National Functionalism
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National Functionalism | |
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| Ideology | Cultural Nationalism Corporatism Militarism Syncretism Reactionary Modernism Totalitarianism Chauvinism |
| Political position | Far-Right |
National Functionalism is a far right, authoritarian, culturally nationalistic political ideology. It is loosely based on the sociological theory of functionalism and is characertised by traditional beliefs in a strong centralised state, a rejection of individualism, superiority based on cultural origins and that the state is a living organism of which individuals are merely constituent parts, commonly referred to as the communauté populaire.
National Functionalism arose in Gaullican militaristic political circles in the late 19th century; following the war of the Triple Alliance. Gaullica's defeat in the war, the removal of 'Gaullican' territories such as Kesselbourg and Hennehouwe and the fragmentation of its traditional allies in Soravia and Valduvia left the nation diplomatically isolated and with a strong revanchist sentiment.
Its tenants can be traced to Gaullican Field Marshal Gaëtan de Trintignant, who wrote numerous political treatise demanding a rejection of 'modernity'; principally the constitutional amendments that had whittled the power of the Gaullican monarchy post the Age of Revolutions. In two political treatises, de Trintignant outlined his beliefs on the necessity of a strong central authority, a rejection of both capitalism and socialism, a strong sense of social cohesion underpinned by a civic national identity and the establishment of the means to spread this identity. Inspired by the growing field of sociology, de Trintignant viewed the state as a parallel to the human body - and health achieved when its parts were working in concert.
Whilst some scholars argue that National Functionalism as an ideology is specifically tailored to Gaullican political development, it is clear that it has influenced the development of political thought outside of Gaullica's borders. Some have argued that Shangea's National Principlism was directly inspired by National Functionalism, whilst in Euclea itself Functionalism entered southern Euclean countries like Etruria, Paretia, Piraea and Amathia through pro-Gaullican elements of the military. In Ruttland, Functionalism gave birth to the National Resurrection movement.
Since the end of the Great War, National Functionalism has been outlawed as a political ideology within Gaullica - though several groups have been accused of being "neo-functionalist". Since 2010, 'functionalist' has re-entered political discourse as a pejorative term for those on the far-right, especially in the context of Paretian and Etrurian nationalist groups like the Tribune Movement.
Etymology
The Gaullican term fonctionnalisme is a reference to the sociological term, derived from the works of René Dajuat and his student Hugues Subercaseaux, which itself stems from the medieval Solarian word functionalis. Gaëtan de Trintignant aimed to present a political theory that was based in empirical science that was wholly independent from Revolutionary Rationalism. During his post-war years as a writer and fringe political figure, he became increasingly enamored with the developing field of sociology then in vogue within Gaullican academia. In a public letter, he wrote, "If we were to understand society, we would understand everything! By understanding social structure, we can create a society that is, of course, greater than all others."[1]
His desire to formulate a political theory on the basis of this idea of "purpose" or "function" led him to write his manifesto, The Function of Man, in 1881. In it, he repeatedly calls for a form of "functionalism" to identify the parts of Gaullican society that had, in his view, enabled it to become the pre-eminent world power, before asserting the moral obligation to spread Gaullican civilization to the rest of the world.
The term fonctionnalisme national was coined by Gaullican sociologist Max Cuvillier to distinguish the political philosophy from its sociological counterpart, though structural functionalism has increasingly been referred to as "structuralism". From the early 1900s, and especially after the 1910 election when Functionalism first appeared in the Imperial Senate, left-wing opposition referred to its practitioners as "fon-fou", a portmanteau of "fonctionnalisme du fou" (Fool's Functionalism).
History
War of the Triple Alliance
The outbreak of war in May of 1852 plunged Euclea into an enormous conflict, that saw over half a million military casualties in the space of three and a half years of war. Whilst Gaullica did not suffer the catastrophic defeats that rendered Valduvia as Euclea's "Sick Man" or plunged Soravia into civil war, the defeat left a lasting effect on the public and political consciousness about the future.
The Function of Man
Âge des Gens Heureux
The Great Collapse
Rise of the Parti Populaire
The Great War
Tenets
Functionalism is characterised as being a particularly non-traditional form of conservativism. A highly statist ideology, Functionalism's main aims and concerns as outlined by the theories of Trintignant and their adaptations into the framework of the Parti Populaire by Rafael Duclerque were to "bring about and maintain the ideal society". This often led to a largely pragmatic approach to economic policies depending on the situation and a fairly overall socially conservative policy focused on traditional gender roles, deference to authority and the idealisation of traditional institutions in society. However, according to Olivia Édouard's assessment of the ideology, "Functionalism, at times, practiced pragmatic social policy - as was the case with women being encouraged to enter the workforce during the war."
Civic nationalism
Unlike most other Euclean political entities which developed nationalism as an ethnic identity, Gaullican political theorists were often critical of that concept. Traditionally, nationalism has been held to have been born by the Weranian Revolution of 1785, with Weranian radicals associating their ideas of radical republicanism with that of a unified Weranian ethnic identity.
