Sixty Million Frenchmen Can't Be Wrong by Jean-Benoit Nadeau

Author:Jean-Benoit Nadeau [Nadeau, Jean-Benoit]
Language: eng
Format: epub, pdf
Publisher: Sourcebooks, Inc.
Published: 2010-05-13T07:00:00+00:00

Legal measures will not stop the French from using English terms. At best, they will slow the process down. One need only walk down a street in Paris or any provincial French city to notice the proliferation of English words and expressions. As Quebeckers, we were surprised to see that French people use English expressions to project a kind of cachet or sophistication, much like English speakers use French expressions to project sophistication when they are talking about cuisine, fashion, or even international affairs. The French go to do their shopping with their caddie. After work, they do their walking. Stylish young French businessmen and women speckle their vocabulary with English business terms. The influence of English is evident everywhere American culture is imported. The Belgian fast-food chain Quick sells les chicken wings. McDonald’s meal deals are called Best of meals.

The borrowing of English terms is the source of ceaseless arguments between France’s language purists (who reject them) and linguists (who actually welcome them). Linguists argue that French borrows from all languages, so why should there be a stigma attached to le scanner or le shopping, but none on le spaghetti or Beur? Half of the basic vocabulary in English comes originally from old French, not including the more recent adoption of cooking and military vocabulary. At the moment, English dominates the vocabulary of new technology, but that does not pose a threat to the existence of the French language. As the history of the French language shows, ordinary use and fashion eventually prevail over purism, but purists never go down without a fight. (There’s more about anti-Americanization in chapter 20.)

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