A French Fourth

The challenge of raising expatriated children

Background

This text is taken from The Atlantic Mothly, July /August 2001. The author Charles Trueheart is a correspondent for the Washington Post based in Paris. Globalization make people can touch their own cultures more easily and children abroad can learn the history of their motherland from school. The culture divide between different countries is less jarring. However, on the other hand, people are less than fully immersed in a truly foreign world.

Independence Day

On July 4, 2006 The United States of America celebrates 230th year since Independence

On July 4, 1776, the United States claimed it's independence from England and Democracy was born.

Each year on July 4th, also known as Independence Day, Americans celebrate their independence with picnics, barbecues, fireworks and family gatherings.

All Americans are entitled to Independence Day off work - although some people have to work. (like policemen and firemen).

Independence Day is considered a Family Day with picnics, barbecues, fireworks, parades, to celebrate independence and freedom.

Americans proudly fly the American flag and spend the day with their families.

Why do we celebrate the 4th of July?

( for children) by Kim Moon Most people in the United States

celebrate the 4th of July, but do you know exactly why the holiday is so important to our country? Imagine how you would feel if someone older than you (maybe an older sister or brother) kept telling you what to do all of the time and kept taking more and more of your allowance. That is how the colonists felt in the years leading up to 1776. Great Britain kept trying to make the colonists follow more rules and pay higher taxes.

People started getting mad and began making plans to be able to make their own rules. They no longer wanted Great Britain to be able to tell them what to do, so they decided to tell Great Britain that they were becoming an independent country. (To be independent means to take care of yourself, making your own rules and providing for your own needs.)

The Congress met in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and they appointed a committee (a group of people working together to do a specific job) to write a formal document that would tell Great Britain that the Americans had decided to govern themselves. The committee asked Thomas Jefferson to write a draft (first try) of the document, so he worked for days, in absolute secret, until he had written a document that he thought said everything important that the committee had discussed.

On June 28, 1776, the committee met to read Jefferson's "fair" copy (he put his best ideas together and wrote them neatly.) They revised (made some changes) the document and declared their independence on July 2, 1776. They officially adopted it (made it theirs) on July 4, 1776. That is why we call it "Independence Day." Congress ordered that all members must sign the Declaration of Independence and they all began signing the "official" copy on August 2, 1776. In January of the next year, Congress sent signed copies to all of the states.

The Declaration of Independence is more than just a piece of paper. It is a symbol of our country's independence and commitment to certain ideas. A symbol is something that stands for something else. Most people can look at a certain little "swoosh" and know that it stands for "Nike." Well, the signers of the Declaration of Independence wanted the citizens of the United States to have a document that spelled out what was important to our leaders and citizens.

They wanted us to be able to look at the Declaration of Independence and immediately think of the goals we should always be working for, and about the people who have fought so hard to make these ideas possible. The people who signed the Declaration risked being hanged for treason by the leaders in Great Britain. They had to be very brave to sign something that would be considered a crime! So every time we look at the Declaration of Independence, we should think about all of the effort and ideas that went into the document, and about the courage it took for these people to stand up for what they knew was right -- independence!

American flag

For of all the signs and symbols since the world began there is none other so full of meaning as the flag of this country. That piece of red, white and blue bunting means five thousand years of struggle upward. It is the full-grown flower of ages of fighting for liberty. It is the century plant of human hope in bloom.

Your flag stands for humanity, for an equal opportunity to all the sons of men. Of course we haven't arrived yet at that goal; there are many injustices yet among us, many senseless and cruel customs of the past still clinging to us, but the only hope of righting the wrongs of men lies in the feeling produced in our bosoms by the sight of that flag.

Other flags mean a glorious past, this flag a glorious future. It is not so much the flag of our fathers as it is the flag of our children, and of all children's children yet unborn. It is the flag of tomorrow. It is the signal of the "Good Time Coming." It is not the flag of your king—it is the flag of yourself and of all your neighbors.

This tribute to the flag is offered to the country in appeal to all men and women of all races, colors and tongues, that they may come to understand that our flag is the symbol of liberty and learn to love it.

