Worldly Interactions

Walking out of the French history seminar I was very excited to go home and write my blog . . . but see there is this thing that messed me up, this disease that many humans suffer from. It bothers some more than others. It starts with a P and it is contagious. Yes, you guessed it . . . I got ill from procrastination as soon as I stepped foot in my home. Ever since entering high school I’ve grown to know procrastination pretty well. We go way back to freshman year but sophomore year was when we really became best buds. I haven’t really talk to procrastination much this year but every once in a while she like to sneak up on me ( I am probably being a little too honest people who procrastinate don’t earn scholarships?). Anyway this has nothing to do with French history but I wanted to let you know why this blog post might not have the quality your used to. No I’m joking . . . but the habits I’ve picked up unconsciously have made me think about how people of different cultures go about their daily lives.

Like almost all of my intelligent counterparts, when I learn new information I always like to make connections to previous knowledge to make sense of the new information to, in turn, generate new thesis’s. For example, when Mr. Dundov began lecturing during the seminar, he mentioned how outlets in European countries are different than those of the United States. I know this detail may be overlooked or thought unimportant but this really fascinated me. It made me think about how correspondingly people from different cultures can think uniformly but their actions that express their thought isn’t the same. I don’t know if the analogy I tried to make made sense but I hope you’re getting the gist of what I’m saying.

http://www.sundaymagazine.org/wp-content/uploads/18901130-1-friends.gif

It’s really deeper than the likeness of two electrical power outlets. The United States and France have come to be very similar. Well actually almost all countries today. Yes all are very different but if you look at the big picture we have all come a long way from different regions of the world to be alike. Almost all societies have a democratic based government, are controlled by media, and have stereotypical views on others. I was actually intrigued too see what Parisians thought of Americans, but when I found a blog where Parisians had expressed their opinions on Americans I wasn’t surprised by what they said at all. The usual: we are fat, lazy, rich, violent, on-the-go, impulsive, and elitist.

With further learning of the French Revolution at the seminar I noticed that Frances past is similar to United States governmental past. During the French Revolution, French citizens redesigned their country’s political system, revamping century old customs. Just as in the United States, during the American Revolution, we gained independence, redesigning our country’s political system, and changing British -American interaction customs. Who knew both countries went through such a change politically? Who knew both countries went through times of tremendous failure like the French Reign of Terror period and the U.S Articles of Confederation period?

http://www.studentpulse.com/articles/623/before-the-fall-calls-for-reform-prior-to-the-french-revolution

It is and always will be apparent that the United States and France are different .But look at how both countries came to be. Or you can just think how the different electrical outlets came to be. I recognized that both societies are alike with significant differences. Traveling to France will maybe change my view on this or prove my theory. No matter what the outcome, I want to go to France to experience life in a different perspective that could change my view on life.