In Gaullica, by contrast, the idea of ethnic nationalism was in principle rejected. Instead, some scholars have argued that a separate strain of nationalism grew there. Porthos Asselineau, writing in the early 1900s, compared the 'identities of the peoples of Euclea' and described of the Gaullican thought process that: "ethnic nationalism makes no sense, Gaullican identity is achievable. It is a civic identity, beyond the constraints of blood and ancestry." According to Porthos, the 'nationalism' present within Gaullica was a "nationalism of culture; one not set in on racial or ethnic lines, but on values and a way of life that others can be educated into."
In his seminal work, The Function of Man, Gaëtan de Trintignant wrote on the topic of race extensively. In the opening of his chapter: "The Peoples of Gaullica" de Trintignant states that "race is not real". Functionalist doctrine and ideology on race was largely dismissive of race as a factor of identity. Trintignant surmised his belief on what it meant to be 'Gaullican' as not being attached to the 'fabrication of the Gaullican ethnic group', but a set of cultural, linguistic, moral and value-based institutions and practices. He compared it extensively to what he called 'Weranic Nationalism', which he argued was exclusively concerned with "linguistic brotherhood".
To Trintignant the Gaullican identity was a civic and cultural identity that one could join into by assimilation; it was an inclusive identity that individuals from around the globe could and should aspire to be apart of. He described the primary goal of Gaullican imperialism to be a great "mission to spread civilisation". In this regard, many contemporary thinkers describe Gaullican nationalism to have evolved into that of 'civilisational identity', with Estmerish historian Paige Moss referring to it as a "a mimicry of Solarian identity".
The way in which this approach to nationalism was adopted has been brought into question by theorists from within and without Gaullica. In spite of what the Functionalist belief may have outlined, many policies within the empire were implemented strictly on a racial basis. Blanchiment was a Gaullican colonial policy adopted by the empire and maintained and expanded by the Functionalist regime that encouraged white men in the colonies to marry indigenous women in the hopes of 'whitening' their progeny.
Additionally many critics of the theory including Gaullican socialist thinker Éliane Bruguière argue that the functionalist idea of the 'civic-cultural identity' was an exportable form of 'ethnic nationalism'.
Authority
At its core, Functionalism is an authoritian political system because it views any form of differing from the opinion of the sovereign to be detrimental to the 'good' of society Functionalism espouses the belief that the state exists beyond the structures and institutions of society and is actually a physical representation of collective cultural consciousness. In this regard, it is an extremely statist ideology. In the eyes of the ideology the states' apparatuses exist to serve cohesive functions for the betterment of society and its inhabitants. Rafael Duclerque famously compared the state to the intricacies of machine: "each part is unique, individual and special; but a gear has no purpose unless it is within a grander concert."
Opposed to democracy, liberalism and socialism, Functionalism mandates the investiture of power in a strongly centralised authority. Whilst Trintignant exclusively referred to this entity as an absolute monarch, ostensibly the Gaullican Emperor, when implemented in Gaullica the investiture of power was focused in the position of Premier; Rafael Duclerque.
Basile Vaugrenard, a Functionalist jurist, wrote several treatise in which he supported the Parti Populaire's measures of negating the influence of the Senate: "Democracy, the idea of voting in governments, does nothing but foster divisions within society. People become affiliated with political parties, and their identity to a greater collective is superseded by party-membership."
Throughout its existence in dominating politics in Gaullica following the end of the Great Collapse, the Parti Populaire aimed to curtail the influence of the democratic systems of government by numerous means. Initially, numerous political associations were branded as 'enemies of the state' including the SGIO - at the time the second largest party. Following this the party granted the position of premier numerous executive powers over the course of late 1919 all the way through 1921. These ranged from the ability to dismiss members of the senate, to dissolving the senate at will, the ability to supersede the senate on its duties of appointments unilaterally as well as complete subvert the institution in regards to assessing the budget. At the conclusion of his term's limit, Rafael Duclerque declared a motion in which his term limits were suspended.
Communauté populaire
Trintignant surmised that "if a state has an institution within it; it serves a purpose. If it served no purpose, it would have no use to the state." Whilst he did argue that you could divide the constituent parts of the nation into as many arbitrary pieces as you wanted, Trintignant settled on four distinct social groups that encompassed all others: the government, the family (or women, depending on publication), the armed forces and the church.
These four social groups are at the forefront of Functionalist belief in the Communauté populaire, (People's Community), the mechanisms used to keep people - and therefore society - united, prosperous and happy. Each of the four social groups had a specific duty in the theories of de Trintignant.
- Women/The Family: In functionalist thought, the family was seen as the primary unit of socialisation. Family units had to instil in young people the norms and values of the Gaullican culture at its most basic stage; and needed to continue to repopulate the Gaullican nation. To enforce this in practice, the Parti Populaire offered great incentives for families to continue having children, instituted a far stronger and robust model of welfare for those children, and provided tax rebates to families with many children (as from three or more.) Women were permitted to enter 'non-traditional' areas of employment through a policy known as 'National Necesssity', especially during the time of total war.
- The Church: de Trintignant remarked that "faith builds community and provides direction". In the view of the functionalists, religion, even if not factual, provided a strong sense of communal bond and was the base of all forms of identity that superseded it. As far as they were concerned moral direction, subservience to authority, and these strong communal bonds were best exemplified by Gaullica's largest religion: Solarian Catholicism. Because of its established authority within Gaullica, the Parti Populaire was forced to compromise on issues with the Church. In this regard, whilst the functionalists may have wanted to centralise authority within the secular government, they were forced to maintain clerical involvement in all sectors of society.
