I'm not particularly commenting on the merit (or lack thereof) of this book, so much as the way the review is worded. It seems to me that the way the criticism is phrased is not the same way it would be phrased for a book by a British (or simply non-French) author. More importantly, I've noticed this trend in every British article I've ever read about anything to do with France--even the positive criticism!--so my complaint is much more general.
I take your point about post-modernism though--I can't say I'm particularly pleased with much of it. (For reasons which may or may not appear obvious, given my views of the Revolution.)
From a lot of what I've seen of British "love" of France, it almost seems to me that they think the French don't deserve to live there and to enjoy it. (And really, there's no excuse for de Gaulle's sometime contempt for the people he purported to lead...) As to the British aristocracy's Norman origins, I can't really help blaming the Anglo-American conception of French as a snobbish language on them... But perhaps that's just me.
![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
timeasmymeasure
no subject
Date: 2008-08-11 06:03 am (UTC)I take your point about post-modernism though--I can't say I'm particularly pleased with much of it. (For reasons which may or may not appear obvious, given my views of the Revolution.)
From a lot of what I've seen of British "love" of France, it almost seems to me that they think the French don't deserve to live there and to enjoy it. (And really, there's no excuse for de Gaulle's sometime contempt for the people he purported to lead...) As to the British aristocracy's Norman origins, I can't really help blaming the Anglo-American conception of French as a snobbish language on them... But perhaps that's just me.