Analysis

This text talks about the influence of a foreign culture on expatriated families. It can be divided into three parts. In part I, the author starts with a way of celebrating his home country’s National Day; In part II he makes a contrastive analysis of the costs and benefits of the expatriated people; In part III, he talks about the effect of globalization.

Part I paragraph 1-3

He celebrated his national Day in another country hanging an old flag from a fourth-floor balcony. He then reminds people like him of their native country and culture.

The following question may be asked:

1. Why does the author hang the American flag from his fourth-floor balcony in Paris?

2. The author has kept the old flag for a long time. Why didn’t he get a new one?

3. Why do the author and his family go back home for the summer?

Question 1

He does it for two reasons. First, as an American living in Paris, he does not want to forget his native heritage ad flag-hanging is the only thing he can do to celebrate the Independence Day. Second, he wants to use the flag-hanging as a special means to teach his children about the American history and as a reminder of their American identity.

Question 2

The text does not tell us explicitly, but it is very likely that this flag was brought to Paris from the U.S. a long time ago. To the author, the old flag is a better reminder of his home country than a new one.

Question 3

As expatriates, they are not used to the custom and cultural traditions in France, but they have little access to the traditional culture of their motherland. So they go back home to trace the heritage of Americans. In addition, because their children are reared up in a completely foreign culture, they have the obligation to teach their children the culture and history of their motherland.

How to Display the Flag

1. When the flag is displayed over the middle of the street, it should be suspended vertically with the union to the north in an east and west street or to the east in a north and south street.

2. The flag of the United States of America, when it is displayed with another flag against a wall from crossed staffs, should be on the right, the flag's own right [that means the viewer's left ], and its staff should be in front of the staff of the other flag.

3. The flag, when flown at half-staff, should be first hoisted to the peak for an instant and then lowered to the half-staff position. The flag should be again raised to the peak before it is lowered for the day. By "half-staff" is meant lowering the flag to one-half the distance between the top and bottom of the staff. Crepe streamers may be affixed to spear heads or flagstaffs in a parade only by order of the President of the United States.

4. When flags of States, cities, or localities, or pennants of societies are flown on the same halyard with the flag of the United States, the latter should always be at the peak. When the flags are flown from adjacent staffs, the flag of the United States should be hoisted first and lowered last. No such flag or pennant may be placed above the flag of the United States or to the right of the flag of the United States (the viewer's left). When the flag is half-masted, both flags are half-masted, with the US flag at the mid-point and the other flag below.

5. When the flag is suspended over a sidewalk from a rope extending from a house to a pole at the edge of the sidewalk, the flag should be hoisted out, union first, from the building.

6. When the flag of the United States is displayed from a staff projecting horizontally or at an angle from the window sill, balcony, or front of a building, the union of the flag should be placed at the peak of the staff unless the flag is at half-staff.

7. When the flag is used to cover a casket, it should be so placed that the union is at the head and over the left shoulder. The flag should not be lowered into the grave or allowed to touch the ground.

Language Work

Fold away :

1) make something into a smaller, neater shape by folding it, usually several times

These camping chairs can be folded away and put in the trunk.

The piece of paper was folded away carefully and trucked into her purse.

regulation

Conforming to regulations or rules As we walked along the street, we could see the

noisy cheerful group of people in regulation black parade tunics.

Christians usually decorate their house with the regulations as Christmas approaches.

[only before noun] used or worn because of official rules The girls were all wearing regulation shoes.

2) the date and the occasion that prompt its appearance:

The event of the thirteen sates of British colonies declaring their independence on July 4, 1776 brought about the appearance of this flag.

3) suppress such outward signs of their heritage:

do not give manifestations of their traditional culture handed down from their ancestors.

Expatriate: someone who lives in a foreign country

British expatriates living in Spain expatriate adjective [only before noun]

expatriate workers Suppress: if important information or opinions

are suppressed, people are prevented from knowing about them, even if they have a right to know

Refuel: Its original meaning is to fill with more fuel for a vehicle but here it means to fill someone’s mind with more knowledge of their native culture.

Oil tankers will accompany the containers for trans-ocean refuelling.

