La passion de la mode

Fashion is the international weapon of freedom, beauty, and control. A shirt can give a powerful message without any trouble. The beauty from a dress can give sight to a blind eye. Kim Kardashian can control society by what hat she wears. Now everyone is wearing the same hat. These three examples show the power of fashion. France is armed with one of the largest fashion weapon in the world.

Fashion Silhouette. Digital image. Retrogasm. © Retrogasm 2009–2015, n.d. Web. 9 Nov. 2015. <http://retrogasm.me/post/4255562190/a-history-of-fashion-silhouette-version>.

Whenever I think of French fashion, I think of the 1920’s Flapper outfit. I love the way French artist captured the mesmerizing style that used by many women during the 20’s, along with its message. Women fought for their equal rights with men, “If he can smoke a cigar, I can smoke a cigar” they would say. Women would dress in what others may call, ‘Scandalous’ outfits, and act as free as a man, There was no shame or guilt in the flapper community because women made it their freedom to dress and act however they want which was powerful to me.

“Where there’s smoke there’s fire” by Russell Patterson, 1920s.

Beauty is a key player in French fashion. There could be warm colors, cold colors, wild colors, and even neutral colors that would attract people to a person because of their beautiful clothing. For example, in the 1950’s, the poodle skirt was popular in teenagers, and movie stars. The skirts were beautiful knee length decorated skirts worn at many school dances, and special occasions. This was a popular style due to its beauty.

However, my favorite aspect about French fashion is the way it controlled the world. The beauty and freedom in the clothing created from great artists like CoCo Chanel and Madeleine Vionnet caused a widespread of people to wear clothing with meaning and beauty at the same time. Famous actresses would wear the clothes of famous designers causing many more females to follow their way, wearing the same dresses.

Sears catalog, 1925. via HA! Designs – ArtbyHeather on Flickr.

David

The Paris Endeavor: the life of a peasant

             Many traditions have an origin that is most likely centuries old. This principle applies to all cultures and especially to the French culture and their cuisine. For instance the dish soupe à l’oignon (French onion soup) stems all the way back to the Middle Ages and was made popular by French peasants.  The dish is high in nutrients and vitamins that peasant farmers ate before a long hard day of work in the field. Onion would be boiled and turned into a broth, then a piece of bread would be set in the bottom of the bowl to soak up some of the broth, and finally it would be topped with cheese and broiled. This dish has gained a lot of popularity and has spread worldwide.  Another great example for early French cuisine that has turned into a popular dish is crêpes. In the 12^th century buckwheat made its way into France and the crêpe recipe was made not too long afterwards. This dish was also high in nutrients and also surprisingly gluten free.

            I’m a puzzle type of guy because I like to make connections between things. So I enjoyed learning how these dishes and many more came to be so popular. This just makes me even more excited about Paris. I can’t think of one American dish that has as much history as these two. For the French, food is something much more personal and to me almost sacred. I can eat French onion soup and crêpes all day in America but it has no meaning (and probably doesn’t even taste as good) compared to eating these dishes in France. In France it has to be the right time of day and place. I want to know what that feels like so I can only hope to try these authentic dishes in Paris.   

Kai Jones

FRENCH FRIES NOT FREEDOM FRIES

In the most recent seminar for Transforming Youth Through Travel we learned a lot about France’s history and about its monuments and cuisines. The whole seminar was very interesting but the most interesting parts were learning about the history behind the landmarks that are still apart of France to this day. For example, I always knew about the Eiffel Tower and when it was built, but what I didn’t know is that Adolf Hitler during World War II used the Eiffel Tower in his propaganda to basically rub it in France’s face that he was able to take the country. I guess boasting has been around forever. Another example is that I knew about the Arc de Triomphe, but I did not know that Napoleon built it directly in the middle of the city so that every main street would run along that Arc. Talk about conceited.

http://travelhdwallpapers.com/tag/arc-de-triomphe/

Given all the interesting information we learned in class about France I would love to take a tour of it. Some of the walking tours I saw that interested me were the Louvre Antiquities and the Riverboat Tour of Paris. These two stood out the most because we talked about the Louvre and how it was originally a castle that France was no longer using and how some of the most popular tours are via riverboat. It was quite amusing to me how Paris just had a castle to spare and turned it into a museum. According to Mr. Dundov this castle style museum is home to all different types of artwork which peaks my interest immensely. I find it fascinating that we can look at artifacts that surpass our lifetime by centuries. Then of course there is the Riverboat Tour. Now, this tour is one of the most popular ones for tourists which might take away some of the effect, but I want to get to really take in all of Paris and I feel this tour is the best way. Unfortunately, there is no way that we will be able to see the entire city but I would love to get as close as possible.

http://m.viator.com/photo/paris/paris-night-bike-tour/0-5-3588PARIS03/photo.htm

This entire seminar just excited me more about the prospect of being selected. I would absolutely love to go to Paris and the more I learn about it, the more determined I am to go. What would interest you most about Paris? The monuments? The history? The cuisines? Oh and a very interesting fact Mr. Dundov told us about is how America was in conflict with France and changed the name of French Fries to Freedom Fries for a while, but it didn’t stick. I do not know why but once you know something like that it is very hard to stop thinking about it.

