Flirting with French

William Alexander is un homme d'un certain âge*, and he wants to learn French. More than learn it, as it turns out. He wants to conquer it. Sounding familiar?

"I'm more than a Francophile. I want to be French. There's one small obstacle though: I don't speak la langue française. In Flirting with French, I set out to conquer the language I love. Readers will find out if it loves me back. I eat, breathe, and sleep French (even conjugating — badly — in my dreams). I travel to France, where mistranslations send me bicycling off in all sorts of wrong directions, and I nearly drown in an immersion class in Provence, where, faced with the riddle of masculine breasts, feminine beards, and a turkey cutlet of uncertain gender, I start to wonder if I should've taken up golf instead."

So how does he fare? You'll have to read right to the end when William takes stock of his success (or other) in learning a language as an adult. Though we tried to source a local provider, it seems this book is not widely distributed, so if you're keen to read it, you're best off to find it here.

Bonne lecture!*

*a man of a certain age | *Happy reading!

World Wellness Group

Cette semaine* we ducked over to the World Wellness Group in Stones Corner to drop off the food you have so generously donated this term. We'd heard their placard* was a bit bare, so we put in a special request to our Chouchous* and you did not disappoint. Thank you so much for making the effort to bring the goods in. As Rita explains in the video, at times people who come to the medical clinic may not have eaten the day of their appointment, and possibly for a day or two before that, so to be able to send them home with a small bag of groceries is a huge help.

By the way, if you missed the collection this time around, please feel free to bring any extra goods in at any time. Ideally, we'd love to do another drop-off before Christmas. Merci encore*.

*This week | *cupboard | *Teacher's Pets | *Thanks again

Instagram Lessons

If you're looking for some short and sweet French lessons from your very favourite French tutors (that's us, in case you're wondering), then jump over to our Instagram page! We've been posting a video every Monday for a number of weeks now so there is a good little stock to choose from. They're filed under our Instagram Stories.

For those of you who are unsure how to access them, click on our logo when there’s a red circle around it to watch the story of the day. To watch previous tips and lessons, click on the tutor’s icon just below, in the ‘highlights’ section.

By the way, we've received some really lovely comments recently about how you're enjoying our revamped social media which of course we love hearing, but if ever you have any other ideas as to what we could include please ne soyez pas timide*! We'd love to hear what sort of content you feel you'd really benefit from and enjoy.

*don’t be shy

Casting call

À quelque chose, malheur est bon*...

Though I'm sure none of us would voluntarily submit to another year like 2020, it is true that every cloud has a silver lining. In Lingua Franca's case, it has shown up in the form of a grant from the State Government to develop the business in a way that increases its future resilience. So, starting very soon, we'll be filming our first ever series of lessons to be offered online in perpetuity. That is, students from around the globe will be able to sign up for an Absolute Beginner 1 course which will be delivered to them in bite-sized chunks which they can consume at their own pace.

One aspect of lessons in the nest we're very keen to replicate for our online learners is the feeling of being en classe*. Hopefully, you know what I'm talking about: the feeling of camaraderie, support and pure enjoyment you get from being around a small number of like-minded people in pursuit of a common goal. We're convinced it is la formule secrète* to learning and therefore want to share it with as many people as possible, from Brisbane to Broken Hill to Bagdad!

We'll be looking for some volunteers to act as students in the 'class', and since you, our Chouchous* already know some French, unfortunately we can't call upon you. But we thought you might know some absolute French beginners who'd be up for being filmed as they learn their first words of French. We'd offer them the Absolute Beginner 1 course for free and in return they'd need to be available for filming. We'll know more soon once we've met with the film crew, but if you do think you may know someone who fait l'affaire*, please do let us know.

*Every cloud has a silver lining | *in class | *the secret ingredient | *Teacher's Pets | *fits the bill

Ultimate French Resources #2

As a long-term French learner, you'll likely find there are certain resources you use once and immediately forget, others you use for a period of time and then put to the side, and still others to which you return time and again to answer your trickiest questions.

Much like the old adage about people entering your life for a reason, season or a lifetime, we could say the same about French references. In my life, Schaum's French Grammar has certainly earned its place as a 'lifetimer'.

WHAT:

A combined French grammar and exercise book.

WHO:

While the Schaum Outline Series covers topics as diverse as macroeconomics, topology and reinforced concrete design, if you're content to just stick to French for now, the French Grammar edition has clear explanations, illustrative examples and a large number of practice exercises.

POINTS FORTS*:

As above, it's the repetition that's the key. Hundreds and hundreds of exercises give you the chance to practise until you get it right. Also, while the explanations are simple and clear, they are very broad in their scope, so this is a book you'll hang onto for years as the ultimate reference.

POINT FAIBLE*:

Though there have been five updates since my trusty 2nd edition hit the shelves (and even mine was bought second-hand!), the interior pages have stayed much the same. So not an inspiring layout, but highly, highly effective.

*best bits | *weak point

Nasal vowels

The sounds that make French sound just...well...so French! Master these and you'll be well on your way to perfecting your French accent.

