Bonsoir mes amis! Last night was the first lecture series for the internship program. JYF has organized some great speakers, and last night we had Harriet Welty Rochfort speak. She is the author of French Toast, a book on cultural differences between France and America. Harriet grew up in Iowa and married a Frenchman, decided to write a book about her experiences adjusting to life in France. I read the book a few weeks after I arrived, and I really enjoyed it! It's very witty and informative thanks to Harriet's "inside outsider" point of view.
The author
We had to write a reflection on the lecture, so I thought I would share it with my lovely readers!
Et voila............
It seems there are many books devoted to demystifying the French and French culture. French Toast, by Harriet Welty Rochefort is certainly one of the great ones! I read the book about Harriet’s observations on the French soon after I arrived for my semester in Paris. Her experiences were similar to the cultural differences I was observing and were expressed in a funny and engaging manner. I was excited to hear her speak more on the Franco-American cultural divide during the internship Lecture Series.
The lecture started and I felt like I was back in an American classroom. Mrs. Rochefort was very engaging and spoke a bit about her new book, Joie de Vivre. She made an excellent point that, “the French have joie de vivre, but you wouldn’t know by looking at them.” I believe she is absolutely right. No one smiles and looking at the headlines in the newspapers, one might think that the French world as we know it was going to end. But after living with my host family for the past eight weeks, I have seen firsthand that the French are very happy people. They love spending time with their families and enjoy the little things, such as a good meal and a fine wine. The French savor life, and don’t feel guilty about it.
An excellent example Harriet had of the differences between the two cultures can be seen in the way Americans and French drink their coffee. Americans (almost) always take their coffee on the go, using a travel mug or paper cup to transport their beloved caffeinated beverage to their next meeting or errand of the day. However the French will stop at a café to sip their coffee and watch the world go by. This observation led into a brief discussion of the work ethic in the United States and France, which comes down to Americans live to work and the French work to live. Americans work more so that they can provide more to their families, and the French work less so that they can spend more time with their families. Perhaps in a perfect world someone can do both!
The one thing that stood out to me most was Harriet’s response to the question, “When do you feel most American?” She feels American when she misses the subtle codes of the French and when she is loud. I had my own experience with loudness last weekend. A friend and I were out for dinner next to a few French girlfriends. We were speaking at a normal level, and then another friend joined us. Our conversation got a bit louder, and about thirty seconds after our friend sat down, one of the French girls turned to us and said in English, “We know Americans speak loudly, but could you please speak more quietly please?” I was so flabbergasted; I just started apologizing in French and the other JYF students did the same. In my opinion, our conversation was at a perfectly acceptable level. And that’s just one tiny example of cultural differences.
..............I probably should have just told those snotty French girls I was Canadian.
Bisous!
Allison
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