--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In the Convention tomorrow I shall put…" description: "\"“In the Convention tomorrow I shall put him up to confront Saint-Just. Imagine it. Our man the picture of starched rectitude, and looking as if he has ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/525/hilary-mantel-440_french-revolution_in-the-convention-tomorrow-i-shall-put-h_1613340.jpg" --- # In the Convention tomorrow I shall put him up to confront… ![“In the Convention tomorrow I shall put him up to confront Saint-Just. Imagine it. Our man the picture of starched rectitude, and looking as if he has just devoured a beefsteak; and Camille making a joke or two at our man’s expense and then talking about ’89. A cheap trick, but the galleries will…” quote by Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/525/hilary-mantel-440_french-revolution_in-the-convention-tomorrow-i-shall-put-h_1613340.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/525/hilary-mantel-440_french-revolution_in-the-convention-tomorrow-i-shall-put-h_1613340.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/525/hilary-mantel-440_french-revolution_in-the-convention-tomorrow-i-shall-put-h_1613340.jpg) > ““In the Convention tomorrow I shall put him up to confront Saint-Just. Imagine it. Our man the picture of starched rectitude, and looking as if he has just devoured a beefsteak; and Camille making a joke or two at our man’s expense and then talking about ’89. A cheap trick, but the galleries will cheer. This will make Saint-Just lose his temper-not easy, since he cultivates this Greek statue manner of his—but I guarantee that Camille can do it. As soon as our man begins to bawl and roar, Camille will fold up and look helpless. That will get Robespierre on his feet, and we will all generate one of these huge emotional scenes. I always win those.”” [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A character plans a theatrical confrontation to provoke emotional chaos and manipulate political rivals. **In simple terms:** A staged clash is used to stir emotions and gain advantage. Key Takeaway Use drama wisely, but beware of manipulation. Themes politics manipulation theatre emotion strategy Mood tension strategic cautious Type political dramatic psychological When to use this quote - parliamentary debate - public speaking - media campaigns Key Concepts psychology power dynamics performance art Questions to Reflect On - What ethical lines are crossed when staging emotional scenes? - How can genuine emotion be distinguished from orchestrated drama? A Different Perspective Risk of backlash if the audience sees through the manipulation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Beefsteak Camille](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beefsteak-camille-6153724/) [Confront Saint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/confront-saint-6153722/) [French revolution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/french-revolution/) [Helpless Robespierre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/helpless-robespierre-6153721/) [Robespierre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/robespierre/) [Robespierre Feet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/robespierre-feet-6153723/) ## Related quotes > [“Robespierre has never forgiven his friends the injuries he has done them, nor the kindnesses he has received from them, nor the talents some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/robespierre-has-never-forgiven-his-friends-the-injuries-he-has-done/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [“People said— though this felt like a heresy— that they had seen Camille make Robespierre laugh.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/people-said-though-this-felt-like-a-heresy-that-they-had-seen-camille/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [“The Robespierre women (as one tended to think of them now) were all on display. Madame looked actively, rather intimidatingly benevolent; it was her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/the-robespierre-women-as-one-tended-to-think-of-them-now-were-all-on/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [“...and I sometimes think that the fading out of the individual personality is what one should desire, not the status of a hero—a sort…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/and-i-sometimes-think-that-the-fading-out-of-the-individual/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [“The Republic is six months old, and it’s flying apart. It has no cohesive force—only a monarchy has that. Surely you can see? We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/the-republic-is-six-months-old-and-it-s-flying-apart-it-has-no/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [“In Paris the swaying lanterns are lit in the streets; lights shine through water, fuzzy, diffuse. Saint-Just sits by an insufficient fire, in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/in-paris-the-swaying-lanterns-are-lit-in-the-streets-lights-shine/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [“Talking to Robespierre, one tried to make the right noises; but what is right, these days? Address yourself to the militant, and you find…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/talking-to-robespierre-one-tried-to-make-the-right-noises-but-what-is/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [“I resent you—” Robespierre said. His words were lost. “The People,” he shouted, “are everywhere good, and if they obstruct the Revolution—even, for example,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/i-resent-you-robespierre-said-his-words-were-lost-the-people-he/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [“You must, of course. Robespierre doesn’t lie or cheat or steal, doesn’t get drunk, doesn’t fornicate—overmuch. He’s not a hedonist or a mainchancer or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/you-must-of-course-robespierre-doesn-t-lie-or-cheat-or-steal-doesn-t/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [“Ask Robespierre. Ask the man with the conscience which is more important, your friend or your country— ask him how he weighs an individual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/ask-robespierre-ask-the-man-with-the-conscience-which-is-more/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [“I want to make love to the French Revolution. Or maybe just get some head from Robespierre.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/i-want-to-make-love-to-the-french-revolution-or-maybe-just-get-some/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [I have left my balls to Robespierre and my legs to Couthon. That should help the Committee of Public Safety for a while.