La France A Poil [SAFE]

However, revolutionary caricatures inverted this. In 1789, pamphlets depicted the Third Estate stripping the fur from nobles— mettre la noblesse à poil (to strip the nobility bare), leaving them as naked as commoners. Here, à poil begins its slide from “wearing fur” to “wearing nothing at all.” The revolution exposed the body politic.

In a naked France, the strike is the national sport. French people do not say, "We have a problem." They say, "We are blocking the refinery." The raw reality is that negotiation is viewed with suspicion; only the rapport de force (balance of power) works. La france a poil

: While "poil" means "hair" (usually body hair), the phrase originated from the idea of being reduced to just one's hair/skin. However, revolutionary caricatures inverted this