I hope you enjoyed your vacation! We are also about to go on vacation, so please don't feel bad if our responses are delayed by a week or so!
I am writing because I need your help!
We are just learning about la Seconde Guerre mondiale en France in Madame Horne's class. Also, I took a course at l'IEP in Lyon with Monsieur Douzou, which was very enlightening. In addition to all of this, I spent my last semester (while studying in Lyon) researching WWII (World War II), specifically in France and even more specifically the Occupation, the Resistance, and Vichy propaganda.
Aside from all my background in this field and my passion for this subject, I really need your help!
Here are a few questions, or feel free to leave any commentary you like:
- As French citizens who weren't alive during the war, what are your thoughts about the war and France's position of collaboration and/or resistance?
- Have your parents, grandparents, or great grandparents told you any remarkable stories you would kindly share with us?
- Do you feel that France today is still influenced by the controversy of WWII? If you can, please elaborate with an example.
These are just a few prompted questions, but I would love to hear any comments you have!
J'espère que vous allez bien, et j'attends vos réponses avec impatience! :)
Bien cordialement,
Jasmine
Hi Jasmine,
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, sorry for the time it took to answer but as you may have noticed when you were in France, French people and clocks are not getting along that well!
I don't have a lot of time to answer but I'll try my best to give you something interesting..
1. As French citizens who weren't alive during the war, what are your thoughts about the war and France's position of collaboration and/or resistance?
I think that in order to "digest" the past, our generation had to alienate from this period. Studying it in class made it easier fom us to integrate it into History, to objectify it and in the end to accept what happenned. But I also have the feeling that there is still a feeling of shame about what the French government did when collaborating with the nazis. In my mind, it is actually linked to later historic events such as the Algerian tortures and the participation in the Tutsi's genocide.
2. Have your parents, grandparents, or great grandparents told you any remarkable stories you would kindly share with us?
My grand father is German and he almost never talks about the war. He makes innuendoes or tells little stories about how it was to pay a loaf of bread with a wheelbarrow full of notes. He also talks about how he met my grandmother in a "reconciliation" summer camp (which were government's initiative to reconcile German and French youth) and how they fell in love without being able to talk! On the other side of my family, a lot of person died and World War II is a taboo because my family did not resist, and I think the survivors are ashamed they did not see what was happenning.
3. Do you feel that France today is still influenced by the controversy of WWII? If you can, please elaborate with an example.
I think it is a more general question about the numerous abuse of French government during wars and clonflicts. In my opinion, WWII had been digested but still gives us to think about when we address the issues of government violation of laws and abuse of power.
It's short but I hope it'll help a little,
Have a great day!
Alix
Alix,
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading your responses from Jasmine's post. Mme Horne's class has definitely introduced us to the dilemma you mentioned of French citizens' struggle in coming to grips with what has occurred in their recent political history. In addition to World War II, we have also mentioned this sense of alienation in regards to the Algerian war so I wanted to see if you could elaborate on your statement. What are the usual feelings and words expressed when people are forced to discuss the Algerian war? Do people truly see it as both a national and civil war? What do people think of Charles de Gaulle because of it? And do the same feelings apply when you mention the Rwandan genocide or are there any concrete separations that stand apart?
I look forward to hearing your and others' thoughts.
Merci et bonne journée,
Courtney
Dear Alix,
ReplyDeletePas de souci! Je suis si ravie de voir ta réponse!
Your response to question 1 is very enlightening – our class has been discussing the complexity of French history and how it still influences French citizens’ lives today. We also talked about the similarities between WWII and the Algerian War, something you also mention. It is interesting to know that as a French citizen born after all those events, you still sense a feeling of shame on behalf of the French government. Thank you for sharing this with me because it is great to know from a young French student’s point of view.
Your answer to question 2 is also very informative – I almost forget that each family has its own particular stories, and yours is certainly very interesting! I personally love hearing stories from my grandparents about how they became who they are today, and your grandparents’ love story sounds amazing! :) It is quite understandable that members of your family had no idea what was going on at the time; in my research, I have found that many French citizens only began to resist once they truly saw for themselves what was happening (events that the government did not tell them about).
As for question 3, you have already informed me that French society today hasn’t forgotten the controversy of WWII. It is understandable that “issues of government violation of laws and abuse of power” would be relevant discussions when addressing WWII today.
Je te souhaite une très bonne journée, et merci encore mille fois pour toutes les réponses !
Bien cordialement,
Jasmine