Klik op een omslag om naar Google Boeken te gaan.
Bezig met laden... The Bonjour Effect: The Secret Codes of French Conversation Revealeddoor Julie Barlow, Jean-Benoît Nadeau
Books Read in 2019 (1,996) Bezig met laden...
Meld je aan bij LibraryThing om erachter te komen of je dit boek goed zult vinden. Op dit moment geen Discussie gesprekken over dit boek. In this book, the authors discuss how to navigate the social and cultural aspects of living in France -- going beyond proficiency in speaking French and learning how to "talk" French. Topics include the French school system and pedagogical approach, what the French like to talk about (and not talk about), and how attitudes have changed over the past 15 years or thereabouts. I found the chapters on language particularly interesting, whether talking about unusual French expressions, the French view of English in contrast with the Quebec view, and the approach to correcting people's mistakes. Correcting people's French is seen as totally normal and will be done with no qualms whatsoever; knowing this might not make it any easier to be on the receiving end of such corrections if you're not a confident French speaker, but it is seemingly done to educate and not to laugh at your mistakes. Another thing I found interesting was the tendency to say "Bonjour!" much more than people in North America would say "Hello!" (e.g. when boarding a bus) -- amusingly it reminded me of the opening song in "Beauty and the Beast" where all the villagers say "Bonjour!" Not having been to France myself, I can't attest to the accuracy of these observations, but they made entertaining reading. I'd recommend this to Francophiles and armchair travellers who are interested in finding out more about French culture. This is not the first time Barlow and Nadeau team up to explain France to North Americans, their first effort being 60 Million Frenchmen Can't be Wrong. Anything they could add? Plenty! This time, instead on focusing on the habitual social, political and historical aspects of the French, the couple choose conversational codes as a means to describe cultural mores and behaviours. Easy and fun to read with plenty of examples and real-life misunderstandings, this book will be an eye-opener to readers or travelers who want to learn more about the French. From the frowns to the ebullient gestures, French-speak is aptly and concisely uncovered: this should prevent North Americans a faux-pas or heart-ache or two. I recommend it strongly! geen besprekingen | voeg een bespreking toe
Prijzen
"Jean-Benoit Nadeau and Julie Barlow spent a decade traveling back and forth to Paris as well as living there. Yet one important lesson never seemed to sink in: how to communicate comfortably with the French, even when you speak their language. In The Bonjour Effect Jean-Benoit and Julie chronicle the lessons they learned after they returned to France to live, for a year, with their twin daughters. They offer up all the lessons they learned and explain, in a book as fizzy as a bottle of the finest French champagne, the most important aspect of all: the French don't communicate, they converse. To understand and speak French well, one must understand that French conversation runs on a set of rules that go to the heart of French culture. Why do the French like talking about "the decline of France"? Why does broaching a subject like money end all discussion? Why do the French become so aroused debating the merits and qualities of their own language? Through encounters with school principals, city hall civil servants, gas company employees, old friends and business acquaintances, Julie and Jean-Benoit explain why, culturally and historically, conversation with the French is not about communicating or being nice. It's about being interesting. After reading The Bonjour Effect, even readers with a modicum of French language ability will be able to hold their own the next time they step into a bistro on the Left Bank"-- Geen bibliotheekbeschrijvingen gevonden. |
Actuele discussiesGeenPopulaire omslagen
Google Books — Bezig met laden... GenresDewey Decimale Classificatie (DDC)944History and Geography Europe France and regionLC-classificatieWaarderingGemiddelde:
Ben jij dit?Word een LibraryThing Auteur. |
The book begins with the necessary starting point for anyone even considering a trip to France: the importance of "bonjour," and why. From there, it goes into more nitty-gritty nuances of communication, discussing what French culture embraces in conversation, what they avoid, and how to get by. The back of the book condenses the major points down to quick lists. ( )