|
 |
第8巻
松本 礼子 Reiko Matsumoto18世紀後半における絶対王政の秩序と身分をめぐる認識―「悪しき言説」へのパリのポリスの対応から―
The Police of Paris and “Mauvais Discours”: Disagreement on the Idea of Social Order under the Absolute Monarchy in the Latter Half of the Eighteenth Century
2016年07月 発行
[ 要旨 ]
本稿は、18世紀後半に激増する「悪しき言説」つまり、君主－臣民関係に疑義をはさむような反王権的な言動から、七年戦争を背景に外国との内通が疑われたJ.-B. マナンとJ.-F. エロンをめぐる事件を取り上げる。そして両事件から絶対王政期の秩序と身分をめぐってせめぎ合うポリス側と被疑者側の認識や論理を明らかにし、それにより絶対王政を支える理論の受容のありかたを考察する。
ルイ15世に対する陰謀説を耳にしたというマナンは、重要な情報を伝える義務があるという使命感から、政府の要人のみならず、対戦国のプロイセン王にまで書簡等を送り続けた。意見を述べ尊重されたいというマナンの欲求は、国事は国王の専権事項という権力行使のあり方や、身分制原理に反する一方で、尋問を担当した警視においては、意見の表明は必ずしも身分に規定されるものではなく、むしろそれは知性や能力との関連が重視されていた。また、マナンは自己正当化の論理として「君主への近づきやすさ」という伝統的な国王観に依拠していた。
エロンは勉学や労働に励み、技術や知識を獲得してきたにもかかわらず、国内ではそれに見合った評価や報酬が得られなかったことに絶望し、外国の諸侯のもとで新境地を開こうとした。エロンの弁明からは啓蒙時代の特徴のひとつである社会に対する「有用性」の重視や個人の功績による社会的上昇への渇望を垣間見ることができる。他方、エロンの行動は旧来のパトロン・クライアント的な発想に基づいているようにも見え、そこでは臣民として自国への奉仕を求める重商主義的な認識に基づく警視とは異なり、領域的国家の観念や自国への帰属意識が希薄であることが明らかとなった。
この意味で、被疑者側のみならず、それを取り締まる側の社会観や権力観をも垣間見せてくれる「悪しき言説」をめぐる事件の分析は、当時の政治文化により接近するための手掛かりとなり得るのである。
[ Abstract ]
This article analyses the police files on Jean-Baptiste Manem and Jean-François Héron, unknown members of the Third Estate, who were accused of “mauvais discours”, or seditious speech and behavior, against the royal authority during the Seven Years’ War. The goal of this article is twofold: first, it will uncover the disagreement between the police of Paris and the suspects on the understanding of the social order under French absolutism; second, it will examine the meaning of “mauvais discours” and its suppression by the police in Paris during the second half of the eighteenth century.
Manem was arrested and interrogated for repeatedly sending letters to government ministers, court nobles, and even to the Prussian king in a time of war in order to communicate secrets he pretended to have come across by chance. Manem was fixated on the idea that there was a conspiracy to destroy the French monarchy. His desire to express himself and to be summoned for an audience with any one of the recipients of his letters troubled the police, because in the view of Rochebrune, the commissioner of police, Manem was disrespecting the principles of the Old Regime. Manem’s alleged disrespect of these principles was accomplished first by participating in political matters, which is allowed only to the sovereign, and second, by undermining the society of orders, which assigned specific functions and roles to each group of people.
At first glance, Rochebrune seems to have been an advocate for the classical view of the society of orders, but the interrogation disclosed that he supported the right to articulate opinions based on intelligence and merits rather than birth. Manem tried to justify his actions by invoking the traditional image of kingship, namely a king who is eager to listen to his humble subjects, but in the eyes of the commissioner, Manem was not intelligent enough to interfere in political matters.
Héron also attempted to contact the Prussian king because he was disappointed with the ingratitude shown to him by his patrons in France, despite the fact that he had worked hard to achieve expertise as a geographic engineer. The interrogation of Héron reveals his aspirations for social ascension based on social utility and his own merit, ideas which were becoming more popular in France during the Enlightenment. It shows also that Héron disregarded the notion of territorial states, seeking an ideal patron-client relationship outside of France, which could be considered as a traditional characteristic of the military engineers from the end of fifteenth century Europe. This lack of sense of belonging to his own country was conflicted with the notion of a mercantile state on the part of the commissioner.
These two dossiers reveal the disagreement between the police and these two suspects regarding the ideas of social order under the absolute monarchy. As a result, the analysis of the “mauvais discours” reveals various perceptions of the society and authority at the time, not only on the part of the suspects but also of the police, and therefore, it could offer an important insight into the understanding of the political culture during the Enlightenment.