Introduction to the Court of Miracles

There is a significance to names. Liberal. Conservative. Radical. Reactionary. Socialist. Capitalist. Anarchist. Atheist. Christian. Muslim. Hindu. Rich. Poor. Feminist. Intellectual. Proletariat. You. Me. They all describe something. Someone. It's important to not be too exclusive, lest one falls in the pit of the No True Scotsman Fallacy. However, at the same time, you cannot be too inclusive, lest someone takes a name that isn't fitting. Names hold significance beyond the people they represent. Socialism is socialism, even if there is nothing left that fits that name. The significance of the names are important. Equally important is the reasons behind choosing the names.

So why have I chosen Court of Miracles? What significance does that name hold? Well, I must admit, the reason for choosing it isn't the same reason I first thought of it. I first thought of it as a descriptor of the modern world, thinking, primarily, of the song from the Hunchback of Notre Dame where the inhabitants of the court hold a mock trial, with one man serving as judge, jury, and executioner. However, being who I am, I was not satisfied with using it in that way without learning more about it. So I went to google and searched. The Court of Miracles is originally a French term, Cour des Miracles. It refers to French Slums inhabited mainly by beggars. It gained its name because the beggars from it would fake grievous handicaps to gain more from their begging, from blindness to sickness, but they'd drop their charade when they returned to the slums. "Blind" men could see. "Cripples" could walk. Miracles happened every day. But they weren't miracles. They were honesty. The beggars only needed to lie to the rich. Among their own, they could be themselves. And, so, I saw a new way to use the name Court of Miracles and apply it to the modern world. The Court of Miracles isn't the state. The Court of Miracles isn't the rich. The Court of Miracles is the poor and downtrodden. We may not live in slums comparable to that of the French beggars, but we still jump through hoops for the rich. Like the beggars in the old French Cour des Miracles, we should be honest with each other, and we should join together and unite.

That is the significance of this name. I write from the modern day Court of Miracles. The working class. The proletariat. We are the Court of Miracles.