French People

[DreamsAreImportant]

This is probably a stereotype, but I'm always wondering why everytime I meet someone from France their first words always have to be "I'm French". Like for me, I was raised and grew up in the U.S. and I never introduce myself by saying I'm American even when I was international. Is it a French thing to announce their ethnicity to people from other cultures?

[Mostly Peaceful Ryan]

Probably because America is a much bigger country and when traveling you don't have to tell someone you're american if you're still in America, while France is a European country, which is much smaller and is more likely you run into people from a different country  even while in France as Europe has many countries in a small area. 

[Grumpy Alien]

I don't have that experience.

[Anthracite_Impreza]

I've never met anyone French except in France *shrugs* My car's French, but he's been here so long I tend to forget (try to forget, must forget...).

[Naosuu]

I think it's an American thing. I read an article somewhere about how, because the USA Is so large and diverse that people identify more with their state than the country itself.

 

Then again, one of my French coworker constantly reminds us all how Marseilles is the best. But he's special, so he's really not a good example.

 

[ThaHoward]

21 hours ago, ♣Ryan♣ said:

Probably because America is a much bigger country and when traveling you don't have to tell someone you're american if you're still in America, while France is a European country, which is much smaller and is more likely you run into people from a different country  even while in France as Europe has many countries in a small area. 

 

I think you underestimate the size of Europe. Like yes, Europe is as the sie of America, but you still gotta travel far in most cases in order to see other nationalities. 

[Busrider]

22 hours ago, DreamsAreImportant said:

I'm always wondering why everytime I meet someone from France their first words always have to be "I'm French".

1. Where do you meet them? - If it is in the US they are attempting to convey: "Have mercy, talk slow & clearly". The French are kind of famous for their crappy foreign language lessons at school. -(Probably only topped by the US and of course the East German pretending to learn Russian)
2. Americans tend to wear their passports on their tongues... - I'll never forget the old bookshop owner telling the local crowd frowning upon his jaywalking "ich bin Amerikaner"
3. Personally I'd say "Sorry I am foreign..." When I'd beg Anglo Americans to talk kind of understandable, like most migrants would do in German too but France is la grande nation, so the French might be likelier to proudly disclose their origin?

[Naosuu]

1 hour ago, Busrider said:

1. Where do you meet them? - If it is in the US they are attempting to convey: "Have mercy, talk slow & clearly". The French are kind of famous for their crappy foreign language lessons at school.

+1 for this. I work in pâtisserie (french baking) and, subsequently, I've met a lot of French people (from France). I can confirm that the vast majority of them don't know English until they come to Montreal. I've only met one French girl who was bilingual when I met her. Even most Quebecois aren't very bilingual; it's kind of a joke here that the few words the Quebecois will know is, "toaster". "un, deux, trois, toaster! :D"

 

On a related note, my aforementioned coworker was talking about how he and his classmates would fuck around during English class and not really try. So I mean, they try but I guess some French youths don't give a shit or find it too hard. And, TBH, French is way harder than English. Fucking exceptions and gendered nouns...

 

I guess the joke's on him 'cause he wants to go to the US. And hit on some sweet, sweet American girls.

[Mostly Peaceful Ryan]

2 hours ago, ThaHoward said:

 

I think you underestimate the size of Europe. Like yes, Europe is as the sie of America, but you still gotta travel far in most cases in order to see other nationalities. 

I'm making a comparison of European countries size to America. I am well aware of their size. I never said it was like walking to the other sized of town and you past through three countries  But it is much smaller than the US.

 

 

[Skycaptain]

I've never encountered this. Sometimes, during a conversation, if their accent hasn't tipped me off, people may say where they're from and that English isn't their native language, but that is a general thing. Don't unfairly malign their language teaching. Depending on where in France you are, Spanish, German and Italian are the primary foreign languages taught, same as in England French is the primary language whilst German, Italian and Spanish are given lesser importance