In a society of intense competition, people have to refuel every year to catch up with the rapid renewal of knowledge.

Cool: calm and unemotional in a difficult situation

He was marvelously cool again, smiling as if nothing had happened.

I didn’t like him at all. I thought he was cool and arrogant.

The American in me: the feeling of being American which is deeply rooted in my mind.

Twinge: a sudden feeling of slight pain I felt a twinge of pain in my back. 2 a twinge of guilt/envy/sadness/jealousy etc a sudden slight feeling of guilt etc He felt a sharp twinge of guilt for not taking the tr

ouble to visit her. Lacuna: lacunae / -niː / or lacunas formal a place where something is missing in a piece of

writing

Part II paragraph 4-9

This part is the main body of the essay, in which the author tells us what is good and what is bad in living in a foreign country. He supports his arguments with the experience of his own family and the difference between his generation and the generation of his own children.

Part II paragraph 4-9

The following questions could be asked :

1. What are the costs and benefits of raising children in a foreign culture?

2. What is the author’s purpose of telling the story of his own children in Paragraph 4 and 5? How is the story related to his argument?

3. Did the author achieve the purpose of his summer travel in the U.S.?

Question 1

According to the author, it is difficult for children to understand and identify the virtues of their native culture without living in it so they need to go back to their native country to compensate for the ineffective family education. But the practice of raising children in a foreign culture has its merits. For example, it helps the children to acquire the new culture without being exposed to the disadvantages of their native culture.

Question 2

The story of his children is typical of American expatriates in France. It tells us that the children can learn a lot about a new culture without losing completely their own language or being exposed to the follies of their own culture. But at the same time, the story also shows that it is rather difficult for the children to understand the historical heritages of their motherland as their peer groups in the U.S.

Question 3

Not really. During the summer vacation, the author visited his brother’s family in Massachusetts. In one week’s time, they took the children to learn details of the American Revolution. They hope that the reenactment of the war will help the innocent children to understand the great historical event that led to the foundation of the nation. But to his disappointment, the result is not quite satisfactory because the children cannot completely grasp the gist of what they saw or heard.

Object lesson: a striking practical example of some principle or ideal, an event or story that shows you the right or wrong way of doing something

They responded to daily emergencies in a way that was an object lesson to us all.

That was an object lessen in how to handle a difficult customer.

Folly: a very stupid thing to do, especially one that is likely to have serious results

Somerville bitterly regretted his folly at becoming involved.

it would be folly to do something It would be sheer folly to reduce spending

on health education.

Take pride in being American: have a feeling of great pleasure or satisfaction of being a native American.

Confirm: prove something definitely true These statistics confirm our worst fears

about the depth of the recession. The spokesman confirmed that area was

now in the rebels’ hands.

Re-enact: to perform the actions of a story, crime etc that happened in the past

At the church, children re-enacted the Christmas story. / a re-enactment of the crime

Skirmish: a fight between small groups of soldiers, ships etc, especially one that happens away from the main part of a battle - used in news reports

skirmish with/between/over a short argument, especially between

political or sports opponents

Three cornered hat and cotton bonnet

Goggle: to look at something with your eyes wide open in surprise or shock

synonym gape/ goggle at They were goggling at us as if we were freaks. Goggle-eyed: with your eyes wide open and

looking directly at something, especially in surprise or shock

Make-believe: when you imagine or pretend that something is real or true

He seems to be living in a world of make-believe . children in the middle of a make-believe adventure

gas-protection goggles 防毒眼镜 protective goggles 护目镜 , 防护眼镜 safety goggles 护目镜 , 防护眼镜

skiing goggles 滑雪用护目镜

snow goggles 雪地防护眼镜

Goggle-eyed

Satisfaction swelling in my breast: with my heart full of satisfaction

Gulliver: an Englishman

who travels to the imaginary

lands in Jonathan Swift’s

satire Gulliver’s Travels.

Gulliver ‘s voyage to Lilliput （ 小人国）

As we pursued this conversation: as we continued to discuss the topic of the American Revolution.

Frame of reference: a particular set of beliefs, ideas, or observations on which one bases his judgment.

