Why is Marie Antoinette so controversial? - Carolyn Harris

Prevodilac: Milenka Okuka Lektor: Ivana Krivokuca

Order! Order! Who’s the defendant today? Looks pretty fancy.

Mir! Mir! Ko je okrivljeni danas? Izgleda prilično prefinjeno.

Indeed, Your Honor.

Uistinu, časni sude.

This is Marie Antoinette, the Queen of France

Ovo je Marija Antoaneta, kraljica Francuske

who was notorious for living in opulence while the peasants starved.

koja je bila zloglasna po raskošnom životu dok su seljaci umirali od gladi.

That is sensationalist slander.

Radi se o senzacionalističkoj kleveti.

Marie Antoinette had little power over her circumstances

Marija Antoaneta nije imala naročit uticaj na sopstvene okolnosti

and spent her brief life trying to survive in a turbulent, foreign country.

i provela je kratki život pokušavajući da preživi u turbulentnoj, stranoj državi.

You mean she wasn't French?

Misliš, nije bila Francuskinja?

That’s right, Your Honor.

Tako je, časni sude.

She was born in 1755 as the Hapsburg Archduchess Maria Antonia.

Rođena je 1755. kao nadvojvotkinja Marija Antonija od Austrije.

After two of her older sisters passed away,

Nakon što su njene dve starije sestre umrle,

she became the only choice for a political marriage to Louis-August,

postala je jedini izbor za politički brak sa Lujom Avgustom,

heir to the French throne.

naslednikom francuskog prestola.

Essentially, she was sacrificed to secure peace between Austria and France,

U suštini je žrtvovana zarad obezbeđivanja mira između Austrije i Francuske,

all at the age of 14.

sve to sa 14 godina.

She seemed to have had adjusted to this “sacrifice” by 1774

Čini se da se prilagodila na ovu „žrtvu” do 1774.

when her husband was crowned king.

kada je njen suprug krunisan za kralja.

She lived a life of luxury, wearing elaborate headdresses,

Živela je luksuzan život tokom kog je nosila raskošne perike,

importing foreign fabrics—

uvozila tkanine iz inostranstva -

she even had her own private chateau near Versailles!

čak je imala sopstveni privatni zamak blizu Versaja!

Meanwhile, France was in an economic tailspin.

U međuvremenu, Francuska je bila u ekonomskom sunovratu.

Bad harvests resulted in mass food shortages,

Loša žetva je rezultirala masovnim nestašicama hrane,

wages were falling, and the cost of living had skyrocketed.

dnevnice su padale, a cena života vrtoglavo skakala.

Marie Antoinette’s expensive tastes were completely insensitive

Skupi ukus Marije Antoanete je bio u potpunosti neosetljiv

to the plight of her subjects.

na patnje njenih podanika.

She was the Queen!

Bila je kraljica!

If she hadn’t looked glamorous, she would have been criticized.

Da nije izgledala glamurozno, kritikovali bi je.

Besides, she sometimes used her image for good.

Osim toga, ponekad je koristila svoj ugled u dobre svrhe.

After convincing the King to be vaccinated against smallpox,

Nakon što je ubedila kralja da se vakciniše protiv velikih boginja,

she commissioned a special headdress to make the treatment fashionable for all.

poručila je naročitu periku kako bi taj tretman postao moderan.

She also used her influence to appoint unqualified friends and admirers

Takođe je koristila svoj uticaj da postavi nekvalifikovane prijatelje i obožavaoce

to important posts.

na važne pozicije.

Even more disastrous, she encouraged the King to get involved

Što je još gore, ohrabrila je kralja da se umeša

in the American Revolution,

u američku revoluciju,

a conflict that cost France 1.5 billion francs.

konflikt koji je koštao Francusku 1,5 milijardi franaka.

Objection!

Prigovor!

The Queen had very little influence over her husband’s political decisions

Kraljica je imala neznatan uticaj na političke odluke svog supruga

at that time.

u to vreme.

Besides, France’s financial crisis was much more related to the country’s

Osim toga, finansijska kriza u Francuskoj je više bila u vezi

outdated tax system and lack of an effective central bank.

sa njenim zastarelim poreskim sistemom i nedostatkom efikasne centralne banke.

How so?

Kako to?

While France's nobility and clergy had numerous tax exemptions,

Dok su francuski plemići i sveštenstvo imali bezbrojne poreske olakšice,

peasants often paid more than half their income in taxes.

seljaci su često plaćali više od polovine svog prihoda u porezima.

This system buried France in debt long before the Queen's arrival.

Ovaj sistem je zatrpao Francusku dugom mnogo pre dolaska kraljice.

Her personal expenses were merely a scapegoat

Njeni lični troškovi su bili tek žrtveno jagnje

for decades of financial negligence.

za decenije finansijskog zanemarivanja.

That doesn’t change that Marie Antoinette spent tax money on luxuries

To ne menja to što je Marija Antoaneta trošila novac od poreza na luksuz

while the masses starved!

dok su mase umirale od gladi!

She was so oblivious that when she heard people couldn’t afford bread,

Bila je toliko nesvesna toga da je, čuvši da ljudi ne mogu da priušte hleb,

she recommended they eat cake instead.

preporučila da umesto toga jedu kolače.

This is almost certainly a fabrication attributed to the Queen by her enemies.

Ovo je sasvim izvesno izmišljotina koju su joj pripisali neprijatelji.

