Mention the phrase “the social contract” to a young French person and they might not think of Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s 1762 opus. They might think of a meme. It shows a young professional, “Nicolas”. He sits, head in hands, with arrows pointing from him to various drains on taxpayers, including “Bernard & Chantal, 70 ans”, who spend their pensions on cruises and cocktails. The image has spread elsewhere—in Britain retirees “Simon and Linda” extract cash from “Nick”. And it has entered the language of politicians. “It is always Nicolas who pays,” said Bruno Retailleau, France’s interior minister, in August. President Emmanuel Macron’s advisers are said to be “closely monitoring” the Nicolas qui paie “movement”.