The Pas de Deux of France and the United States

Since France helped the United States win the Revolutionary War in the eighteenth century, the two countries have been involved in a love-hate relationship that has been tested by several key events in history. Most recently, the United States' policies and attitudes concerning Operation Iraqi Freedom have once again strained the countries' rapport and caused many people, both French and American, to question the other's intentions and actions. Each country reacted in very different ways to their disagreements about government policy and citizen support of that policy, and this disparity was most likely caused by pre-existing opinions and views. While French citizens as a group chose to chastise George Bush for his decisions about Iraq and overwhelmingly took an "anti-Bush" stance internationally, Americans focused their energies on attacking French culture and French people, using humor as their main method of chastisement.

This article seeks to explore the current relationship between France and the United States during the Spring of 2003 with two basic themes as a starting point; first, that cultural differences and mindsets create misunderstanding between nations, and second, that political similarities cause mutual frustrations. Research was done by pinpointing key dates during the war and comparing and contrasting responses to each key event in The New York Times and Le Monde. Analysis and commentary of responses is made based both on cultural differences and attitudes and my experiences as an American student living in France at the time.