by Annalie Jiang
During dinner with my host parents, one of our favorite discussion topics is the comparison of the French and American way of life. Popular subjects include social policies, the minimum wage, age limits for various activities (such as alcohol consumption and driving) and views of other nations, which all fascinates me as a student of international affairs.
I was surprised one night when my host family vocalized their discontent with globalization (for them, mondialisation), which was coincidentally mentioned by one of my professors the same week. Of course two opinions is a negligible sample size, but it struck me as an interesting view. As an American-Chinese, my exposure to opinions regarding globalization has been generally positive.
Indicative of their concept of French identity, my host family went on to describe the great feats that the French have accomplished on their own between Curie and Pasteur, as well as the invention of photography and the country’s system of nuclear energy. Additionally, France produces much of its own food (complete with fancy labels of authenticity) and is quite proud of its culinary reputation. Thus, they take issue with having meats that have been processed industrially and produce laced with pesticides; they even try not to buy products online from Amazon.
I realized then that the French desire for local consumption was evidenced in all the little bakery, pastry, and butcher shops along the streets, a phenomenon I had not really thought of before. In suburban America, I have little choice but to go to the large industrial grocery store; local fruit stands are just simply too rare. Indeed, globalization and its effects have become something that France, along with the rest of the world, has had to gradually accept and adjust to.
Glorious artisanal hot chocolate at Angelina