Enjoy: French Intellectuals on Violence
This transcription is sketchy at best. I could not hear everything, and some of what I heard was not understandable. But the parts I did understand were worth noting and passing on to others who may not have had the pleasure of seeing this TV show when it first aired several months ago.
The discussion is about violence in French society, especially juvenile violence, in view of a recent school stabbing that is discussed mid-point in the 5-minute Daily Motion video. The speakers include a historian, an artist, a psychologist, and at least one young man who seems to be of foreign origin. The others all appear to be Europeans, but I really can't be certain of their origins.
We should remember that the video is pieced together from a longer version. Therefore, it may not be a totally accurate representation of the discussion. But it was so funny, I couldn't resist:
Moderator: Welcome. We're going to talk about the increase in crime in French society. Especially juvenile crime. Is French society becoming more and more violent, or are we becoming less tolerant of violence?
First speaker: I travel a lot, and I would say that compared to countries like Mexico, countries of South America, or South Africa, you can't say that violence in France is on the rise...
Second speaker (a female, later identified as historian Anne-Claude Ambroise-Rendu): In general, from ancient times onward, there has been a steady decline in violence, but at the same time there is an increase in the demand for security...
Third speaker (identified as writer Antoine Bello): French society is less violent than in the past, I agree with my colleagues on that. Compared to past eras, such as the Middle Ages, the French Revolution, the Commune [...] French society is much less violent.
Fourth speaker (later identified as artist Ivan de Montbrison): I agree with the others that French society is less violent, compared to Pakistan...
At this point the video cuts to a report on a stabbing in a middle school. A female teacher was stabbed by a disgruntled student angered because he was being punished for not handing in his homework. The teacher was alone in the classroom. The 13-year-old came in and took out a knife, threatened to kill her, and stabbed her above the left breast, causing an internal hemorrhage. The student is not what one would call a problem child (according to the reporter). The teacher recovered from her wound. The round-table debate continued with this incident as its focal point:
First speaker (his words are not clear): This student who stabbed his teacher... It happens to everybody. There are even writers who condone killing one's father...
Second speaker (artist Ivan de Montbrison): I think the kid who stabbed his teacher identified with his knife as a phallic symbol... that's my opinion. It's completely normal. Why did he actually do the deed? Because he was in a situation that pushed him into doing the deed.
Third speaker (a man with a long white beard, apparently some kind of "psychologist"): Well, here too, there was a desire to be heard. I think that often violence is a means of expression more than an action. Often violence is a sign of suffering. I think probably there was real suffering in this young man, a malaise, and he really didn't think about what he was doing. He was depressed...
Note: there was quite a malaise in the teacher too, after being stabbed in the breast.
Fourth speaker (artist Ivan de Montbrison): The only violence I see is in our dear President who expresses verbal violence on a daily basis. It's completely disproportionate to focus on one person, or on this young man. It was a psychological phenomenon that pushed him into stabbing his teacher. It was a sort of confession [?] a need to purge himself through his weapon... But it's completely disproportionate...
Fifth speaker (a young man with a short dark beard): Rehabilitation is called for if it's possible. I think violence is necessary. When I raise my voice it's because I have something to say. Violence is part of life. When you're oppressed, it is necessary... It can happen during a war, during a strike... [Here he is noisily iterrupted by the first speaker who insists that a strike is not violent, but a purification, a kind of spiritual experience. The young man pursues his notion that violence happens all the time.] If you've stopped working there is a conflict with your boss. It's life, if you live in society there is always the risk of violence. Birth is violent. Certain sectors of society have institutionalized violence: the school system, the police, the army, etc...
Note: The above is only a portion of what he said. He spoke rapidly and did a fair amount of repeating. His notion that there is always some risk of violence is not wrong, but the question is whether or not violence in French society today has been encouraged by laxness, permissiveness, political policies, and other social pathologies that could have easily been prevented.
Sixth speaker (historian Anne-Claude Ambroise-Rendu): The idea of zero tolerance for minor crimes ["delinquance"] is an absurdity. Everyone knows there is no such thing. Minor crimes are a sign of a healthy society.
Seventh speaker (writer Antoine Bello): We're lucky in Europe. There is not a lot of violence.
The reactions by Daily Motion viewers are for the most part incredulous:
- No. LOL. Is this possible? Did this really happen on TV? Are they really sincere? I must be dreaming, having a nightmare, I mean... How can anyone say such idiocies on TV? Before, someone said: "Soon we will be justifying killers, muggers, we'll excuse them and help them more than the victims." Well, it's a done deal! We are lower than dirt. France is a rotten country thanks to people like these. Venerate them! They are quite simply extraordinary...
- Hell, I'm having hallucinations... How can so many idiocies come out of one TV show?
Enjoy the video. Even if you don't know French, watching the faces of these experts will make your day.
Violence en France ? Pas pire qu'au Pakistan
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