INTERVIEW
"He was a good man, a daredevil, a go-getter, a little rebellious, a seducer." And many more things. Michel Fize, a sociologist specializing in youth, drew a very laudatory portrait of Jacques Chirac on Saturday at the microphone of Europe 1. At the expected parallels, he added comparisons for the least amazing.
"A great charisma"
In the category "expected parallels", we find the president symbol of eternal France. "Jacques Chirac embodied this slogan that all presidents have advanced before forgetting it is that he was the president of all French," said Michel Fize. "He lived in the office in a somewhat monarchical way, and we forget that the monarchs let themselves be touched by the people." What we can not forget, however, is that "many French people recognize themselves in this man."
The sociologist also greeted a former head of state to whom "everyone recognizes a simplicity that was not a posture, because he was extremely shy". "He had a great charisma, I had the opportunity to participate in a round table on adolescence that he animated in 2004. And at the end of this round table, he came to shake me He said, "My dear master." At the moment, I thought he was making fun of me, and [in fact] I do not think he was so impressed by intellectuals. " Michel Fize then "felt an emotion".
An "example of life"
In the category of more improbable comparisons, Michel Fize saw a resemblance between Jacques Chirac and the biggest American actors. "It's the combination of John Wayne and James Dean, John Wayne with his imposing appearance, his looks, and James Dean on that rebellious side, where his fascination and fascination with youth today." To the point that the one whose photos are spread over mugs, t-shirts and tote-bags became, according to the sociologist, "an example of life" for young people. "Finally, he is the example of someone extremely voluntary."
Critics of immobility, including his second term? For Michel Fize, it's because "Jacques Chirac did not live in the era of media coverage". "So he was not a communicator, compared to the presidents who followed him, we could take big measures, such as disability laws, on road deaths, but it was not publicized, or very, very little."
The conviction for the fictitious jobs of the mayor of Paris and suspicions in various cases of awarding public contracts? "One examines a situation of the past with the moralizing criteria of today", swept Michel Fize. "The political system of the day admitted that kind of thing, I'm not saying it's good, but we've had cases that followed that were at least as serious."
Listen to "Chirac, a French story"
Europe 1 returns in a podcast event entitled "Chirac, a French story" about the life and career of Jacques Chirac, 22nd President of the Republic through analyzes, stories and testimonies drawn from our archives and produced by the editorial staff of Europe 1.
You can listen and subscribe to the podcast by clicking here