress was being used to lock-up anyone the King chose—with or without good reason and, certainly, without legal recourse. Whatever the King ordered came to pass. Nearly 100 people died in the Bastille skirmish—only to free the seven low-level prisoners who were incarcerated at the time.
But (oftentimes) potent symbols become more powerful than actual results. And a symbol—like the Bastille—could be interpreted (and spun) to suit opposing sides. French King Louis XVI certainly viewed the Bastille attack as criminal and unpatriotic. The French People (even to this day) view the attack as an early step toward eliminating the monarchy and establishing the Rule of Law. Within three-and-a-half years, the King would be executed. Funnily enough, 15 years later, Napoleone di Buonaparte would change his Italian name to Napoleon Bonaparte and crown himself French Emperor. Once again, the French people were subject to the dominance of an all-powerful figurehead.
In American history, symbols can be viewed in multiple ways, too. The much-lauded Boston Tea Party is commonly viewed as a statement—an action—against unfair taxation. But the merchant property-owners who had previously paid for that very merchandise probably viewed the Tea Party as an act of criminal vandalism. To this day, events (small and large) are spun to suit the agenda of propagandists.
Today La Fête National (as Bastille Day is called in France) is the country's biggest patriotic celebration—like the Fourth of July is in America.
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Constitutions, though written in ink, still must be defended by those who care. This French pressed-glass inkwell was made in the 1890's. It was around for the French Constitutions of 1946 and 1958. (But not the French Constitutions of 1791, 1793, 1795, 1799, 1802, 1804, 1814 & 1815 (both "charters"), 1830, 1848, 1852, or 1870.)
The inkwell is handsome and nicely designed, including a little bowl in which one may store paper clips, and petal-like edging which will hold one's pens or pencils. Click on the photo above to learn more about it.
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