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-danton/i-have-left-my-balls-to-robespierre-and-my-legs-to-couthon-that/) [Georges Danton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-danton/) > [“A sensibility that wails almost exclusively over the enemies of liberty seems suspect to me. Stop shaking the tyrant's bloody robe in my face,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maximilien-robespierre/a-sensibility-that-wails-almost-exclusively-over-the-enemies-of/) [Maximilien Robespierre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maximilien-robespierre/) > [ You \[Robespierre\] will follow us soon. Your house will be beaten down and salt sown in the place where it stood. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-danton/you-robespierre-will-follow-us-soon-your-house-will-be-beaten-down/) [Georges Danton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-danton/) > [“I have always been interested in this man . My father had a set of Tom Paine 's books on the shelf at home.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-a-edison/i-have-always-been-interested-in-this-man-my-father-had-a-set-of-tom/) [Thomas A. Edison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-a-edison/) ## More by Hilary Mantel > [People will identify with a persecuted minority without asking themselves what they are identifying with.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/people-will-identify-with-a-persecuted-minority-without-asking/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [“The hunter is among the most innocent of men; living in the moment makes him feel pure. 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He hopes she will use them to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/at-new-year-s-he-had-given-anne-a-present-of-silver-forks-with/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [“The story of my own childhood is a complicated sentence that I am always trying to finish, to finish and put behind me. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/the-story-of-my-own-childhood-is-a-complicated-sentence-that-i-am/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [“He wants to say, because Anne is not a carnal being, she is a calculating being, with a cold slick brain at work behind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/he-wants-to-say-because-anne-is-not-a-carnal-being-she-is-a/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [“Come to that, don't pay out good money for horoscopes. If things are going to go badly for you, is that what you need…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/come-to-that-don-t-pay-out-good-money-for-horoscopes-if-things-are/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [“But my sins are my strength, he thinks; the sins I have done, that others have not even found the opportunity of committing. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/but-my-sins-are-my-strength-he-thinks-the-sins-i-have-done-that/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [Feminism hasn't failed, it's just never been tried.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/feminism-hasn-t-failed-it-s-just-never-been-tried/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [“Mirabeau: “If you have been told to clear us from this hall, you must ask for orders to use force. We shall leave our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/mirabeau-if-you-have-been-told-to-clear-us-from-this-hall-you-must/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [“Cardinal Campeggio has implored Katherine to bow to the king's will, accept that her marriage is invalid and retire to a convent. Certainly, she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/cardinal-campeggio-has-implored-katherine-to-bow-to-the-king-s-will/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [“Sion calls Anne an eel, he calls her a slippery dipper from the slime, and he remembers what the cardinal had called her: my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/sion-calls-anne-an-eel-he-calls-her-a-slippery-dipper-from-the-slime/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [I spend a great deal of time on research, on finding all the available accounts of a scene or incident, finding out all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/i-spend-a-great-deal-of-time-on-research-on-finding-all-the-available/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [“At the front, people die for their mistakes. Why should politicians be more gently treated? They made the war. They deserve a dozen deaths,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/at-the-front-people-die-for-their-mistakes-why-should-politicians-be/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) [Explore all 559 Hilary Mantel quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) ## More French revolution quotes > [My principles are only those that, before the French Revolution, every well-born person considered sane and normal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julius-evola/my-principles-are-only-those-that-before-the-french-revolution-every/) [Julius Evola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julius-evola/) > [The French Revolution gave us three... powerful ideas, or concepts - liberty, equality and fraternity. 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Francisco de…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-hedges/revolutionists-who-took-part-in-uprisings-in-one-part-of-the-globe/) [Chris Hedges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-hedges/) > [“The French Revolution, which is nothing more nor less than the ideal armed with the sword, rose abruptly, and by that very movement, closed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/the-french-revolution-which-is-nothing-more-nor-less-than-the-ideal/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [There were two, three or four French Revolutions. Like a multi-stage rocket today, the Revolution involved several successive explosions and propellant thrusts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernand-braudel/there-were-two-three-or-four-french-revolutions-like-a-multi-stage/) [Fernand Braudel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernand-braudel/) > [“Doing nothing is the hardest torture that a person can put himself through. 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The visitors who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephanie-dupal/it-s-a-question-of-legacy-who-else-will-do-this-work-but-us-the-men/) [Stephanie Dupal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephanie-dupal/) [Browse all 316 French revolution quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/french-revolution/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“In the Convention tomorrow I shall put him up to confront Saint-Just. Imagine it. Our man the picture of starched rectitude, and looking as if he has just devoured a beefsteak; and Camille making a joke or two at our man’s expense and then talking about ’89. A cheap trick, but the galleries will cheer. This will make Saint-Just lose his temper-not easy, since he cultivates this Greek statue manner of his—but I guarantee that Camille can do it. As soon as our man begins to bawl and roar, Camille will fold up and look helpless. 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