- The Military: Viewed both as an honourable institution and an exemplification of human duty as well as a necessity in a view of the way states function, Trintignant viewed the military highly positively. This largely stemmed from his own service. He viewed the military as a defence of the communal body of the nation by itself, and that increasing it's strength would achieve success for the nation. As a realistic ideology, it viewed the strength of a nation to be the predicate to its success. The Parti Populaire adhered to the existing empire's reliance on the military, yet continued its expansion, prestige and dedication to innovation within the military - such as allocating enormous resources to research and development in the field of armoured warfare, aircraft, rocketry and the like.
- The Government: The government, being viewed as an organic entity, and often compared by analogy to the body, found itself as the primary facilitator for all facets of life. Trintignant viewed the government as a 'mother for all society' and instilled in it the responsibilities of rearing up the collective children; but also providing work, security, safety, good health and education for all of society. Because of this, he viewed elements of non-compliance as in democratic and liberal societies as weakening this message. To consolidate this vision of a 'paternal' state, functionalism in Gaullica worked at eroding away at the elements of democracy within its governing system and sought to entrench itself within power.
These four sections were often compared, via analogy, to the human body. They were argued to work best together for a unified goal, and both Trintignant and Duclerque simplified the explanation by comparing them to the organs of the human body.
Action and conflict
Functionalism is predicated on the necessity of political violence, as an integral part of the mechanism to both create and defend the environment for the 'perfect state'. This view on violence is one that glorifies it as a direct aspect of humanity. Trintignant often referred to it as a "natural" state of the human condition; and that violence had served as a legitimate means for settling disagreements, disputes, territorial issues and breaches of the law. In this sense, it was rooted in some of the elements of the applications of Mersenne's biological discoveries to politics.
This predication on legitimate political violence led to the creation of numerous paramilitaries, most famed were those of the Parti Populaire during their rise to power in the 1910s. These were the Chevaliers de l'Empereur and the Veuves de Sainte Chloé, led by Gwenaëlle Cazal, one of Duclerque's most trusted associates. In practice, these organisations were used to intimidate political opponents, beat opposition on the street, instigate violence and carry out terrorist attacks. Once the Parti Populaire took power, both paramilitaries were organised under a new name, the Maréchaussée (Marshalcy). Led by Gwenaëlle Cazal, this new police force and party apparatus had the authority and blank cheque to investigate 'enemies of the movement', 'enemies of the state', and 'degenerates', and deal with them with impunity. One of their first acts was a purging of labour union leadership, the killing of high-profile SGIO members, and even assassinations of prominent anti-war liberals within Kesselbourg and Hennehouwe.
These principles glorifying violence also translated onto how Functionalism views inter-state relations. A realistic political position in the topics of international relations, Duclerque emphasised the necessity for the projection of power - and that the only "currency respected in the international order is monopolised violence". This view of military action, conflict and violence led to Functionalism preoccupying itself in an ever-increasing armament for an eventual global conflict.
The institution of the military itself was praised, adored and almost venerated by Functionalists. Trintignant, a serviceman himself, viewed the military as a structure to imitate. He praised the meritocratic yet hierarchical nature of the Gaullican military, and exemplified its use as a model for some levels of bureaucratic government. Functionalist attitudes towards the military are universally positive, in both propaganda and legislation. The Parti Populaire increased the funding of the military substantially, including to its pension funds to widows and children.
Economic policies
Functionalism described itself as being anti-capitalist and anti-socialist. Trintignant's writings explicitly reference the ideology as a "syncretic solution to the question of economics", and he himself maintained that capitalism was a system that was inherently unconcerned with the state and socialism was too preoccupied with achieving a stateless society. Trintignant wrote within his works that the efficacy of capitalism must be controlled by the state to ensure complete subservience to the Communauté populaire, and that the profits turned for social good and state success rather than economic gain. Socialism, on the other hand, he disparaged as being too "societally destructive" and viewed their ideas of a stateless society to be naïve. One of his proposed purposes of the duties of the state was to deal with the economic concerns of the working class.
Duclerque, he himself originally holding left-wing economic views in his youth, was far more vocally critical of capitalism in his remarks and positioned his party as an "alternative to economic determinism". Officially, Duclerque made corporatism the economic policy of the Functionalist movement. He believed in an irrevocable "moral evil" within capitalism, decrying it as an individualistic, materialistic and liberal quest for "infinite profit on a finite world". Duclerque was strongly influenced by Catholic positions on economic justice and tried to reconcile the economic elements of socialism whilst detaching them from their internationalist positions. His corporatism aimed to reconcile the "best of both systems" by placing the state as an arbiter between corporate workers and labourers. Duclerque eventually denounced the socialist idea of class conflict and instead championed the cause of class collaboration.
