Tiger Mother, Make Way for the Mere Francaise
Since the furor over the Chinese Tiger Mother parenting tactics has died down, it was only a matter of time until another parenting stereotype come under scrutiny. Thanks to Pamela Druckerman's book Bringing Up Bebe, it turns out the new target is to be the French mother.
The French, after all, are fun to hate. They're skinny. They're snobby. They're fashionable. And now they claim to be superior parents.
I haven't read Bringing Up Bebe yet, but the commentary in the Wall Street Journal book review and the Wall Street Journal Sunday Essay by Pamela Druckerman read true.
I grew up in France, raised by a French mother and an American father. I can't comment on French parenting today, but reflecting on my own upbringing is certainly consistent with some of Druckerman's observations:
- Our snacking was limited to 4 o'clock, after school.
- We were drilled in table manners from a long list of rules ranging from not putting elbows on the table and not eating with your mouth open to not cutting the head of the cheese or using a knife to cut our lettuce.
- Not only were we expected to stay at the table for the entire meal, but beginning before our mother had sat down was inconceivable. Our dinners were long, always four courses, including a salad and a cheese course before dessert.
- We had friends who were so formal and respectful of their parents that they addressed them with the formal "vous". We used the more casual "tu" but still were expected to be very deferential. In my teenage years, I often got in trouble for speaking to my mother as though she was a friend, and not a parent.
Anyone who has met me and my children will tell you that we seem like a typical American family, especially when we travel in France. We eat crepes while walking in the street. You'll hear my kids from far away, and you'll most likely witness me repeating my directions more than once to children who seem to be deaf. But I do have that deep non-negotiable "non" that Druckerman was coached to discover within herself by her French friends. It usually has to do with respect. As far as I am concerned, not doing the following is simply "pas possible":- Forgetting to say please and thank you.
- Speaking disrespectfully to adults.
- Refusing to taste new foods.
- Eating in front of the television.
- Eating with an open mouth.
- Speaking with a full mouth.
- Walking into a store without acknowledging the storekeeper.
And every Saturday night, my husband and I escape our children to have an adult night. Skipping date night is pas possible. Continued on the next page
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