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by dvt 3114 days ago
> It is a patriotic military song about defending France from attackers. It's not fundamentally different from many other such verses in the anthems and patriotic texts of competing nations. The Quran contains similar wording when describing calls for Jihad to defend the fatherland.

Some real mental gymnastics going on there. I'm not sure what your point is: that nationalism is bad? That France isn't perfect? That anthems are bad? I don't get it.

One thing is clear, however: you fundamentally misunderstand the Casablanca La Marseillaise scene.
1 comments
unmole 3114 days ago
> that nationalism is bad?

Well, European style nationalism was the single most destructive force of the 20th century. So, bad is putting it mildly. La Marseillaise is an exhortation to form battalions, march on to war and to water the fields with the blood of the impure. It represents exactly the kind of militant nationalism that led to war in the first place.

Also, as someone from a country that was colonized and exploited by the British for centuries, I can't but help roll my eyes when the Allies are portrayed as the champions of freedom.

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jcranmer 3114 days ago
La Marseillaise is undeniably martial. It is not particularly nationalistic, however. It does not extol the virtues of France, it does not affirm territorial claims, it does not attack any other country directly or by allusion. All of these are fairly common in national anthems in the era. By contrast, the central theme here is basically "Fight! ... Because we're really screwed if you don't."

While I don't deny the issues with nationalism, nor that national anthems were a major tool of fomenting such nationalism, I think it improper to assert that La Marseillaise was a major contributing factor to that end.

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dvt 3113 days ago
Your viewpoint is myopic to say the least. I was also born in a country that was exploited for centuries by the Russians and the Austro-Hungarians (and before that the Romans and the Ottomans). But I can keep things in perspective and make the (pretty obvious) conclusion that yes, the Allies were champions of freedom.
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