Please see to it that you are dealing with someone with a different frame of reference.

The observer interprets what he sees in terms of his own cultural frame of reference.

riposte: formal a quick, clever reply to something that someone has said

a suitably witty riposte Verb: retort quickly Bring up: mention ,show the example of

Part III paragraph 10-12

Questions to be asked:

1. Why does the author recall his own experience as a child in Paragraph 10?

2. What are the differences between the author and his children as expatriates at about the same time in their lives? What causes the differences?

3. Why does the author say the development is sad?

Question 1

Because he wants to illustrate that as a child he had a particular way of viewing the world around him, which was quiet different from that of the adults. Haste makes waste. So the knowledge of his native land should be accumulated gradually.

Question 2

They are different in both behavior and mentality. His children are quite like their French peers in behavior and dress style, while the author was quite different from his French peers when he was a child. These differences are due to the rapid social changes and cultural merging all over the world. The world is becoming a huge melting pot in which different cultures of the world are mixing up.

Question 3

Because globalization becomes the keynotes of life in the world today. Cultures are also merging with each other. Children cannot tell the exact differences between two cultures and it is impossible for them to relive the author’s experience of living in a foreign culture. So this kind of development as sad to the author.

Resonate: if something such as an event or a message resonates, it seems important or good to people, or continues to do this

~ with : an idea that resonates with many voters to make a sound that is produced as a reaction to

another sound Oklahoma!: (1943) a musical (=a play that uses

singing and dancing to tell a story) by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein about people who moved to Oklahoma in the late 1800s. It was made into a successful film in 1955, and it includes many well-known songs, such as 'Oh what a beautiful morning!'

Square dancing

It is a folk dance developed in America from adaptations of the English running sets and the stately French cotillion which later developed into the less formal quadrilles, and in America, the Virginia Reel. In square dancing four couples are in square formation, dancing always as a group. Under the direction of a caller, or as he was formerly known, a prompter, they perform intricate figures and patterns, often changing partners, to the rhythm of stringed instruments playing lively tunes.

Square dancing: a traditional American dance in which sets of four couples dance together in a square

formation

Surreys with fringe on top: old –fashioned horse-drawn carriages with fancy decorations on top.

Sinister: evil, sinful Personify: to have a lot of a particular quality or

be a typical example of something Carter personifies the values of self-reliance and

hard work. kindness/generosity etc personified Bertha was kindness personified.

to think of or represent a quality or thing as a person

personify something as somebody

Cliché: an idea or phrase that has been used so much that it is not effective or does not have any meaning any longer

There is plenty of truth in the cliché that a trouble shared is a trouble halved.

clichéd adjective

Davy Crockett hat

Land’s End: the name of a fashion company Fleece: the woolly coat of a sheep, especially

the wool and skin of a sheep when it has been made into a piece of clothing

[uncountable] an artificial soft material used to make warm jackets

[countable] British English a jacket made of this artificial material

Verb: to charge someone too much money for something, especially by tricking them

A much less jarring cultural divide : a much less unsuitable cultural divergence The output.

Jar: to make someone feel annoyed or shocked His enthusiasm jarred. His words jarred Harriet. jar on The screaming was starting to jar on my ne

rves . Re-entry… : is likely to be smoother. It seems to b

e easier for the children to restart the acquisition of their native culture

Immerse: to put someone or something deep into a liquid so that they are completely covered

immerse somebody/something in something Immerse your foot in ice cold water to reduce the sw

elling. immerse yourself in something to become completely involved in an activity He left school at 16 and immersed himself in the Lab

our party. ￚ immersed adjective She was far too immersed in

her studies.

Structural Analysis

In this text there are both general and specific discussions about how to keep the cultural identity of the expatriated people.

The author of this text follows a “specific-general” pattern in his discussion. The specific points can be found in his discussion of the costs and benefits of raising children in a foreign culture in Para 4-9 while the general conclusion can be found in Para 10-12, esp.12.

Rhetorical Features

Generally speaking, the author of this text has adopted a plain language style

concessive words and expressions like but are frequently used.