The extent to which Functionalism operated as pro-worker or pro-business fluctuated. Żyścin "Justin" Żowanu, three time Minister of Finance for the Functionalist Regime, was replaced over his opposition to implement "pragmatic policies". Duclerque privately held that "economic ideology isn't important, what the nation requires is". The Parti Populaire backtracked on several of their public positions of the nationalisation of the businesses that many had viewed as being responsible for the Great Collapse, though the threat of nationalisation was utilised to ensure businesses kept aligned to the regime and its "economic realities".
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Functionalism passed many pro-worker pieces of legislation in its initial period of control, though would often juggle this with the demands of the business sector. Within six months of coming to power the Parti Populaire mandated compulsory union membership across Gaullica under the 'Fédération du travail', a Functionalist trade-union organisation. Despite this, corporate interest was maintained in Functionalist economic poilicy and the regime later reneged the right to strike on the basis that as the negotiator between workers and business it would ensure equity through the Ministry of Corporations and Labour. Industrial action and worker 'agitation' was a crime punishable by death.
The Parti Populaire brought about a series of progressive economic reforms as part of its renegotiation including increases to disability and unemployment benefits and the guaranteeing of paid vacations and sick leave, among other policies. Functionalist social programmes were described as "robust and generous", rivalling or eclipsing all Euclean societies.
One of the most notable elements of the Functionalist economic agenda were numerous immense public works and infrastracture projects to revitalise the economy following the Great Collapse. These included the building of important civilian and military infrastructure in both the metropole and the colonies, including the completion of the highly prestious Trans-Bahian Railway. The Ministry of Public Works oversaw the creation of hundreds of new schools and hospitals as part of this programme. Additionally, Gaullica's hydroelectric power output increased eightfold during the 1920s through the creation of numerous dams across the Aventines.
The desire for economic self sufficency was also a driving force behind the pragmatic approach Functionalists took to the economy, but their belief in 'self-sufficiency' extended to all aspects of the empire as a single entity.
Modern commentators have tried to concisely describe Functionalist economic policy. According to Magnus Fleischmann the economy displayed "clear elements of dirigiste thinking, though that style of economic thinking was first used to describe Gaullican economic policy post-Great War. Most modern scholars agree that Functionalism is strictly corporatist in economic terms, though "highly pragmatic".
The 'Nostalgic Future'
Functionalism maintains a view on society that has been described as a 'synthesis' between palingenesis and modernism. This synthesis is best exemplified in a declaration from Duclerque, who during his first speech as Premier in 1919 declared that to prepare Gaullica for the future it needed to "born anew". The Functionalist view of modernism was fixated on scientific and industrial advances, praising the modern world for the great leaps of human ingenuity and intelligence in the creation of new fields such as aviation, cinema and industrial management. In this way, Functionalism selectively chose what elements of modernism it deemed as ideal for a national rebirth whilst rejecting those it did not deem suitable. For instance, Functionalism rejected the sceptical nature of the modernist movement's uncertainty in science and dismissal of religion.
Ultimately, Functionalism viewed societies developing on a path towards an idealised goal of perfection. The developments of the modern era were espoused as necessary and to be celebrated if they could be controlled by a 'benevolent state' and utilised for righteous purposes, as opposed to contribute to a "culture of decadence". Functionalists were highly critical of the individualistic aspects of modernism as an affront for the human collective, and aimed to purge these elements from their movement. Instead they aimed to bring about the concepts of modernism they found agreeable in the 'national reawakening' of Gaullica, whereby the nation would finally "purge itself" free of the corruptions of liberalism, socialism and individualism and recreate new classes of "dedicated warriors to civilise the world".
Such a synthesis of ideas was named the "Nostalgic Future" by Functionalists, indicating that there would be elements of a traditional past in a better tomorrow. Much of this was related to the Gaullican idea of the "la Perpétuation" and the need to continue it, harkening back to a proposed continuous existence of knowledge that had been disrupted by the Age of Revolutions.
Aesthetics and culture
Trintignant described Functionalism as a "manner of being" as opposed to a mere political ideology. Duclerque, in the charter of the Parti Populaire, stated: "Functionalism is more than a political ideology; it is a movement of the human being to achieve perfection. Perfection in the arts, physical, political and spiritual." Following its arrival on Gaullica's political landscape by 1890, cultural movements arose within academia to try to apply Functionalist principles to the arts and sciences. The most forefront of these movements was the Futurism movement, which became the cultural wing of the Functionalist political machine.
The Parti Populaire set up a Ministry of Culture to direct and encourage artists to develop the ideas of the "Nostalgic Future", the state-as-organism, and the development of all aspects of life through technology.
Architecture
Architecture experienced a major upheaval in Gaullica around 1910. Three styles competed for influence at the start of the decade: Beaux-Arts, Art Nouveau, and Art Deco. The Beaux-Arts style was a traditionalist school that extolled Gaullican opulence; it was deeply associated with Evelin and her legacy. Emperor Aurélien was associated with the Art Nouveau movement, as he endorsed its project to blur line between the fine and applied arts. Official advocacy for Art Nouveau ended with his forced abdication, as his son Constantin became a major benefactor of the nascent futurist schools, particularly Art Deco. Duclerque, too, was a devotee of Art Deco and commissioned many of his personal projects in that style.
