Certificate of civic loyalty

Meaning

Phrase.

A certificat de civisme attests political reliability, not merely personal identity, citizenship or electoral eligibility. Dupont proposes withholding it from anyone who will not sign the petition: this is his coercive proposal, not an established general rule. Longuemare later needs the document to draw his pension. His appeal to obedience to human law unless contrary to divine law fails before an official demanding proof of revolutionary participation; the request instead brings investigation and an attempted arrest. Finally, unable to produce a certificate, he cannot be protected as merely Brotteaux’s resident assistant. The document makes livelihood and safety depend on an accepted public demonstration of loyalty.