La Marseillaise: A fun and bloodthirsty anthem
A couple of weeks ago I had "La Marseillaise" stuck in my ear big-time. I don't even know why--maybe the famous scene from Casablanca flashed through my mind, maybe I was just in the mood for something catchy and upbeat, or maybe the Charlie Hebdo attack was on the back of my mind.
It's always irritating when I'm afflicted with an earworm and can't sing it out, so I learned the words to the song. And I'm like, good Lord this is violent! I had known about the parts in the refrain singing of the blood of enemies watering the fields and so on, but I hadn't known the words to the verses and was all o_O over how belligerent the lyrics were. This is fitting, given that it's a war song at heart, composed and sung against the background of France's war with Austria. Its original title, after all, was Chant de guerre pour l'Armée du Rhin (War Song for the Army of the Rhine, best as I can tell).
Don't get me wrong, I like the lyrics and how revealing they are of the mindset of the day. It speaks to me on a primal level, that we are under attack and the enemy is Evil and we, the Good, must defend ourselves and our freedom at all costs. The match between lyrics and tune is masterful, and there's a great bit in the refrain where the exhortation progresses from Marchez, marchez (can I translate that as "March y'all, march y'all?" Because I think it's most accurate) to Marchons, marchons ("Let's march, let's march"). This progression loops the singers/hearers into being participants, not just onlookers. Ah, it's a song to get the blood boiling.
Maybe I like it because it's so different from the gentle and politically correct twentieth-century anthems, the ones that go "My country is so wonderful, it puts you to sleep!" Korea's "The Patriotic Hymn" or the U.S. patriotic song "America the Beautiful" come to mind. It's instructive to compare the latter to the "Star-Spangled Banner," the official U.S. anthem and also a war song of similar vintage as La Mars--though not nearly as effective, I'd argue.
That pleasure in hearing and singing along to "La Marseillaise," of course, doesn't mean I'm unaware of how problematic it can be. There's an understandably little-performed last verse to the song, originally sung by children, that talks about how the kids yearn to fight for the Republic and follow the elder patriots to their graves. Even if we leave aside that bit of cringe-inducing propaganda, it's easy to see how the us-versus-them rhetoric of the lyrics of can be misused, with their emotional effect amplified by the catchy music. (Speaking of which, some of the comments to these videos are horrible and Islamophobic.)
To me "La Marseillaise" can even read as a cynical testament to the nature of the nation-state: When push comes to shove it wants your blood to defend itself with, and it would prefer that you go willingly to the sacrifice singing a jaunty tune. Whether that's a fair exchange for the protection and order provided by a state is a matter of valid debate, and I don't deny the beauty and the meaning in fighting for a common cause. I thrill to that sense of community, and yet a part of me will always question. Problems and all, at the end of the day it's a fine, fun tune.
Favorite version: Mireille Mathieu's legendary performance before the Eiffel Tower. I think she brings the spirit of the song out perfectly, and my God what a voice.
Most adorable version: Tiny girl singing about enemies coming to slit the throats of women and children without the slightest idea what she's singing. I am a Bad Person for getting such a kick out of that fact.
Dreamwidth entry URL: http://ljlee.dreamwidth.org/62283.html
Click to viewIt's always irritating when I'm afflicted with an earworm and can't sing it out, so I learned the words to the song. And I'm like, good Lord this is violent! I had known about the parts in the refrain singing of the blood of enemies watering the fields and so on, but I hadn't known the words to the verses and was all o_O over how belligerent the lyrics were. This is fitting, given that it's a war song at heart, composed and sung against the background of France's war with Austria. Its original title, after all, was Chant de guerre pour l'Armée du Rhin (War Song for the Army of the Rhine, best as I can tell).
Don't get me wrong, I like the lyrics and how revealing they are of the mindset of the day. It speaks to me on a primal level, that we are under attack and the enemy is Evil and we, the Good, must defend ourselves and our freedom at all costs. The match between lyrics and tune is masterful, and there's a great bit in the refrain where the exhortation progresses from Marchez, marchez (can I translate that as "March y'all, march y'all?" Because I think it's most accurate) to Marchons, marchons ("Let's march, let's march"). This progression loops the singers/hearers into being participants, not just onlookers. Ah, it's a song to get the blood boiling.
Maybe I like it because it's so different from the gentle and politically correct twentieth-century anthems, the ones that go "My country is so wonderful, it puts you to sleep!" Korea's "The Patriotic Hymn" or the U.S. patriotic song "America the Beautiful" come to mind. It's instructive to compare the latter to the "Star-Spangled Banner," the official U.S. anthem and also a war song of similar vintage as La Mars--though not nearly as effective, I'd argue.
That pleasure in hearing and singing along to "La Marseillaise," of course, doesn't mean I'm unaware of how problematic it can be. There's an understandably little-performed last verse to the song, originally sung by children, that talks about how the kids yearn to fight for the Republic and follow the elder patriots to their graves. Even if we leave aside that bit of cringe-inducing propaganda, it's easy to see how the us-versus-them rhetoric of the lyrics of can be misused, with their emotional effect amplified by the catchy music. (Speaking of which, some of the comments to these videos are horrible and Islamophobic.)
To me "La Marseillaise" can even read as a cynical testament to the nature of the nation-state: When push comes to shove it wants your blood to defend itself with, and it would prefer that you go willingly to the sacrifice singing a jaunty tune. Whether that's a fair exchange for the protection and order provided by a state is a matter of valid debate, and I don't deny the beauty and the meaning in fighting for a common cause. I thrill to that sense of community, and yet a part of me will always question. Problems and all, at the end of the day it's a fine, fun tune.
Favorite version: Mireille Mathieu's legendary performance before the Eiffel Tower. I think she brings the spirit of the song out perfectly, and my God what a voice.
Most adorable version: Tiny girl singing about enemies coming to slit the throats of women and children without the slightest idea what she's singing. I am a Bad Person for getting such a kick out of that fact.
Dreamwidth entry URL: http://ljlee.dreamwidth.org/62283.html