My father, the poetry lover, the intellectual; my father, who immersed himself in the Civil Rights Movement when he was a young man, had this to say in an email to me today about Les Soulevements exhibit at the Jeu de Paume in Paris:

“Meanwhile, we’re enjoying Paris. We’re on the left bank, and it feels very familiar.  We went out to dinner last night with Anne, and saw an exhibition at the Jeu de Paume today about ‘les soulevements’ — ‘the risings,’ a poetic way of talking about revolution.  Lots of marvelous images in the exhibit, but way too ‘poetique pour moi’ and tres intellectual.  The French just love the idea of revolution.  Isn’t revolution great, was the theme. Oy. Missed the whole dark underside. Glad I saw it, anyway.”

Thoughtful and funny. Non? Has a certain American je ne sais quoi. Then I listened to and watched this:

Revolution

You say you want a revolution
Well, you know
We all want to change the world
You tell me that it’s evolution
Well, you know
We all want to change the world
But when you talk about destruction
Don’t you know that you can count me out
Don’t you know it’s gonna be
All right, all right, all right
You say you got a real solution
Well, you know
We’d all love to see the plan
You ask me for a contribution
Well, you know
We’re doing what we can
But if you want money for people with minds that hate
All I can tell is brother you have to wait
Don’t you know it’s gonna be
All right, all right, all right
You say you’ll change the constitution
Well, you know
We all want to change your head
You tell me it’s the institution
Well, you know
You better free you mind instead
But if you go carrying pictures of chairman Mao
You ain’t going to make it with anyone anyhow
Don’t you know it’s gonna be
All right, all right, all right
All right, all right, all right
All right, all right, all right
All right, all right

— John Lennon (The Beatles)