Sondage

Here (finally!) is the promised sondage! Well, I don't know how reliable it is, since it was collected from only five French people, one of whom is actually Chinese...

Here are the questions:

1. What's your impression of Americans and the United States?

2. What is the biggest difference between the U.S. and France in your opinion?

3. Is there something you would like to say to Americans?


My French teacher:

1. I don't know the United States very well, I've never been there and I'm sure that my head is filled with clichés! I think that it's a very diverse country: diverse opinions, diverse customs, diverse origins... also a diverse geography (Yosemite, Yellowstone, Louisiana, Alaska...)

2. Perhaps it's the difference in lifestyle that comes from the size of the country or the liberal ideaology ("The American Dream"*) that's deeply rooted in Americans' minds.

3. I'd like to tell them to be more liberal about social issues, to be more open-minded and to not confuse beliefs and intolerance (another difference is religious views).

*This was in English in the text.


My host sister's friend:

1. Cheese

2. We like squirrels

3. French people don't say "hon hon hon" all the time*

*( I think she was referring to something like this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-o1AIMofVHU )


My host brother's girlfriend's friend:

1. From what I've learned, American culture is a culture that is focused on the future, a culture where you dare to throw yourself into projects without fearing failure, whereas French people are a lot more cautious; they're afraid to take the initiative and don't like change.

2. Like my answer to the first question, I think that the biggest difference is the adventurous American state of mind opposed to the French people's conservative state of mind.

3. We wash ourselves, we're not monsters just because we eat frogs or horses.


The Chinese guy:

1. There aren't any CDIs in America.*
They very probably live under stress.
But in France taxes are too high. We are not happy with this in France!

2. French people don't work! Always on strike.

3. French people eat horses!
And the French didn't invent perfume for nothing, you can smell it in the public transport.

*I'm not sure which CDI he was referring to: http://www.wordreference.com/fren/CDI


His girlfriend:

1. Barack Obama and François Hollande

2.

3. We wash ourselves!*

*Note added by her boyfriend: Or not?


Well, there you go, straight from the horse's mouth! (By the way, if you were wondering why there were so many references to horses, it was because the horse meat scandal was in the news when I took the survey.) I'm not sure if this has dispelled or reinforced stereotypes...

And I'm sorry if my translation is a little funky. It's so weird not being able to trust myself when I speak English!