[Sarah28407]

I went to France this summer with some friends, many of whom didn’t speak French. I and two others do. I found the French to be quite hospitable, but my friends who didn’t speak French said they found the French very rude. I asked them why, and they said that for one, the French would ‘ignore’ them or be much slower to respond or react once it was realized they didn’t speak French. They said that since I spoke French they must not have had any or not as much animosity toward me.

But to me, if you go to someone else’s country, it’s polite to learn customs and some of the language before you go, as a matter of respect. Whereas we in the United States sometimes find it annoying when we see tourists running around speaking some language we don’t know, in France they probably are able to act on those feelings, which we keep to ourselves.

That said, I did find that the French sometimes do have a superiority complex, thinking that theirs, whatever it is, is the best. But I let that go because I found that indeed many things they felt strongly about were better. I loved their food and fashion and perfume, all of which I found to be better than other countries’. Many Americans at times probably resent this because, well, we are good at a lot of stuff, and, well, I still feel this is the best place in the world to live. Their superiority complex bothers us more because we are taught from the cradle that ideally, everyone is equal, and it is effort that distinguishes us from each other. When people come in with preconceived notions, it seems very rude to us.

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Name : Sarah28407, Gender : F, City : Richmond, State : VA, Country : United States, 

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