Who loves working class children?

Lewis Hine - Little Lottie
Lewis Hine – Little Lottie, a regular oyster shucker in Alabama Canning Co. She speaks no English. Note the condition of her shoes caused by standing on the rough shells so much. A common sight. Bayou La Batre, Ala. (22 February 1911) – from National Archives (Identifier 523398), via Wikimedia Commons

One seldom finds persons who really love all children. Most people show themselves selective in their affection, while some don’t like children at all. Usually it is a family affair, one loves one’s own children, but not those of other people, and this attitude gets a wide support in society, since children are implicitly considered as their parents’ property, and too much love for other people’s children is seen with suspicion. CONTINUE READING / CONTINUER LA LECTURE…

Young Love, by Andrew Marvell

Joshua Reynolds -The Age of Innocence
Joshua Reynolds -The Age of Innocence – Tate N00307, via Wikimedia Commons

Andrew Marvell (1621–1678) is considered one of the greatest English poets of the seventeenth century. Beside lyric poetry, he wrote political satire, both in verse and in prose, lampooning his contemporaries for their corruption and hypocrisy; most of it was published anonymously, to avoid repression. After his death, many anonymous texts were attributed to him and collected for publication. CONTINUE READING / CONTINUER LA LECTURE…

Maistresse, embrasse moy, par Pierre de Ronsard

Jana Brike - Sketchbook
Jana Brike – Sketchbook

Hélène de Fonsèque (1545–1618), fille de René de Fonsèque, baron de Surgères, et d’Anne de Cossé, entra au service de la reine Catherine de Medicis en 1566 en tant que fille d’honneur, puis fille de chambre de la reine de 1567 à 1578. Elle rencontra Pierre de Ronsard (1524–1585) en 1568. Le poète, âgé de 44 ans, tomba amoureux de cette jeune femme de 23 ans, qui fut sa muse jusqu’en 1574. CONTINUE READING / CONTINUER LA LECTURE…

Daddies and their little girls

Terry Zwigoff – Robert Crumb and his daughter Sophie, in Crumb
Terry Zwigoff – Robert Crumb and his daughter Sophie, in Crumb (1994) – from IMDB

In my post Thank Heaven For Little Girls, I presented several renderings of the song and ended with its use to accompany a stage dance between mature men and little girls. I stressed the symbolic nature of this reinterpretation of a song that lauded little girls for growing up into delightful young women: men love little girls as they are now, not only for their future beauty after puberty.

Now I found another video of a stage dance of adult men with little girls, but this one is much more romantic, the men lift the girls up, take them in their arms, and kiss them several times (at 1’05”, 3’00” and 3’29”): CONTINUE READING / CONTINUER LA LECTURE…

Les personnes âgées et l’amour

Couverture de Strasbourg Magazine, n° 226, Octobre 2011

Cette photo, extraite de la couverture d’un magazine distribué gratuitement par la municipalité de Strasbourg, montre des enfants âgés de 11 ou 12 ans s’avançant pour donner chacun une fleur à une vieille dame, la gratifiant de leur plus beau sourire. L’enthousiasme de ces personnes âgées saute aux yeux. CONTINUE READING / CONTINUER LA LECTURE…

Mille sarabandes, par Jean-Michel Caradec

Jean-Michel Caradec - pochette de l'album Mords la vie (1973)
Jean-Michel Caradec – pochette de l’album Mords la vie (1973), verso – repris de jeanmichelcaradec.com

L’album 33 tours Mords la vie (1973) de Jean-Michel Caradec reçoit son titre de sa première chanson. Ce petit chef d’œuvre poétique respire l’esprit libertaire des années suivant mai 68. J’ai consacré un précédent article est à sa 5e chanson, « Tendre Garance ». Aujourd’hui je présenterai son 11e titre, une belle chanson d’amour intitulée « Mille sarabandes ». CONTINUE READING / CONTINUER LA LECTURE…