자살한 프랑스는 드골의 형상으로 부활할 것인가: 에릭 제무르의 『프랑스의 자살』을 통해 본 민주주의의 위기

After the Muslim terrorist attack on the French magazine Charlie Hebdo in Paris, various demonstrations against and criticisms of terrorism flooded Europe. But the object of criticism and anger was not limited to terrorism. Right-wing parties’ comments on immigration policies and rights of minority groups gradually started to become more popular. In the end, right-wing arguments questioning the identity of the French Republic have emerged. The popularity of this book, in which the author Eric Zemmour strongly criticizes France’s generous immigration policy, despite being an immigrant himself, does not seem to be fading. The book conveys the forceful message that France has committed suicide by giving up its values after the revolution of ’68, and implicitly suggests a solution for recovering lost and deconstructed French values. Despite the burdensome volume of 500 pages, it may not be an exaggeration to say that all cultured people in Paris have read the book. It is quite clear that the sociopolitical events and debates surrounding the book can greatly influence French policies and legislation regarding immigrants and members of minority groups. In his powerful writing as a journalist, Zemmour exhorts a yearning for a strong France symbolized by Napoleon, and a nostalgia for those bourgeois French principles that are best represented by Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle, who emphasized Catholic and patriarchal values. The book is generally regarded as indicative of how conservative political parties, and the French view of conservatism, will deal with policies and legislation regarding immigrants and minorities hereafter. This event offers a number of reference points for South Korean society, which has begun to experience similar debates around topics such as the rights of homosexuals and freedom of speech, recalling the times of the revolution of ’68 in France. I review Zemmour’s arguments that, in an unprecedented way, touch upon issues that were taboo among the French bourgeoisie after 1968, and compare them with the situation in South Korea.