William Eaton

Limerick 57—à propos de Macron & the capitalist dance

In this case, an English version follows the original en français.

N.B.: A version of this limerick was first published in 2017. But, happening upon it in 2026, I, the author, found it horribly, embarrassingly bad. It has, thus, been quickly revised. May the future find this second version moins pénible (less painful). (Traduction : Une version de ce limerick a été publiée pour la première fois en 2017. Mais, lorsque il l’a redécouverte en 2026, l’auteur l’a trouvée mauvaise, honteuse. Elle a donc été rapidement révisée. Et puisse cette deuxième version s’avérer moins pénible à l’avenir.)

Dancer, hands up, and sort of hat to side, William Eaton, June 2017Since this was my first bilingual “limerick,” I thought to make a special place for it here. (The whole, still-growing series may be found at The Limericks, a pdf.)

Traduction : Puisque celui-ci est le premier des « limericks » pour lequel j’ai développé aussi une version française, je le publie ici indépendamment. Vous allez voir que le petit poème était inspiré par un des débats qui se passent maintenant (en 2017) en France.

Français

Il a un visage qui

Il y a un visage qui fait semblant d’être nouveau en France

Pendant que ses pieds reprennent la trop vieille danse.

Dans une démocratie : un pas – et très bien – pour toi,

Et puis – ou bien non? – un pas pour moi ?

Les autres doivent supporter des riches, et avec bienveillance ?

English

There is a face pretending

There is a face pretending to be new in France,

But his legs and others’—the capitalist war dance.

In a democracy could it not be

One step for you, one for me?

But no, the rich must wear bigger and bigger pants.


7.11.17

News: Debate begins in France over plans of the recently elected government of Emmanuel Macron (formerly an investment banker and business-friendly Minister of Economy, Industry and Digital Affairs) to “liberalize” labor laws. As Danièle Obono, the spokesperson of the more liberal (Left) La France insoumise party, put it on television, there’s nothing new about such plans: for decades the representatives of capital have been trying to dismantle the social contract established in France, as throughout much of Western Europe, in the wake of the Industrial Revolution. The goal remains constant: more for capital, less for everyone else. Mme Obono, who has also been elected to the Assemblée nationale, was speaking (truth to power) on the 19H Ruth Elkrief programme on BFM TV (10 July 2017).

I was reminded, too, as this limerick was coming to me, of Woody Guthrie’s Talking Union song, which touches on the courage, solidarity and hard work that, less than a century ago, first brought working people such treats as weekends and vacations.

For another way of reading the whole limerick collection to date, see the Montaigbakhtinian posts:

  • Part I (Pence, Trump, Mueller, Capitalism) covers May 16, 2017 until July 1
  • Part II (Injustice, Trump, Illness, Poetry): July 2 to August 12
  • Part III (Animals, Capitalism, the News, First Impressions): July 2 to September 3
  • Part IV (No nation on Earth has an interest in seeing this band of criminals): September 4 to . . . ?


— Limerick(s) and primitive drawing by William Eaton.

The entire limerick collection (almost entirely in English) appears in Light verse, light verse: Everything else is worse.

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