Patricia introduces one of France's most renowned poets, Charles Baudelaire. His major work, Les Fleurs du Mal (The Flowers of Evil), is still the most studied poetry collection in French schools and was as much a source of controversy as admiration in his day. Baudelaire's love affair with his muse, actress Jeanne Duval, was a main source of inspiration for Les Fleurs du Mal.

Patricia brings to life Baudelaire's famous poem "L'horloge" (The Clock). The poet laments the passage of time and life's inevitable conclusion: death. Aside from the gloomy message, this poem is also an invitation to seize the day and enjoy all that life has to offer, including this poem!

In the wake of the recent tragedy on the Promenade des Anglais, Nice remains a beautiful and diverse city. In this video, Patricia talks about what makes the city such a great place to live and visit.

Jean de La Fontaine's fables are all-time classics that have been in the French school curriculum for many years, at all levels. It's safe to say that every French person knows at least one of his fables.

In this video you will hear a fable by Jean de La Fontaine, the most famous fable writer in French literature. "Le Chêne et le Roseau" (The Oak and the Reed) is a lesson in humility. The humble reed belies an inner strength that the oak does not possess. The oak's unbending nature proves to be its downfall.

In this video, you will learn about the famous poet, novelist, and journalist Louis Aragon, who lived in the twentieth century. Many of his poems were set to music by famous French singers such as Georges Brassens, Léo Férré, and Jean Ferrat.

Patricia recites Louis Aragon's heartbreaking poem "Il n'y a pas d'amour heureux" (There Is No Happy Love), which has been set to music by a number of famous singers. You can listen to Françoise Hardy's version here.

Patricia recites one of Jean de La Fontaine's most famous fables, "La Cigale et la Fourmi" (The Cicada and the Ant). After spending the entire summer singing instead of storing food, the cicada is starving come winter. She hopes her neighbor the ant can help her....

Patricia sheds a new light on the renowned fable by Jean de La Fontaine, "The Cicada and the Ant." Maybe the cicada isn't such a bad character after all....

In part 6 of Le Québec parle aux Français, the interviewees compare and contrast the immigrant situation in France and Quebec. France, being a smaller country, creates additional pressure for immigrants, while in Quebec, immigrants do rather well. Later, Olivier treats us to a little song he wrote himself.

Paris would be an entirely different city today if the architect Le Corbusier had carried out his ambitious project for the capital. But Minister of Culture André Malraux put a stop to this and set out to preserve the historic heritage of Paris by introducing a new law. Find out what Paris could have looked like in this video!

The young singer-songwriter Benjamin Perrot has some loud neighbors, and his walls made of cardboard aren't exactly soundproof. You'll see in the video why he wonders if his neighbors are actually "rabbits"....

Overwhelmed by the amount of text messages and other technological annoyances in his life, singer-songwriter Benjamin Perrot uses this acoustic session on Le Mans TV as an opportunity to "disconnect." Don't let your phone distract you while watching this video!

In the first episode of "Mon Village" (My Village), Olivier takes us to Malicorne, a small town of two thousand inhabitants where exciting and innovative events happen all the time. You'll meet the enthusiastic mayor extraordinaire of Malicorne who can tread on water! Be sure to catch the very last caption to find out how it's done.

Olivier takes us inside Malicorne's "Espace Faïence" (Earthenware Space), where permanent exhibits can be found as well as temporary ones like the current animal display. Set up like a treasure hunt, this exhibit is very popular with children.