Despite their support from Gaullican engineers, builders and artists—particularly those from Verlois and Rayenne—these three major styles were not without challengers. Taking inspiration from trends in Southern Euclea, Functionalism adopted the principles of rationalism and stripped classicism in most architectural designs that required monumental scale. Stripped classicism aimed to evoke an Imperial and Solarian heritage of monumentality at a fraction of the cost of earlier styles, while at the same time alluding to the vigor of modern industry by using the visual language of the factory. Rationalist and stripped classical buildings became common for public housing, schools, and hospitals. Notable examples of the style include the Hall of the Future in Lavelle, a series of apartments in Verlois known as 'Le Bosquet' and expansions to the Rayenne Institute of Technology, particularly its nuclear research facilities.
Despite the popularity of these three styles among leading Functionalists, the regime had no official policy on architecture beyond one of convenience, and competing Functionalists lobbied for their favorite architects and styles. The legacy of the era is that portions of Verlois are mosaics of architectural taste.
Art
Art under Functionalism was instrumentalized to promote physical fitnness, communal identity, the worship of national heroes, Gaullican unity, and the Communauté populaire.
The most prominent Futurists were Florentin Delsarte, Victoria Legaullois, and Gérôme Matthieu. Each was a committed Functionalist and exemplified Functionalist principles through their art. Futurism promoted the incorporation of technology into the wider culture, lauding new developments like the automobile, airplane, and mass industry as both key technologies for advancing society and tools for the creation of new art.
Delsarte, famed for his work emphasizing Functionalism as a social movement, used broadly interpretive styles to convey his messages. Work like his led art critics like Sophie Brown to describe Functionalism as having themes of "submission, duty and glorification of violence".
Perhaps the most famous of the Functionalist Futurists was Matthieu, who was one of the first Euclean artists to travel the world in search of reference material for his works. His paintings depict an idealised, racially harmonious Gaullican Empire.
Cuisine and food science
The Functionalist emphasis on health, beauty, and strength also found an expression in Gaullican cuisine. Health minister Nicolas Saunier believed in a "restructuring of diet" to in accordance with the latest in nutrition science. Under his direction, the Ministry of Health became concerned with diet and fitness.
The Ministry of Health embarked on a propaganda campaign to improve the Gaullican diet. Saunier collaborated with the Ministry of Agriculture to develop a pyramid of food consumption that instructed consumers on the proper balance of food groups and adequate portion sizes. The Great Collapse had brought malnutrition to the forefront of the national dialogue, and it was a running concern of the 1910s. Fruit and vegetables were pushed to the forefront of the national diet as a response. Within hospitals, schools and workplaces posters called on the public to "eat their greens" and to "restore the health of the nation". Restaurateurs and cookbook authors created vegetarian versions of popular dishes, though the public was not always receptive to abandoning pot-au-feu and coq au vin in favour of cutlets made from beans and chickpeas.
In 1921, Duclerque appointed Georges Gaston to lead the Ministry of Health. Gaston had an unorthodox view of food and consumption and was of the belief that Gaullicans ate too much cheese, which he believed made them pessimistic and lethargic. He lobbied the government, unsuccessfully, to replace much of the public's dairy consumption with eggs due to his belief they were a "miracle food", making adults grow stronger and children grow faster. The unsuccessful policy, which was not adopted, was known as the "Neuf œufs" campaign.
The government emphasised the appetite-suppressant properties of cigarette smoking and promoted the "healthy" use of tobacco, though this was a relatively small campaign aimed for individuals who were overweight.
Movements within Functionalism became concerned with the experience of eating and the aesthetics of the dining experience. These movements were fringe and did not influence the national consciousness, though did infiltrate some elements of higher society. Several Gaullican restaurants became famed for 'randomising' the order of cuisine delivered to the table. Others experimented with light, temperature, music and discourse when eating, with varied results. The Bucentaure, a famed restaurant in Verlois, experimented with stimulating all senses during the dining experience: complimentary fragrances were sprayed during courses, 'tactile food' to be touched was provided whilst ate, running water was used stimulate hearing and dishes were purposefully made to be bright, extravagent and appealing to the eye.
During the war, Functionalist food scientists worked on developing food bars for general soldier consumption and rationing, whilst others experimented with making alternative products that could no longer be made due to embargos and global shipping difficulties.
Fashion
According to fashion historian Valerie Laver, Functionalist fashion was concerned with "sleekness and speed", rejecting the fashion of the preceding decades as "burdened with excessive ornament, cumbersome, and heavy". Functionalist thinkers and designers emphasized clothing that was lightweight, practical, and elegant but inexpensive. In contrast to the billowy clothing of the past, new fashions had the clean, aerodynamic shapes of the industrial era. Designers emphasised that fashion should be practical as well as attractive and should encourage the body to move as naturally as possible, allowing the skin to breathe. They readily embraced mass production of clothing, experimenting with synthetic dyes and fabrics and challenging conventional attitudes about materials. Functionalists prized leather, which Duclerque described as "miraculous" in conversation with Jacquard, highlighting its sleek appearance, water resistance, ease of cleaning, durability and strength. Leather jackets, boots, and accessories became highly popular and closely associated with the aesthetic of the era.
