Abstract
The upheaval of the French Revolution subtly but profoundly changed the meaning of the word repression. By 1802 the long-standing emphasis on containing disorder gave way to a new emphasis on suppressing disorder; in other words, repression as a defensive, prophylactic action was replaced conceptually by repression as an interventionist and transformative action. Repression did not merely defend order, it brought order out of disorder.
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© 2012 Howard G. Brown
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Brown, H.G. (2012). The Origins of the Napoleonic System of Repression. In: Broers, M., Hicks, P., Guimerá, A. (eds) The Napoleonic Empire and the New European Political Culture. War, Culture and Society, 1750–1850. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137271396_4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137271396_4
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, London
Print ISBN: 978-1-349-31703-5
Online ISBN: 978-1-137-27139-6
eBook Packages: Palgrave History CollectionHistory (R0)