Ma Vie in France

Many Americans discover when coming to France that the French have a strong opinion on American politics. Sometimes, the French view can even come off as abrasive or accusatory. It took me a while to figure out that discussing politics here is a national pastime, and that people aren't necessarily always as informed as they appear. Rather, arguing and discussing politics is well, something you learn to talk about. Once at a party this year I had a conversation with a French girl who had spent a year at the University of Pennsylvania. “Young Americans don’t talk about politics…at all!” she exclaimed, implying that this would be a typical topic of conversation for young French people.   So, on this topic and in light of the recent American election, I’d like to take some time to talk about American politics as viewed in France, then on the topic of politics and current affairs in general in France. As I said, French people have a very strong opinion in general about Amer...

This semester I’ve had the pleasure of teaching a course that compares French/American culture.  During my research for this class, I discovered a new book on the subject of French/American relations by Pascal Baudry, called French and Americans: The Other Shore . Baudry, like many people who have written on the French/American topic, has extensive experience in both the US and France, and previously worked as a psychoanalyst in France. Baudry’s book is essentially written for the French, to explain to them their own culture and help them understand some of the basic foundations of American culture. One of his ideas that I’ve found particularly intriguing is the concept of implicit vs. explicit culture.   Baudry claims that French culture is inherently implicit, meaning that there are many codes that are not transparent to the uninitiated observer. This is contrasted with American culture, which is much more explicit. This idea of implicitness permeates many facets of Fr...