Major designers and fashion houses worked with the Funcitonalist movement. These included Santeràn, Casavant, C-de-B and Leroux Moulin. Marc-Antoine Jacquard, who was the first member of Verlois's fashion scene to publicly declare his support for Duclerque, designed the uniforms of the Parti Populaire's paramilitaries. Jacquard and his collaborators adopted the idea of women wearing trousers, which had previously been associated with the Feminist movement, describing the concept as "empowering and bold" as befit a movement that prized strength and determination.
Film
At the dawn of the twentieth century, film was a thrilling new medium. Cinemas were opening across Euclea by the hundreds, and filmmakers produced artistic and commercial works at a frantic pace. Verlois was at the center of the nascent film industry, with four major firms—Frères Fétique, Vaugrenard & Delaunay, Studio Chapuis and Société E.P.—competing for the tastes of the lucrative middle classes. Studios tempted the new bourgeousie with dance productions, historic epics, romantic melodramas, and slapstick comedies.
This freewheeling period came to an abrupt end as the Great Collapse dried up capital overnight, forcing filmmakers to work on shoestring budgets and theaters to abandon their previously lavish decor. Despite the hardship, cinema clung to life commercially as the masses looked for cheap entertainment and an escape from the drudgery of hard times.
The Functionalists took advantage of the economic downturn by offering struggling actors and directors a financial lifeline, commissioning films that sold Functionalism to the masses. Directors such as Napoléon Fétique, Émeric Pélissier, Cédric Vaugrenard and Arsène Emmanuelli took the Functionalists up on their offer and formed the group Les cinéastes du futur (Cinematographers for the Future). Duclerque ensured that the group's films were widely shown, often free of charge, to a public hungry for entertainment, redemption, and revenge.
Duclerque's generous funding allowed directors to make great leaps in film technology. Functionalist cinema saw triumphs in art direction, special effects, character makeup, lighting, and sound. Some of the most iconic scenes in cinematic history are from Functionalist productions: a rolling shot of the Verloian skyline taken from a biplane from the film Voler!, the superimposed images of the titular characters in Léa & Mélodie, and the final sequence of Dîner à l'Utopie, where the stark contrast of black and white geometric patterns communicates the protagonist's suicidal spiral. Fétique and Vaugrenard in particular were masters of cinematography and were instrumental in developing new techniques, like aerial shots and early experiments in color photography.
In contrast to the free hand they were given technically, filmmakers were far more circumscribed in their works' themes and subject matter. Functionalist film was, according to Minister of Popular Culture Simon Vandame, to be "evocative, inspiring, and hopeful". Films often dealt with duty, honor, the need for authority, and the dangers of individualism. Frères en guerre, the historical epic Claudius and the forerunner of science fiction Pour Dieu each tackled a Functionalist 'theme' in depth. Claudius, for instance, a film detailing the Solarian general and later Emperor's consolidation of power in the Gallia province, highlights the necessity of a strong authority to unit disparate groups for common purpose.
By the 1920s, the Parti Populaire's role in Gaullican cinema had gone from benefactor to dictator. Duclerque granted Vandame and the Ministry of Popular Culture censorship power over the entire industry, precipitating a flight of socialist and liberal directors and actors to Werania, Caldia and Rizealand. Vandame tried to salvage the industry's prestige by establishing a series of awards in 1926 that he bestowed on films that best exemplified Functionalist ideology, emphasizing morality, commitment to communal values, and "functionality", which was defined as serving an external purpose beyond that of art.
The onset of war killed the last vestiges of artistic value in Functionalist cinema as the industry was directed entirely toward producing wartime propaganda.
Leisure and sport
Given their foundational concept of the state as a living organism and constant references to the body politic, the Functionalists naturally were concerned with the health and physicality of the population on a deep ideological level. Functionalism regarded physical strength as an innately desirable trait for the individual and for the collective. In The Function of Man, de Trintignant asserts that a physically fit individual is a morally superior individual, and that sport, which he praises as one of humanity's greatest creations, "channels human ambition, strengthens the mind, and reveals the latent glory of the body".
The Parti Populaire promoted a physical lifestyle by making sport and exercise as widely available as possible, both in school for children and after work for adults and families.
In matters of education, Minister of Education Alceste Bescond made physical education compulsory for all ages within education. He placed a greater emphasis on physical development and fitness through both individual exercise and cooperative team games. During his tenure as Minister, schools across the metropole had to take regular fitness tests of its students judging them on the basis of physical strength, endurance, speed and teamwork. Failings in these tests would be met with punishment, usually in the form of exclusion from classes and more extreme exercises to compensate for "weakness".
Sports were encouraged to be offered at all schools, and schools had to at least pick two sports from a list given by the government. Typical sports included football, fencing, boxing and wrestling and athletics. In addition to this, Bescond made it mandatory for the schools to have to affiliate with the 'Fédération du travail', where students would be exposed to ,and in some cases even participate in, manual labour to encourage and foster a strong work ethic.
For adults, the government set up the Corps Récréatif Ouvrier (Workers' Recreation Corps) which organised after work leisure activities for the men and families of the nation. Membership was free and it was easily the largest Functionalist organisation in terms of raw numbers, with well over 60% of the workforce participating in it by 1927. The CRO organised the creation of sports facilities and created clubs for people to practice sports, leisure and recreational activities for affordable prices. Additionally, utilising the vast rail networks of the nation, the CRO would begin to develop schemes of train-trips for holidays for workers and their families.