In fact, Marie Antoinette frequently engaged in charity work

Zapravo, Marija Antoaneta se često bavila dobrotvornim radom

focused on addressing poverty.

koji je bio usmeren na siromaštvo.

Her reputation as a heartless queen was based on rumors and slander.

Njena reputacija okrutne kraljice je zasnovana na tračevima i klevetama.

Even the most famous case against her was a complete fraud.

Čak je i najčuveniji slučaj protiv nje bio potpuna prevara.

Pardon?

Molim?

In 1784, a thief forged fake letters from the Queen

Godine 1784, lopov je krivotvorio lažna pisma od kraljice

to purchase an outrageously expensive diamond necklace.

kako bi kupio skandalozno skupu dijamantsku ogrlicu.

The truth came out eventually,

Istina je vremenom isplivala,

but the public already saw her as a wasteful spendthrift.

ali je javnost već videla kao raskalašnu rasipnicu.

Meanwhile, it's really her husband who ruined France's finances.

U međuvremenu, uistinu je njen suprug uništio francuske finansije.

On that, we agree.

Ovde se slažemo.

Louis XVI was an incompetent king.

Luj XVI je bio nesposoban kralj.

Even after the revolution began and he lost much of his power

Čak i kada je počela revolucija i kada je izgubio većinu moći

to the newly formed National Assembly,

zbog novooformljene Narodne skupštine,

he refused to yield control.

odbio je da preda kontrolu.

Louis vetoed numerous pieces of legislation—

Luj je stavio veto na brojne zakone -

and he was supported by his conservative Queen.

i u tome ga je podržavala njegova konzervativna kraljica.

To a point.

Donekle.

Marie Antoinette believed in the divine right of kings,

Marija Antoaneta je verovala u božanska prava kraljeva,

but despite personal reservations, she tried to work with reformers.

no uprkos ličnim rezervacijama, pokušavala je da sarađuje sa reformatorima.

Though all she got in return were false reports that she was sleeping with them.

Mada, sve što je dobila zauzvrat su bili lažni izveštaji da spava s njima.

No amount of charity work could counter this avalanche of slander.

Nema tog dobrotvornog rada koji bi se suprotstavio ovoj lavini kleveta.

The revolutionaries also prevented the King’s family from leaving Paris—

Revolucionari su takođe sprečili kraljevsku porodicu da napusti Pariz -

how could she negotiate with people keeping her prisoner?

kako je mogla da pregovara s ljudima koji je drže u zatočeništvu?

Well, they were right to do so!

Pa, imali su pravo na to!

In 1791, the royal couple tried fleeing to Austria

Godine 1791, kraljevski par je pokušao da pobegne u Austriju

to gather support and regain power.

kako bi prikupili podršku i vratili se na vlast.

Even after they were caught,

Čak i nakon što su uhvaćeni,

the King and Queen continued to pass military secrets

kralj i kraljica su nastavili da odaju vojne tajne

to their Austrian contacts.

austrijskim kontaktima.

Isn't that treason?

Zar to nije izdaja?

Certainly, and Louis was executed for it, alongside 32 other charges.

Svakako, i Luja su pogubili zbog toga, uz još 32 druge optužbe.

Even if you believe the King's execution was just,

Čak i ako verujete da je kraljevo pogubljenje bilo pravedno,

there's no excuse for how the new government treated Marie Antoinette.

nema opravdanja za to kako je nova vlada tretirala Mariju Antoanetu.

She was separated from her son and kept in a cell with no privacy.

Razdvojena je od svog sina i držana u ćeliji bez privatnosti.

The tribunal in charge of prosecuting the Queen had no proof of her treason,

Tribunal zadužen za kraljičino suđenje nije imao dokaze za njenu izdaju,

so they denigrated her with baseless accusations of incest and orgies.

pa su je degradirali neosnovanim optužbama o incestu i orgijama.

Yet she maintained composure until the very end.

Ipak, zadržala je pribranost do samog kraja.

The Queen’s final words were an apology to her executioner

Kraljičine poslednje reči su bile izvinjenje njenom dželatu

for stepping on his foot.

jer mu je nagazila na stopalo.

However refined she may have been,

Koliko god da je bila prefinjena,

Marie Antoinette was willing to betray her country to stay in power.

Marija Antoaneta je bila spremna da izda svoju zemlju kako bi ostala na vlasti.

In life and death, she remains a symbol of everything wrong

U životu i smrti, ostaje simbol svega lošeg

with the decadent monarchy.

u vezi sa dekadentnom monarhijom.

A convenient symbol—

Prikladan simbol -

and an example of the public’s appetite for smearing prominent women

i primer apetita javnosti za klevetanjem istaknutih žena

with their own fantasies and frustrations.

zasnovanog na sopstvenim fantazijama i frustracijama.

So what you’re saying is she was guilty of being Queen?

Dakle, kažete da je njena krivica u tome što je bila kraljica?

Should monarchs be judged by their personal qualities

Da li monarsima treba suditi na osnovu njihovih ličnih kvaliteta

or the historical role they occupied?

ili istorijske uloge koju su zauzimali?

And can even the powerful be victims of circumstance?

I da li čak i moćnici mogu da budu žrtve slučaja?

These are the questions that arise when we put history on trial.

Ova pitanja iskrsavaju kada stavimo istoriju pred sud.