Visual History and Informal Politicisation in the Nineteenth Century: The Example of Political Iconoclasm (France, 1814–1871)
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Emmanuel Fureix [1]
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[1] University of Paris-Est-Créteil
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- Localización: Popular Agency and Politicisation in Nineteenth-Century Europe: Beyond the Vote / Oriol Luján Feliu (ed. lit.), Diego Palacios Cerezales (ed. lit.), 2023, ISBN 978-3-031-13519-4, págs. 37-53
- Idioma: inglés
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Resumen
This chapter analyses nineteenth-century iconoclasm in France. The nineteenth century is a fascinating, matrix-like observatory of the conflicts caused by certain visual signs, distinct from the traditional religious quarrel of images. Iconoclasm was deployed in fluid conjunctures—revolutions, restorations and political crises—during which sovereignty appeared to be up for grabs. It was very political. Tearing off a cockade, destroying a flag, knocking down a statue, slashing a painting: these acts grew much more frequent at the beginning of the Restoration (1814–1816), then in the wake of the Revolution of 1830 and that of 1848, but also in the terrible year of 1870–1871. Reasons other than political instability explain the persistence of iconoclasm during the nineteenth century. Visual communication was as important as the power of the written word. The first half of the nineteenth century was a time when belief in the performative power of images remained very strong; some iconoclasts still believed that acting on images would influence the course of history.
