Difficulty:
Intermediate
France
Buddhist monks and other Tibetans protest against Chinese rule while their spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, continues his exile in India. The topic of Tibet was a sore point for China as it prepared to host the Summer Olympics.
Difficulty:
Intermediate
France
Chantal Sébire, whose face was disfigured by a large and incurable tumor that caused her excruciating pain and made her blind, had one request: to end her own life. But the French government refused to allow her to obtain a prescription from her doctor for a lethal amount of drugs. One week after this report, Ms. Sébire was found dead in her home.
Difficulty:
Intermediate
France
Choosing a name for a new baby is just one of the tricky tasks parents face. Should you go with a classic, like Jeanne; a trendy name, like Mathéo; or an old-school throwback, like Alphonse? It can be tough to decide, but if all else fails, just use your alphabet blocks!
Difficulty:
Adv Beginner
France
A group has designed a new tool to bring sex education into the digital age. It’s “Neutros”: an informative and fun online video game designed to teach young people about sexuality, contraception, and other adolescent issues.
Difficulty:
Adv-Intermediate
France
Youssef Ben Amar is a rapper and political activist who is running for office in the fourth legislative district of the Sarthe department. He shares his views and urges people to take an interest in politics, which he believes is something that all people do every day.
Difficulty:
Intermediate
France
This video from Le Monde explores the popular and scientific views of astrology. After a brief description of how birth charts are created, the video asks whether astrology "works" at all.
Difficulty:
Adv-Intermediate
France
Why are there so few streets named after women? The mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, decided to change the street-naming regulations to include women's names. Some say that it's far from sufficient, but it's a start!
Difficulty:
Adv-Intermediate
France
Will the French have to dine on cod liver or other such delicacies during this coronavirus pandemic? Can the food industry cope with the extra demand in supermarkets? Watch this video to find out.
Difficulty:
Intermediate
France
In the last thirty years, cars have become heavier and larger. This alarming trend has been addressed by European authorities, who have imposed new measures to curb pollution. But are these measures actually working?
Difficulty:
Adv-Intermediate
France
The 2009 transport regulations failed to achieve their objectives. Large vehicles are still popular and polluting the atmosphere. Learn more about the cause of this failure and what can be done about it.
Difficulty:
Advanced
Canada
In the first episode of this documentary on Quebec, a young Frenchman shares his impressions on Canada. As the interviewees in the film demonstrate, the Quebecois have conflicting attitudes toward the French—some see them as "snobs," while others see them as just "polite."
Difficulty:
Advanced
Canada
In the second episode of Le Québec parle aux Français, we learn more about the complex relationship between the French and the Quebecois throughout history. We also learn about the evolution of the French language in Quebec—according to a former Prime Minister of Quebec, the province even "spoke French before France"!
Difficulty:
Advanced
Canada
The situation of the French language in Quebec is controversial and complex. Montreal was an English-speaking city until 1920, and it wasn't until the passage of Law 101 in 1977 that French became the official language of Quebec. According to some of the interviewees in this video, Québécois French is in a precarious position once again, with municipal signage and corporate names in Montreal reverting to English, as well as shopkeepers who refuse to speak French.
Difficulty:
Advanced
Canada, France
One might think that the push to remove anglicisms from the French language would be stronger in France, but the larger movement to "purify" French is actually happening in Quebec. Many Québécois worry that the French language is endangered in Canada, and the Quebec government has taken measures to preserve it by inventing new words instead of borrowing from English. That's why an email is still un email in France, but un courriel in Quebec.
Difficulty:
Advanced
Canada, France
French Canada is a cultural mosaic that is still exploring its identity. Some French Canadians feel more American than French, while others feel more of an allegiance to their French roots. Somehow, a Quebecois nation is emerging out of all this, but not without some growing pains.
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