My landlord asked me a practical question: “Would you like a table basse in the apartment?” In French, table basse simply means low table. It is a beautifully literal phrase. A table … that is low. I said yes. Two days later, he appeared again, this time with another offer: “Perhaps you would also like a second table basse?” At this point, I began to suspect that somewhere in the depths of Paris he possesses a quiet warehouse of low tables waiting for homes. The conversation made me think about low tables. In English we do sometimes say low table, but mostly we say coffee table. Once I noticed that phrase, it became oddly mysterious to me. Why coffee? It originated in the twentieth century. As living rooms became more informal, people began sitting on lower sofas and chairs rather than upright Victorian furniture. A lower table was a better fit for the new posture of relaxation. These tables were meant to hold the small things of conversations: cups, ashtrays, newspapers, perhaps a plate of biscuits, and coffee during conversation. So, the table was named for what happened around it. Which is a lovely idea when you think about it. And then came the coffee table book. These books are large and glossy, with lots of photographs. They sit on the table waiting for someone to open them while visiting. The phrase itself became popular in the 1960s when publishers realized that beautiful, over-sized books, on art, travel, photography, architecture, and so on, were perfect objects to leave on the living room table. Beautiful books that start conversations. Which is slightly ironic, because people sometimes say a coffee table book is a book without a story, just photos. But that isn’t really true. There are plenty of stories: one, or more, in every photo. As for my apartment, I now suspect that if I stay here long enough my landlord may eventually offer me an entire family of tables basses: a little parliament of low tables gathered in the living room. If that happens, I will of course need more coffee table books. After all, every table deserves a story.
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