I'm convinced that the French are in complete and utter denial of their positions in the world. I'm taking this class called "France in the World" and it is pretty much two hours of French propoganda every week. The class is filled with common phrases such as "back before we won the world war" and "after we became the #1________________ in the world" but the French never seem to realize that they are talking about the past and not the present. They keep trying to play themselves off as the heros of the Free World (They were occupied during WWII and nearly single-handedly fought the Germans off their land, quite possibly with only shovels and pick-axes they are so strong) or better yet the leaders of new world order (forgetting that it was themselves who halted a lot of the progress towards the commencement of the EU in the 1950s and 1960s). When will they get the clue and realize that the world no longer turns to them as an example as they did, I don't know, 300 years ago? The French are caught in this timewarp where their language is still the language of politics and the world, where they still set all the fashion trends, and where their word on a subject really matters to other countries. Forget the fact that they are on their 5th republic 220 years, their government is a model for democracy! Forget that they used to test nuclear bombs in the South Pacific, France is the model of environmentalism (they still don't really recycle here). Forget the Terror, the fact that they killed their king and queen, and the guy who killed them, forget their part in the slave trade in Africa, forget all the stuff they did in Indochina, France is a model of human rights. Whatever. The French need a serious wake up call 'cause they are all still dreaming that they are hegemon of the world. I don't think so. One day I hope they wake up, stop trying to teach foreign students how cool they are (we have all figured out what is going on by now, we are blind), and revel in what they are good at, cheese, bread, and wierd game shows. Until then, I still have to attend class.
Conclusion of the day: When looking for the nationalistic dillusionals of the world, look no farther than France.