J’ai souvent envie de le faire

Song Meaning

Charles Aznavour's "J'ai souvent envie de le faire" is a subversive, playful jab at societal double standards surrounding female desire. The song's meaning hinges on the unspoken tension between what women are *expected* to do versus what they might *want* to do, particularly regarding sexual agency. Aznavour, adopting a persona that's both mischievous and self-aware, dismantles the conventional image of female passivity in courtship. He highlights the constraints placed upon women by 'morale,' 'raison,' and 'pudeur' – morality, reason, and modesty – suggesting these are less about inherent virtue and more about social control. The verses paint scenarios where women are subtly policed by societal expectations. A woman noticing an attractive man at a party ("un bel animal") must remain demure, lest she be judged for making the first move. A woman being visually undressed by a man's gaze retreats into her shell ("elles rentrent dans leur coquille") rather than confronting the power dynamic. A woman receiving a handsome delivery man can't even entertain the thought of impulsively acting on her attraction. Aznavour underscores the absurdity of these constraints, implying that women are perpetually forced to suppress their natural impulses. The repeated refrain, "Eh bien! Moi je m'en contrefous et puisque nous sommes entre nous / Très humblement je vous l'avoue, j'ai souvent envie de le faire" (Well! I don't care and since it's just us / Very humbly I confess to you, I often want to do it) is the song's defiant core. It's not necessarily an admission of acting on these desires, but rather a declaration of *having* them. It's the acknowledgement of female desire itself that is the radical act. The final lines, addressing men directly, solidify the song's feminist undertones: "Messieurs, quittez vos airs pincés, ne me jugez pas d'un sourire / Si bien des femmes l'ont pensé, moi je suis la seule à la dire" (Gentlemen, drop your prim airs, don't judge me with a smile / If so many women have thought it, I'm the only one saying it). Aznavour suggests that he is merely voicing a truth that many women privately acknowledge, challenging the patriarchal norms that silence female desire.