Bastille: A History of a Symbol of Despotism and Freedom / Edition 1

by Hans-Jurgen Lusebrink

Overview

This book is both an analysis of the Bastille as cultural paradigm and a case study on the history of French political culture. It examines in particular the storming and subsequent fall of the Bastille in Paris on July 14, 1789, and how it came to represent the cornerstone of the French Revolution and serve as a symbol of the repression of the Old Regime. Lusebrink and Reichardt use this semiotic reading of the Bastille to reveal how historical symbols are generated; what these symbols' functions are in the collective memory of societies; and how they are used by social, political, and ideological groups.

To facilitate the symbolic nature of the investigation, their analysis of the evolving signification of the Bastille moves from the French Revolution to the nineteenth century to contemporary history. The narrative also shifts from France to other cultural arenas, like the modern European colonial sphere, where the overthrow of the Bastille acquired radical new signification in the 1940s and 1950s period of decolonization. This book demonstrates the potency of the interdisciplinary historical research that has characterized the end of this century, combining quantitative and qualitative approaches, and taking its methodological tools from history, sociology, linguistics, and cultural and literary studies.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	2900822318940
Publication date:	07/18/1997
Pages:	328
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 1.25(h) x 9.00(d)

About the Author

Hans-Jürgen Lüsebrink is chair of French Cultural Studies and Intercultural Communication at the Universität des Saarlandes, Germany. Rolf Reichardt is head of the scholarly reference department, Universität Mainz, Germany.

Table of Contents

Editors' Introduction vii

Preface xvii

Translator's Note xix

Introduction 1

Genesis of a Political Symbol: The Bastille, 1715-1789 6

The Storming of the Bastille: The Historical Event as a Collective Symbol Action 38

Revolutionary Symbolism under the Sign of the Bastille, 1789-1799: A Prime Example of the Self-Mystification of the French Revolution 79

Bastille Symbolism in Modern France: The Republican Legacy of the French Revolution 205

Final Remarks: On the Origin and Function of a Historical Symbol 241

Appendix: Reports on the Storming of the Bastille, 1789 247

Notes 251

Works Cited 287

Index 297

Editorial Reviews

Offers an analysis of the Bastille as cultural paradigm and a case study of the history of French political culture. Examines in particular the storming and subsequent fall of the Bastille in Paris on July 14, 1789, and how it came to represent the cornerstone of the French Revolution as a symbol of the repression of the Old Regime. Investigates how historical symbols are generated, the functions of such symbols in the collective memory of societies, and how they are used by social, political, and ideological groups. Discussion moves from the French revolution to the 19th century to contemporary history, and from France to other arenas. Includes b&w photos and illustrations. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or.

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