‘Wokism punishes the West for its virtues’
‘Wokism punishes the West for its virtues’
Interview with Pierre Valentin on his book Understanding the woke revolution
Dear readers,
today I am pleased to interview Pierre Valentin, essayist and regular contributor to Le Figaro (the second-largest newspaper in France), who recently published Comprendre la révolution woke - Understanding the woke revolution.
The product of 2 years of work, this book offers a surgical analysis of wokism, its paradoxes, and the dangers this ideology poses to Western societies.
Guillaume Gau: What is wokism? The term has become ubiquitous in public discourse, but I must admit I couldn't define it precisely.
Pierre Valentin: Wokism is an ideology that perceives Western societies as fundamentally governed by power structures, hierarchies of domination, and systems of oppression that aim, or at least have the effect, of "inferiorize" the Other, meaning minority figures in all their forms (sexual, religious, ethnic, etc.), often through invisible means. The "woke" individual is one who is "awakened" to this harmful reality and takes it upon themselves to raise awareness among others.
G.G.: In my articles, I regularly discuss the identity of Western civilization. It is the one that has most fostered critical thinking, and the nations within it are among the most tolerant. You write that "wokism punishes the West for its virtues. What other cultures are so eager to accuse themselves? (...) Wokism could not have sprouted elsewhere." How do you explain that wokism is primarily a Western phenomenon?
P.V.: As the Polish intellectual Leszek Kolakowski wrote, it was the West that invented anthropology, which is the desire—always impossible but nonetheless healthy—to study external cultures without imposing one's own framework. However, it is precisely this same civilization that is now accused of being too "Eurocentric". It's a philosophically Western critique of the West within wokism.
To explain this phenomenon of accusatory inversion, we could look to Alexis de Tocqueville's paradox of equality, which states that as the principle of equality of conditions is concretized, the slightest residual inequality seems all the more inadmissible. Those who have gone furthest in egalitarianism are criticized for their lack of egalitarianism.
This can be seen at several levels: only societies that understand the meaning of the word "transgender" are perceived as "transphobic." Only countries whose companies unanimously display their logos in rainbow colors are accused of homophobia. Only nations that take a knee for Black Lives Matter are labeled as "racist."
G.G.: You write that "woke ideology is pure negation." What do you mean by that?
P.V.: When these activists are asked to define themselves in one word, it's usually "anti-racist" or "anti-sexist," meaning they always define themselves in terms of opposition. The most popular concept in social sciences for several decades has been "deconstruction." The mode of action for these activists is to tear down statues, not to build them. Their utopia is always a negative photograph, a world "without" racism, sexism, etc.
This thesis may seem radical or intentionally provocative, but I assure you there is no other way to find some form of coherence among the myriad contradictions these activists profess.
Among the counterarguments often cited is the idea that they are simply "defending minorities" or advocating for equality, which are positive assertions at the core of their ideology. However, as I demonstrate in the first chapter of the book, these arguments are actually facades used to conceal deep-seated resentment. The minority has a purely instrumental value in this ideology, and these activists aspire to a revenge or an inversion of the existing system, rather than any real "equality."
A previous issue of Why the West on what the West owes to Greco-Roman antiquity:
G.G.: One of the dangers of wokism, as you describe it, is what you call "mediocrisation", meaning prioritizing inclusion over competence. Do you have examples of this trend in France or abroad?
Without straying too far from my area of expertise, I believe I can suggest that part of the so-called "tech bubble" bursting, as well as universities collapsing, can be explained by "DEI" (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion) policies. This is not to say that "minorities" cannot be competent, but rather that when we stop pursuing the scarce resource that is competence, we will inevitably lose it.
When your father is going to have surgery, you prefer the surgeon to be competent rather than “representative”. When our priority shifts to fulfilling identity quotas rather than aiming for excellence, it's likely that trains arriving on time, administrations functioning efficiently, and planes taking off will become fortunate accidents.
When your father is going to have surgery, you prefer the surgeon to be competent rather than “representative”. Pierre Valentin
G.G.: Wokes believe that the ultimate goal of Western societies is to "oppress minorities". Ultimately, isn't wokism a form of far-left conspiracy theory?
P.V.: One notion that frequently appears in woke writings is that of the "System." It has many synonyms: "The Cistem" (referring to "cisgender" individuals, those who are not "transgender"), patriarchy, "heteropatriarchy," "whitriarchy," and so on. This negative abstraction is perceived as omnipresent and all-powerful. In the new conception of racism, now deemed "systemic," one can even have racism without racists. Here, we have a form of conspiracy theory that doesn't require conspirators.
Conceptualizing the existence of a harmful system allows dissenters to position themselves perpetually "against" it. When you oppose an individual, you may risk moral unemployment when he disappears. Opposing a more abstract and nebulous entity guarantees a long activist career. Moreover, it also absolves individuals of the burden of proof: once the evil is "systematized," there's no longer a need to demonstrate that a specific act occurred at a certain place and time, etc.
“When you oppose an individual, you may risk moral unemployment when he disappears. Opposing a more abstract and nebulous entity guarantees a long activist career”. Pierre Valentin
G.G.: The prosperity and freedoms we enjoy in the West did not fall from the sky but were built over centuries by our ancestors. I agree with your conclusion that one remedy against the woke movement is to promote gratitude for our civilizational heritage. But concretely, how can we do this?
P.V.: The question is broad, and the task is difficult. The ongoing miracle is civilization and the absence of anarchy. All of this hangs by a thread, suspended over a void.
The psychological essence of wokism is guilt for the "dominant" and resentment for the "dominated". To break free from this sadomasochistic dance, we need to instill pride and gratitude. Simply telling a generation that their ideological life raft is carcinogenic will never be enough. Denial of denial is not affirmation!
I am not a politician, so I don’t have concrete measures to propose, aside from educating the French and the Westerners on this issue. But it's clear that we need to rediscover the unifying narrative that once was ours. We must be able not only to count the achievements of our civilization but also to tell their story.
G.G.: I share your perspective and would like to recommend some of my recent articles to our readers about great storytellers of civilization, such as the French Hellenist Jacqueline de Romilly—on what the West owes to Athens—and the British historian Tom Holland—on what the West owes to Christianity. Thank you for this discussion!
P.V.: Thank you for the invitation, it was a pleasure!
Comprendre la révolution woke has not yet been translated into English, but you can follow the author on X (formerly Twitter), where he regularly posts in English.
Find all previous issues of Why the West on the homepage of the site. You can also follow me on X (ex-twitter).