You know, there are certain historical events that one looks at and thinks, "If only they had the gift of modern technology, how different things might have been!" As a veritable time traveller in my mind's eye, I often ponder these whimsical "what ifs" with a dash of humour and a sprinkle of imagination. Which brings us to the one, the only, Marie Antoinette. A royal icon with a penchant for the extravagant, yet tragically misunderstood. So, what if Marie Antoinette had access to Instagram? Certainly, her reign was fleeting, but with the wonders of Wi-Fi, perhaps she could have "influenced" her way out of that pesky French Revolution!
#LetThemEatCake - Posting for Posterity
Imagine Marie, her hair piled high in powdered magnificence, snapping selfies in her opulent palace, each post accompanied by eloquent captions oozing with joie de vivre. Her hashtags would practically write themselves: #RoyalLife #LetThemEatCake #PalaceGoals. Why, one could imagine her wielding her smartphone like a sceptre, dictating the court's discourse one filtered photo at a time.
Ah, but what of that infamous quote, "Let them eat cake," often attributed to poor Marie, though historians argue that it’s more likely fiction than fact? With Instagram, the truth might have come out much swifter than a guillotine blade, possibly followed by a live Q&A session under a new hashtag: #ActuallyIDidntSayThat.
The Rise of a Royal Influencer
Let us not forget her divine sense of fashion. Surely #OutfitOfTheDay posts would feature silk gowns depicted from angles that would make the commoners sigh with longing and the aristocracy seethe with envy. Her fashion posts could have inspired admiration rather than animosity, with captions promoting her court seamstresses as Couturiers de Versailles.
Harnessing the power of carefully curated posts, Marie Antoinette could have shifted public perception. The art of the influencer lies in creating a persona that everyone wants to be, or at least to know. Here, a queen could strut not just as a ruler but as the glamazon queen of Parisian style, diverting eyes from political discontent to the divine hum of an iPhone's camera snap.
The Revolution: Double-tap to "Like" History
And there lies the rub, my dear readers. As Marie's followers ballooned into the millions, would views and likes be enough to halt the rumbling of the Revolution? Could influencers, with charm and visual storytelling, forestall or even divert an impending crisis of such societal magnitude?
Sadly, likes do not governance make. For every heart emoji sent her way, there'd be ten citizens clutching empty bread baskets, now armed with knowledge from their own mobile screens. News spread less like wildfire and more like trending topics. Videos of public discontent could emerge as viral content, shared widely, and perhaps gaining more attention than Marie's latest ball gown ensemble.
A Picture Is Worth a Thousand Words, but Is History's Artful Dodger?
Why, with such juxtaposition, Marie's Instagram might serve as a time capsule, a digital reflection of the time’s tumultuous clash between excess and indigence. The Revolution would steam forth like a runaway steam engine, history untethered by a phone’s romanticised view of royalty, because for every post, there's a story untold behind the lens, unseen by the rosy tint of an Instagram filter.
Still, the musings delight and the ponderings amuse. What technology can build, it can also destroy. Marie Antoinette's Instagram, a glitzy gallery wall of Versailles, may not have changed history's course, but it certainly offers us a dazzling canvas of "what ifs." Perhaps, just perhaps, had Marie been able to craft her image in the digital realm, the world might have understood the girl behind the queen just a little better. And perhaps, through the fickle grace of Instagram, she could have let the world know: "Je ne suis qu'une femme," or, "I am just a woman." And now, dear reader, shall we let them have cake?