This emphasis on leisure was an attempt to evoke not only the sense of communal identity with fellow workers but to also foster an acceptance of societal conditions and that work was a place of enjoyment as well as duty.
Literature
Functionalism's seminal text The Function of Man was written in the late 1800s by de Trintignant. This served as a foundations for the tenets of the ideology. The Parti Populaire held the book in high regard, even if not all of its ideas were used in favour of pragmatic solutions to issues to work within the Gaullican system. Duclerque held a personal copy of the text, which he was noted to read in bouts of uncertainty, and made it a required reading throughout a student's academic life.
The relationship the ideology held to literature in general, however, was much different. During the 1920s, Duclerque mandated the censoring of numerous liberal, feminist and socialist texts and oversaw the mass burnings of the Weranian text Eine Tragödie. It was deemed the "forefront of individualistic thought", and was burned at Parti Populaire rallies across the nation, particularly at universities. Book burning was an inconsistent, sporadic practice that intensified during the annexation of Flamia before the outbreak of war. It continued as a practice during the Great War, though was a rarer form of cultural destruction. The most notable example of mass-book burning was in 1928 during the occupation of Estmere, where Gaullican authorities and collaborators sacked the Institute for Sexology and set the entire collection of books ablaze.
In terms of producing their own literature, the publishing of books fell under the purview of the Ministry of Popular Culture - which imposed rules on the publishing of books. Books critical of the state were made illegal in 1923, as were those critical of Duclerque or Functionalist ideology. A strict censor was placed for the selling of books published in other countries during this time period.
Functionalist literature was concerned with many of the same themes espoused by the cinematic movement at the time, though with noticeable differences. Literature, through books, textbooks, newspapers and articles, was deeply concerned with what the Functionalists called the "correction of history". It became official policy of the Ministry of Education to produce a 'correct' history for school and popular consumption.
These works portrayed history as a narrative of great men and conquest, highlighting Gaullican victories and cultural power, extolling the successes of the nation to 'superior values', and providing justifiction - often against external, immovable forces - to Gaullican loses. The War of the Triple Alliance was a topic of frequent discussion and the setting for perhaps the most famous Functionalist novel: Sur le sang de nos pères (On the Blood of Our Fathers). The book harshly criticises the moral deficiency of Gaullica's Soravian and Valduvian allies who are depicted as barbarous rabbles led by incompetent generals and cowards commanded by duplicitious schemers, respectively. Despite its popularity, 'Sur le sang de nos pères' and other Functionalist works were deeply criticised for being historically revisionist works.
Music
Despite the Futurist wing's attempts at modernising the Functionalist approach to music, the ideology as a whole held a traditionally conservative view point on music. New forms of music, such as jazz, were viewed with incredible suspicion and outright disgust by many within the regime. Music, as far as the Functionalists were concerned, should promote a national consciousness and be utilised as a tool for social cohesion. Like the other arts it fell under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Popular Culture, specifically its sub-section of the Department of Harmonious Symphonies, and was often the subject of rigorous censorship.
The Parti Populaire were strongly in favour of promoting the works of traditional Gaullican composers such as Gabriel Saint-Saëns, Dorothée Tourneur and Alexis-Louis Bonis. Classical music was regarded as a high art to be spread to the masses. Functionalists encouraged the experimentation of musical work within the confines of the various genres of classical music, notably they were prominent endorsers of the impressionist school. In addition to classical music, Functionalists held particular regard for both folk music and religious music as communal endeavours of the spirit.
To ensure the availability of music for all the nation, the Ministry of Technological Advancement prioritised the creation of an affordable radio, which was finally produced by 1925 under the name of the L'Oreille (The Ear). In addition to trying to ensure the availability of the radio in people's homes, Functionalists created Parcs d'écoute (Listening Parks) for general usage. These were outdoor spaces marked by a large presence of elevated loudspeakers, where music was played for the public.
One of the most reactionary Functionalist policies was a rejection of jazz, which had seen a vibrant growth within Verlois during the early part of the 1900s. Functionalist viewed jazz as an unsavoury musical development because of its origins in the black communities of Satucin; and saw it as a 'reverse' element of civic nationalism - that Gaullican sensibilities were being absorbed into a foreign cultural entity. As a result, jazz musicians were often blacklisted from performing - and many fled to other Euclean capitals, only to return at the end of the war.
In spite of the Functionalist ideology's conservative view of music, several members of the Functionalist music scene still experimented with new technological and compositional developments. Aleksy Theremin, a Miersan Functionalist, created the theremin, one of the first pieces of electronic musical equipment - and it grew popular within some circles of the Functionalist public.
