During the first part of the semester in Multicultural Folktales II, I focused on the story of Beauty and the Beast, or La Belle et la Bête. Although it has roots in classical mythology the story as we know it now originated in France, the country my family is from. I decided to focus my culture area program on France, and in my research I had a few life-altering moments and even a little bit of fun.
My family never really spoke much about our French heritage (only by accidental omission, not on purpose), but a few years ago, my youngest daughter and I decided to see what we could learn of the French language. We took lessons for several months. Not surprisingly, she did better than I. We learned the days of the week, months, how to ask the time, some numbers and about 14. Juillet (Bastille Day-July 14th). We had Bastille Day parties several years running. We hung French flags, invited friends over, made and ate crepes, played French games, and devoured barres de chocolat français (French chocolate bars). Yum! We also learned a couple of French songs. I remember only bits of “Frère
Jacques” and “Alleutte.”
So, in my recent exploration of France some things were familiar, some were new, and some I hadn’t expected, such as the fact that one of my favorite authors, Victor Hugo, was born in Doubs , France, from whence my mother’s family originated. Yes, I knew Hugo was French, but from the old home town? How cool is that!
The French are devoted to their culture. If you ask a French person, he or she will tell you that France is THE cultural, artistic, literary, and fashion center of the world, not to mention the makers of great food. French pastries! Oui, but of course!
Some outsiders think the French are rude; however, the fact is that they are really into courtesy and are often insulted by opening remarks. You see, in France, one always speaks to another adult in formal language (Vous) unless specifically invited (by that person) to speak informally (tu). Interestingly, in the USA we have lost our informal thee, thou, and thy, but kept the formal you and your. It’s also considered extremely rude to ask about a person’s wages or money, but it’s perfectly normal to talk about physical/mental ailments.
The French school system was designed by Napoleon Bonaparte and is still the same today; regimented, proscribed curriculum. School is on Saturdays, as well. If a child moves from one school to the next, even across the country, she will not be lost or behind, as all the schools are on the same schedule, teaching the same lessons. So perhaps that means that if on a Monday in May the children in Paris are reading the stories of Babar le Petit Éléphant (Babar the Little Elephant), which originated in France, they are also reading it in Lyon and Marseille.
And speaking of stories, the French word for storyteller is conteur.
Bon jour!
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