Why Do I Like French So Much?

This is the Miraculous Ladybug Cafe in Paris! It's not actually Miraculous Ladybug themed, but the creators of the show modelled the main character's house after this specific cafe!

I was reading Napoleon's letters to his dear Marie Louise, and I just realized, why am I reading this? I mean reading a document such as Napoleon's letters stemmed from my own self-interest in the French language, but why do I like the language? How does it give me joy? The answer that I normally give to people when they ask why I learned French in the first place, is because of a show called "Miraculous Ladybug", a kid's show that is set in Paris where two teenagers fight the forces of evil. But then I began to ask, why did I like that show? I could've chosen to fixate on any other show or heck, even a different genre of media. So why did Miraculous rope me into learning French? The only answers that I can come up with is that I really resonate with the French values of quality, balance, and the arts.

When it comes to quality, there's a reason why French craftsmanship comes to mind. It is no secret that French ateliers are world-renowned, and it is for good reason. Their history of quality goods date hundreds of years back, to my favorite monarch, King Louis XIV. I think he's just so iconic, he pioneered the French luxury industry by bringing the manufacturing process from Italy back to France. He did not want to travel weeks at a time to voyage to Italy to get his clothes tailored, so he said he (more like his servants) would do it himself. He emulates the entrepreneurial spirit, whether intentional or not, while simultaneously being a fashion icon and a donor of the arts.

Balance, a thing that the French have seemed to have mastered. I love their work-life balance. You are legally obligated to not work on the weekends, and it is just too much paperwork to get laid off than it is to get employed. They even have the entirety of August off because of summer vacation, and I can confirm that majority of France is just GONE when it hits summer. They respect each other's time and effort, which is something that we don't see much of these days. As they say, they work to live, not live to work.

Finally, the arts. I do admit, it is a dying field. Not many want to go into art, but France seems to frame it in a different way compared to the rest of the world, and I would like to share what I have found. They tend to see it as more enriching, rather than something pretentious or useless. They like to cultivate the self through subjects such as philosophy, art, history, and politics. Don't get me started on politics. I find it so funny that strikes are so normalized. You can't go a week without a strike happening somewhere in France, and that in and of itself is an art in my opinion, but I digress. The art in French culture is elevated, but not pompous because I find that they seek depth and meaning in everything that they do, and that's something that I think everyone should strive to do.

I could go on about how my experience at the French school in Singapore also helped me discover more cultural nuances and little mannerisms or slangs that I've come to appreciate, but this post would be too long. These are just my overall thoughts as to why I like the French language. I showcased all the good aspects, and maybe I'll show the bad in another post, but for now, here are my reasons.