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Queue

queue

The line waiting at the bakery is a place of bodily pressure, unequal chances and improvised collective judgement.

From the book

The Gods Are Athirst

Anatole France · Diotimos Editions · 2026

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Meaning

Lemma.

The line waiting at the bakery is a place of bodily pressure, unequal chances and improvised collective judgement. Faire la queue and prendre la queue mean queue or join the line, not seize a physical tail. The attempted rope scheme makes rank tangible but fails because people struggle over the rope itself.

Places to read

  1. Chapter VI, paragraph 1Frenchfaisaient la queue: Were queuing. Citizens wait under the National Guard’s supervision.
  2. Chapter VI, paragraph 12Frenchvint prendre la queue: Came to join the queue. Gamelin takes his mother’s place in the exhausting task.