StudentShare
Contact Us
Sign In / Sign Up for FREE
Search
Go to advanced search...

French Culture: the decline - Essay Example

Cite this document
Summary
With the publication of an obituary declaring the demise of French Culture, on the cover page of the European edition of the TIME magazine in December 2007 began the controversial debate pertaining to the validity and relevance of French culture in the 21st century…
Download full paper File format: .doc, available for editing
GRAB THE BEST PAPER94.5% of users find it useful
French Culture: the decline
Read Text Preview

Extract of sample "French Culture: the decline"

Download file to see previous pages

There is no denying the fact that such aspersions stand correct to some extent. Over the years, there has been a considerable dilution in the creative verve of the nation that once happened to be the cultural capital of the world. Sad but true, France no longer happens to be the sole cultural superpower of the world. Irrespective of the tons of money being spent by the French government in subsidizing French art and culture, and despite concerted initiatives of French diplomacy to safeguard global symbols of French culture, French culture is slowly but steadily on the decline.

The very existence of French culture is being precariously jeopardized by an onslaught of more potent influences like American culture. All the pivotal aspects of French culture be it the language, religion, family structure, role of the state, food and lifestyle, sports and recreation, fashion, art, etc seem to be heading towards a morass of dullness and banality. Though a significant number of French intellectuals do tend to argue that the potency of French culture need not be assessed by its ability to influence the more dominant American culture, it is a fact that French auction houses today account for merely 8 percent of the global sales of contemporary art as compared to 50 percent in America.

This dissertation tends to testify to and substantiate the decline of French culture by attempting an in depth research and analysis of the available publications, news reports and web content pertaining to the topic under consideration.2. Introduction French society inherently seems to have a tendency to revere and respect the culturally refined while holding on to its staunchly democratic foundations (Geoffrey, 272). This stands to be true not only of a metropolis like Paris, but also of the less known and remoter French suburbs and villages.

French intelligentsia always stood for the cause of culture and human values, against an onslaught of the trivial and recidivist aspects of the contemporary life (Geoffrey, 271). However, the French culture at present is loosing its finer aspects to an outright preference for a bland uniformity being accepted and imposed in the name of globalization. There is no denying the fact that the French now stands to be a weak subordinate to the English language in the international arena. The French society is getting increasingly secular, with family values and household structure being its direct victims.

The state seems to be more interested in patching the existing system, instead of opting for a fresh and salubrious change. Finer points of French life like food, fashion, wine, art and literature are being pummelled by a quest for base profitability. 3. Statement of the Problem France has always been considered a nation that was thankfully insulated from grossly philistine national pursuits, which definitely enticed its financially pragmatic allies like the US and the UK. It is not a surprise that in a post II World War scenario, a majority of the French intelligentsia opted for politics and civil services, instead of business and commerce (Time Europe, 54).

While having a British or American nationality was always associated with the notions of base individuality, being French was unexceptionally considered a collective and lofty mission dedicated to uphold the best of culture and art (Time Europe, 54). However, the things are no more as they used to be. The very country, which boasted

...Download file to see next pages Read More
Cite this document
  • APA
  • MLA
  • CHICAGO
(“French Culture: the decline Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words”, n.d.)
Retrieved from https://studentshare.org/sociology/1510646-french-culture-the-decline
(French Culture: The Decline Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 Words)
https://studentshare.org/sociology/1510646-french-culture-the-decline.
“French Culture: The Decline Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 Words”, n.d. https://studentshare.org/sociology/1510646-french-culture-the-decline.
  • Cited: 0 times

CHECK THESE SAMPLES OF French Culture: the decline

Reasons Behind Cultural Diversity in Canada

Canada's cultural diversity purely reflects the overall history of the country Contents Contents 2 Introduction: Canada's cultural diversity 3 Background: reflection of the overall history of the country 3 Thesis 4 Analysis of primary & secondary sources: reasons behind cultural diversity in Canada 4 Discussion: factors behind Canada's cultural diversity and its benefits 6 Conclusion 7 References 8 Introduction: Canada's cultural diversity The cultural diversity of Canada represents the elements that are not only the features of its own population but also for the culture of the different countries....
6 Pages (1500 words) Essay

The Development of the Paris Haute Couture

The founder who targeted women in the upper class in the society built the first houte culture shop in Rue de la paix in the city.... The Spread of Haute culture in Europe The slave trade that took place along the Atlantic contributed to the spread of haute couture to the whole of Europe.... The increase in the number of silhouette sewers in the couture industry verifies the spread of the culture.... The french fashion industry came into being in the fifteenth century....
8 Pages (2000 words) Essay

French Novels - Conds Traverse de la Mangrove and Chamoiseaus Chronique des Sept Misres

The writing style that Chamoiseau employs, offers in many cases, a sensitised depiction of his home country Martinique, its people and culture.... The presentation of local languages will also be considered so that insight can be gained into how each author wishes to represent their place of birth and its culture through linguistic technique.... Cond's Traverse de la Mangrove and Chamoiseau's Chronique des sept misres will be closely analysed in this essay in order to provide a comparative analysis of the use of french and other local languages in both novels....
18 Pages (4500 words) Book Report/Review

Country Profile of France

The seat of the french Revolution, which is the source of much of the thoughts and writing on democracy, France is now currently a republic, and it has had a mixture of a presidential and parliamentary administration since legislation was passed in 1958.... In 2000 the french constitution was amended in order to change the term of the presidency from seven years to five years (cia.... To put this in perspective, it should be mentioned that french scientists have been awarded a total of twenty-six Nobel prizes over the past ninety years (francethisway....
9 Pages (2250 words) Article

The French Wars of Religion

he french wars of religion took a long time in preparation and it was far from the confines of religion.... In addition, the french noble class of the house of Bourbons and house of Guise was involved in the deadly war that lasted for 36 years.... At the time the war began, the Huguenots were the minority in that they comprised only of 7% of the french population (Berce, 1990)....
5 Pages (1250 words) Essay

Economic Activity, Distribution, and Competition - Beer in France

For instance, Conibear (35) reports of a decline in the number of alcohol consumers above 15 years since the 1980s.... According to Conibear (34), there has been a drastic culture change in France, Italy and Spain about beer and alcohol consumption since the 1980s.... The french beer consumption per capita in 1980 was 20, declining to 15....
4 Pages (1000 words) Essay

Global Business Cultural Analysis - France

Apparently, if the American culture is illustrated as a meeting place of cultural diversity, the notion french culture has a propensity to refer solely on a particular geographical entity or to a definite historical-sociological group bordered by religion, geography, language, and ethnicity.... Generally, culture is consists of beliefs and values acquired through the socialization process and additionally, the material objects.... culture serves as a guideline for social interactions between members of society and shapes individual perceptions and values that consequently influence a person's stance of their environment....
20 Pages (5000 words) Research Paper

Effect of the Population Growth Policy on the Economic Growth in France and Germany

The french government, using the family policy ensures the birthrate increases without having a big impact on the living standards.... The lion share of the french national income goes to the family as opposed to other expenditure.... Germany and France have robust economic policies that have ensured economic growth and sustainability....
9 Pages (2250 words) Research Paper
sponsored ads
We use cookies to create the best experience for you. Keep on browsing if you are OK with that, or find out how to manage cookies.
Contact Us