Theatre
Age and gender roles
Functionalist Ideologies
National Solarianism
Palmeirism
Notable Functionalists
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Ardesian State
Dinis Montecara
Caudilho of Ardesia, 1914 - 1934 - Karl Åberg.png
Greater Blostland
Karl Åberg
Anförare of Greater Blostland, 1923–1934 
Capria
Autit Farooqui
President of Capria, 1927–1932
Delland
Mario Alver
President of Delland 1928–1931
Template:Country data Estmere
A. J. Arundel
Leader of Estmerish Popular Action 1921–1933
Gaullica
Édouard d'Aubusson
Minister of Foreign Affairs, 1919 - 1925
Minister of the Dominions, 1925 - 1931
Gaullica
Pierre-Antoine Baudet
Minister of Foreign Affairs, 1925 - 1934- Bescond.jpg Gaullica
Alceste Bescond
Minister of Education, 1919 - 1934 
Gaullica
Gwenaëlle Cazal
Directeur-Général of the Maréchaussée, 1919 - 1934
Gaullica
Abélard Cochet
Minister of the Interior, 1923 - 1934
Gaullica
Constantin III
Emperor of Gaullica, 1919 - 1934
Gaullica
Serge Desmarais
Minister of Justice, 1922 - 1934
Gaullica
Rafael Duclerque
Premier of Gaullica, 1919 - 1934
Gaullica
Georges Gaston
Minister of Health, 1921 - 1924, Minister of Agriculture, 1924 - 1930
Gaullica
Pierre-Louis Gavreau General
Gaullica
Léonard Bouvier
Minister of the Colonies, 1919 - 1934
Gaullica
Bruno Lavigne
Admiral of the Fleet, Minister of the Navy 1919 - 1927
Gaullica
Tristan Pueyrredón
Minister of Public Works 1919 - 1922, Chairman of the Compagnie du Chemin de fer Impérial, 1922 - 1930
Gaullica
Nicolas Saunier
Minister of Health, 1919 - 1921, 1924 - 1934
Gaullica
File:BLFlag.png Baséland
Julien Sontonga
Senator from Sainte-Germaine, 1928 - 1934
Gaullica
Gaëtan de Trintignant
Marshal of Gaullica, author of The Function of Man- LeonDegrelleYelling.png Gaullica
Simon Vandame
Minister of Popular Culture, 1920 - 1930, Minister of Communications, 1930 - 1934 
Gaullica
Alexandre Verninac
Chief of Staff of the Imperial Armed Forces
Gaullica
Żyścin "Justin" Żowanu
Minister of Finance, 1919 - 1921, 1922 - 1923, 1927 - 1933- ThiranaiRatana2.jpg
Kuthina
Thiranai Ratana
Deputy Viceroy of Kuthina, 1923 - 1935 
Paretia
Carlos Palmeira
Premier of Paretia, 1925–1934- Roberta.jpeg Paretia
Roberta II
Queen of Paretia, 1921–1934 
Paretia
Rafael Azevedo
Minister of the Interior, 1927–1934
Paretia
Joaquim Fidalgo
Minister of War, 1926–1934
Paretia
André Morais
Minister of Justice, 1925-1933
Paretia
Justí Retuerta
Chief of General Staff, 1925-1934
Paretia
Hèctor Clar
Minister of Propaganda, 1925-1933
Paretia
Diogo Rangel Faria
Chief of the Reservistas, 1919-1932
Paretia
Alfonso Clemente
Minister of Government Affairs, 1925-1927
Paretia
Filipe Noronha
Minister of Foreign Affairs, 1926-1934
Paretia
Fidel Colón
Minister of Culture, 1925-1934
Paretia
Ângelo Serra
Minister of Science, 1925-1934
Piraea
Nikolaos II of Piraea
King of Piraea, 1924–1938
Piraea
Theodoros Strakidis
Premier of Piraea, 1925–1938
Piraea
Konstantinos Athanopoulos
President de facto of Piraea, 1948–1978, and Leader and founder of National Alignment
Ruttland
Zydrunas Biržiška
Tautos Vadas of the Liplisqués Government 1929–1933
Dominion of Satucin
Henri Masson,
Premier of Satucin, 1922 – 1931, 1940 – 1947
Viceroyalty of the New Aurean
Louis Barnave,
President of the Red Hibiscus Society
1923 – 1932
Senria
Yosito Otuzi
Chief Minister of the Reformed Government 1927–1932
Senria
Yosimoto Hideaki
Minister of Foreign Affairs & Propaganda of the Reformed Government 1927–1934- Cao Ghuozhang.jpg
Shangea
Cao Ghuozhang
Leader of the Political Wing of the Nanqing Clique 1924-1934 
Greater Solarian Republic
Leonardo Furio Gennari
Prefect-General of Rahelia Etruriana 1921-1945, author of The Solarian Solution
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Criticism
Gaullican President Sotirien Roche described Functionalism as "revolutionary conservativism", noting that whilst it found itself rooted in conservative principles many of its policies brought it into conflict with established elements of society. Functionalism challenged the position of women in society and was willing to go against societal convention for the necessity of war and the economy, fought the church over the role of the state as an apparatus of identity and placed a great emphasis on an imagined future rather than a historic glory. In this sense, Roche's assessment was that "Functionalism merged the carefully drawn lines of public and private life, as it aimed to consume all facets of it". Because of these factors, Roche called the movement "a conservative socialism" or a "socialist conservatism", to much criticism, though he clarified he did not truly mean 'socialist' in the political sense, but as a comparative point.
Legacy
In popular culture
- ↑ de Trintignant, Gaëtan. “Letter to the Gaullican People.” Verlois Herald, March 15, 1861.