L’État, c’est moi

記事タイトルでは有名なフレーズをいじって使われることが多いですが、「ああ、これか」と思い付いたので取り上げます。こんなのを知らなくても記事の内容は理解できますのでご安心を

"Just remember: what you’re seeing and what you're reading is not what’s happening."というトランプ発言なんかも念頭にあるのかも知れませんが、The Truth, C’est Moiというタイトル。

The Truth, C’est Moi

48 hours in the Trump campaign against independent information.

By David Leonhardt Opinion Columnist Aug. 2, 2018

This is one of those weeks when President Trump’s campaign to discredit any independent source of information has been especially chilling.

It’s a classic tactic of autocrats. While he has not succeeded to anywhere near the degree that true autocrats in other countries have, his continuing attempts at disinformation are still deeply alarming.

He has persuaded large numbers of Americans to believe almost anything that he or his allies say, regardless of how disconnected from reality it is. 

C’est Moi(It's me）のような簡単なフランス語ならそのまま使われるのでしょう。気づくのが遅すぎでしたが、ふと「朕は国家なり」　のバリエーションだと分かりました（汗）

History.comのように詳しすぎず、分かりやすく教えてくれるサイトはありがたいですね。

LOUIS XIV

The reign of France’s Louis XIV (1638-1718), known as the Sun King, lasted for 72 years, longer than that of any other known European sovereign. In that time, he transformed the monarchy, ushered in a golden age of art and literature, presided over a dazzling royal court at Versailles, annexed key territories and established his country as the dominant European power. During the final decades of Louis XIV’s rule, France was weakened by several lengthy wars that drained its resources and the mass exodus of its Protestant population following the king’s revocation of the Edict of Nantes.

ここでは“L’État, c’est moi” (“I am the State”)とフランス語も一緒に書いてくれています。

LOUIS XIV ASSUMES CONTROL OF FRANCE

After Mazarin’s death in 1661, Louis XIV broke with tradition and astonished his court by declaring that he would rule without a chief minister. He viewed himself as the direct representative of God, endowed with a divine right to wield the absolute power of the monarchy. To illustrate his status, he chose the sun as his emblem and cultivated the image of an omniscient and infallible “Roi-Soleil” (“Sun King”) around whom the entire realm orbited. While some historians question the attribution, Louis is often remembered for the bold and infamous statement “L’État, c’est moi” (“I am the State”).

最近話題にのぼることがほとんどなくなってしまいましたが『英語で読む高校世界史』でも「朕は国家なり」は触れてくれています。ただ、こちらの方は英語のみでしたが、日本語ルビがあると助かります。

Pursue of French Absolute Monarchy

After Mazarin died, loui XIV's began to rule France. he declared the theory of divine right of kings（王権神授説）.He also invited the sovereign right and absolute power of the ruler of the universe. It is often said that he declared "The state, it's me.（朕は国家なり）". Thus his state is called absolute monarchy (absolutism（絶対主義）), but it does not mean the king had absolute power. He took definite mercantile policy by establishing bureaucracy and a full-time army and named Colbert（コルベール） as the treasury secretary, then challenged against Netherlands' hegemony of commerce. Louis XIV, called the "Sun King（太陽王）", built the gorgeous Versaille Pallace（ヴェルサイユ宮殿） to demonstrate his power and enjoyed a splendid palace life. Other countries followed suit, and French was used as the diplomatic language. Thus France became a center of European court culture.

この本は英語の表現が不自然だとか批判的な人がいましたが、日本語で習った歴史の用語が確認しやすいのでとても便利です。ぜひとも日本史バージョンも欲しいのですね。

 

L’État, c’est moiがバンドの曲名になるくらいなので短いフレーズならフランス語でもいいのでしょう。

脱線しますが、History.comの小ネタに以下の記述があります。

Did You Know?

At the Palace of Versailles, aristocrats were expected to compete for the privilege of watching Louis XIV wake up, eat meals and prepare for bed.

ルイ１４世の死という（ヘンテコな）映画があったのですが、そこでもそのような場面がありました。貴族にとっては光栄なこととされていたんですね。。。

こういう知識は後回しにしていいのですが、L’État, c’est moiというのが広く知られていると思われているから言葉遊びをする訳です。英語学習の次のステップとして意識してもいい分野ですね。