One of the questions that my students like to ask me is “what are some of the differences between American and French high schools?” An excellent question. I usually lie, though, offering an answer along the lines of, “well, in the States, we don’t have that awful BAC exam at the end of our four years of high school.” While that is true, I don’t see that as the primary difference between the two cultures. I don’t dare tell them that the main difference is openly evident: peer pressure.
In the States, we throw around the phrase “peer pressure” so often that it becomes this unbearable cliché that is inevitably linked to smoking or drugs or sex. But I don’t think our culture understands the extent to which French high school students are exposed to peer pressure. Their form reaches beyond smoking and drugs and sex, and into the realms of classroom performance, fashion sense, and even spending money. In short, the French version of “peer pressure” is expensive. Period.
Because it is the fashion capital of the world, France and its people is inextricably linked to dressing well. But more than that is the pressure to wear designer-label clothes, shoes, and glasses. I have yet to pass a spectacle-wearing French person whose frames didn’t read (in large letters, mind you), “Prada,” “Diesel,” “Armani,” or “D &G” (for Dolce and Gabbana). At school, I see teenagers wearing these same designer clothes. There is the boy who wears his black “Prada” shirt several times a week. Or the girl I saw yesterday wearing Christian Louboutin stilettos. When was the last time you saw an American teenager wearing $1,000 dollar shoes? I mean, seriously. Designer-label clothing isn’t a splurge; it’s a must. If the name isn’t clearly displayed, then obviously you don’t have the money (or the fashion sense) to afford the “cool clothes.”
This pressure often transfers into other aspects of my students’ lives. They are encouraged by their classmates to act out in class, each one of them trying to outdo themselves by being annoying. This, as I’m sure you can imagine, turns out to be great fun for teachers (ahem, me). Never in my life have I seen such unruly kids in a classroom. They are genuinely good kids, and I love talking to them after class, but class time is usually terrible. Augh. I leave class, wondering if they got anything at all from the lesson, and then a girl will come up to me and say, “thank you, Sarah. Can I ask you some questions about x or y that you said in class?” So at least I know they are paying attention. And I love talking to them.
As long as they are wearing Dolce and Gabbana.
1 comment:
When I was in Germany, I attended a few college classes. We sat near the back and Andrea spent the entire time talking to her friends. Everyone was talking -- I mean, not loudly, but it was audible. They made fun of the instructor, and that he wore bad clothes, and sometimes the same thing a couple of times a week. I'm almost positive that guy was a grad student.
Yet at the end of class, everyone applauded.
WTF?
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