Chapter One ‘Chirac est un ver’
A not so bright Sun
In the run-up to the war of imperialist aggression
against Iraq, theSun– a newspaper known for its
xenophobic and, in particular, anti-French campaigns –
published an edition of several hundred copies in
French attacking Jacques Chirac and distributed it
free of charge in Paris. The front page featured a
photomontage representing a rather dilapidated
hexagon from which an enormous, spiralling
earthworm emerged whose head was replaced by
an unflattering photograph of Jacques Chirac. An
enormous headline ran across the page:
CHIRAC EST UN VER[Chirac is a worm]
The accompanying text was the usual mixture of
half-truths and barefaced lies.
As a French speaker, I have a problem with this
headline. I am well aware that it contains an insult
(the headline does not read: Chirac est un lion). But
I cannot understand the precise import of the insult.
If the headline read: Chirac est un chien, une larve
[grub], un serpent[snake], un dinosaure, I would have
no problem understanding what was involved, since
each of these animals, in its own way, is of ill repute.
If it said: Chirac est un pou[louse], I would not get
it straight away, but I would be able to extrapolate,
since lice are not natural objects of sympathy. But