Nyeri Mallory

The Survival of France

The history of France has been a game of capture the flag since its very beginning. Physical boundaries such as the Alps and Pyrenees mountains kept the civilization they enclosed safe for a while. However, greedy emperors, like Julius Caesar, felt necessary to take over all of the land that wasn’t theirs from people like Vercingetorix. Wars and battles such as the fight for the Gallic tribes and 100 years war forever altered France’s course of history. Along with conflict with other people threatening the survival of France, came natural a downfall spread by rodents known as the black death. Nearly half of the population was killed sending the country into a downward spiral. Progress within the city came to a halt for a while but then came back in full swing. What came out of the storms of violence and death, was a beautiful blooming of cultural diversity and new social norms. Masterpieces of art, like the building of Notre Dame, told stories inspiring the bettering of the community of France as a whole. Structures like the Arc de Triomphe and the Eiffel tower commemorated the struggles and perseverance of the people of France. My favorite blossom out of the storm was the heroic stories of determined spirits that fought for their country relentlessly.

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/

The story that caught my eye the most was Joan of Arc. Inspired by her religion, she helped the military of France fight in the 100 years war. Her main purpose was rallying the troops to keep fighting for their country and to be brave. The troops responded positively to her rallying and made great progress. Unfortunately, she was captured by Belgium and put to death. However, she is still known as a saint in France for her undying confidence in the troops and bravery in war. It’s amazing to know how much of an impact one woman made in war. It is not often women get much credit for anything in early times, let alone the victory of a war. In my opinion, her story shows a progression of the recognition of women as an strong individual in society and not just something that is required to fulfill her husband’s every wish. For this reason, I want to see the pieces of art made in her honor and all of the other heroic stories I’ve heard that occurred in France’s timeline. Her story alone can inspire women to step out of their comfort zone, challenge themselves, and not conform to society’s mold.

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki

The walk that most interests me with this topic is Louvre Italian Masters because within the Louvre lies beautiful sculptures that famous artists have made idolizing France’s culture and legendary accomplishments such as a sculpture and paintings of Joan of arc. (https://contexttravel.com/city/paris/walking-tour-details/louvre-italian-masters) Being able to see works of art in memory of huge events throughout the history of france would allow me to put everything I have learned in context. I could apply my knowledge to different perspectives of her through different artists who all idolized her as a saint but yet in different ways. One artist may express her as a warrior in armor working alongside the men whereas another artist may show her as a woman in plain traditional clothing speaking to troops.

Destyni Freese

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/

Celebration of the Virgin Leaving

                   

   Assumption of Mary is a holiday that is celebrated in France on August 15 every year. A pilgrimage for this holiday is in town Lourdes France close by Spain. It is a catholic belief that the Virgin Mary taken to heaven by God. Many people attend church on that day.  out in the country festivals are held. Fun activities such as sports, communal meals, markets, and parades. It is seen as a quiet day.

 

This holiday makes me want to go to France because I regularly hear about the Spanish celebration of day of the dead. On that day all of the people usually celebrate the dead spirts coming home and then leaving again. Yet this holiday is celebrated for someone leaving the earth. I find this interesting because it reminds me of the Spanish holiday Day of the Dead.

 

                                                                 

I think visiting France and learning more about religious and cultural traditions would be a great experience. I want to be able to fully understand and experience what it is like to live in France. This holiday makes me think about my own religion of Christianity and see how commonly the holidays are shared around the world. How common is this holiday in France? How many people from the younger generation celebrate this? Do people feel that this holiday is important enough to celebrate when they move away from home?

http://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-paris-france-august-15th-2015-france-paris-believers-march-in-the-86431572.html http://www.timeanddate.com/holidays/france/assumption  https://ritualwaters.com/day-of-the-dead-and-its-monday-too          Tachae Hankerson 

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.

Non-permanent Intentions.

The Eiffel Tower has become one of the most recognized monuments in the world. Being 984' tall it is visited by millions of people every year. But it was not built with the intention of being a permanent monument.

 During the seminar I recently attended at school we learned that the Eiffel Tower was created for the World Fair being held in France. Why do we no longer have World Fairs? i think they would be a really cool way to show off the developments made by countries and could improve international relations. The Eiffel Tower was the tallest man made structure for 41 years and was an example of innovation in the world. It has 3 levels and I plan on going to the top! Who would only go to the first or second level, that why you went so make it count. Recently a free climber scaled the tower from the side and had to hide from the police and it was really cool to watch. It showed how massive the structure is compared to a human and put things in perspective. I do not think i will be doing anything so daring, but iv will go to the top. 

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Julia_W