World Wellness Group

For some time now, our Chouchous* have generously supported the World Wellness Group which provides medical care to those most in need here in Brisbane.

It’s hard to believe, but being in need even here in Australia can translate to not having enough to eat, so the WWG has a ‘Community Pantry’ set up in their medical centre, where patients can access basic staples to cook at home.

We delivered several baskets of goods pre-COVID and feel the time is right to start a new collection for those who need it most. So if you have any extra cans in the back of your cupboard you don't need, we'll have a basket set up au nid* from next week. Not sure what's needed? Jetez un œil* at our shopping list below.

*Teacher's Pets | *the nest | *Take a look

liste de courses

boîtes de conserve

haricots, pois-chiches, thon, lait de coco

céreales

riz basmati, nouilles instantanées, pâtes

légumes secs

lentilles, orge

laitages

lait longue conservation

pâtes à tartiner

beurre de cacahuètes, miel, confiture, nutella

autres

petits pots pour bébé et lait maternel, couches, produits d'hygiène et de beauté

shopping list

canned goods

beans, chickpeas, tuna, coconut cream

grains and cereals

basmati rice, two-minute noodles, pasta

pulses

lentils, barley

dairy

long-life milk

spreads

peanut butter, honey, jam, nutella

other

baby food and formula, nappies, personal care items

Ultimate French Resources #1

At the start of my career tutoring French, I was a huge consumer of French grammar books. In fact, French language books of all kinds - I wanted them all. As befitting my personality (and that of many of our students, I hear), each book has two or three pages completed and the rest of the book is entirely blank. A true addict, once I'd realised a particular book was not going to magically make me speak French fluently, I discarded it and went looking for my next dose*. So the books piled up until I nearly ran out of new ones to buy. Sounding familiar?

Over the years, though, I've noticed there are a couple I return to time and again and along with a couple of websites, they have really become my French bibles.

In the next few newsletters, we'll cover my top five. Let's start with a fantastique* website: Lawless French.

WHAT:

A website for learners of all levels

WHO:

Laura K. Lawless, an American woman, fluent in French, based in Guadeloupe, who is also responsible for the French for Dummies book, which is actually very good.

POINTS FORTS*:

Very, very thorough, you can sign up for a weekly newsletter with helpful tips and for more advanced levels, her 'Subjunctivisor" will tell you whether your sentence requires the subjunctive or not. Very useful.

POINT FAIBLE*:

It's not a particularly beautiful site, but it is nonetheless very, very good.

*fix | *fantastic | *best bits | *weak point

How to type French accents

We are often asked by our Chouchous* how they can type French accents on their various devices. The wonderful website Thought Co has again come up with the goods, with a blow-by-blow account of how to do so, regardless of whether you are plutôt* Apple or Android. Here below, though, a quick guide to your options.

*Teacher's Pets | *more/rather

La cédille

Undoubtedly the cutest of the French accents, this little squiggle looks a lot like a number 5 without its lid and descends from the middle of the bottom of the letter 'c'. So what does it do? It changes a hard 'c' sound to a soft one.

French works very similarly to English when the letter 'c' is followed by a vowel.

The cedilla (or c cédille in French) changes a hard 'c' to a soft one. Even our most débutant* students will have seen this at work in 'ça va', which, if not for the accent, would sound like 'ka va'.

*beginner

Everly Magazine

If you've been coming to Lingua Franca for a very long time (remember the Vroom days?), you may have had the good fortune of meeting a lovely young woman called Lesley Slade. In her typically understated way, Lesley came to us 'just to learn some French', which she did for two or three terms if my memory serves me correctly. The next thing we knew, Lesley had moved to Paris and vivait son rêve* working as a freelance journalist, speaking French, completing a writers residency in Champagne, teaching English in Paris, attending shows for Paris Fashion Week and... naturellement*... falling in love.

Fast forward seven years and Lesley is back living in Brisbane (now with her French-Tunisian husband) and has decided to launch herself yet again into the inconnu* (you really have to admire Lesley's dynamisme*) by starting her very own magazine.

Everly is a lifestyle magazine about style, fashion, travel, the arts, culture and inspiring human interest stories. There's a definite French flavour, which is of course inspired by her time in France.

Taking a look at the cover of Issue #1 and Everly’s Instagram account, it is immediately clear that Lesley speaks our language: the 2020 Chanel spring-summer collection, interviews with beloved Paris-based Australian photographer Carla Coulson and comedian Tim Minchin and a round-up of Aussie entrepreneurs taking the French coffee scene by storm. Quoi de mieux?*

If you'd like to go into the running to win one of three copies of Everly Issue 1, email us the name of a book by Carla Coulson. We’ll take the first three entries. 

Bonne chance*!

*was living the dream | *naturally | *unknown | *get up and go | *What could be better? | *Good luck!

L'accent circonflexe

Savez-vous que* the circumflex accent in French was originally a combination of the acute and grave accents? Neither did we until very recently and though its effect on pronunciation these days is fairly negligible, it can be a real help in working out the meaning of the word it appears in. Regardez* the video below for a fuller explanation.

*Did you know that... | *Watch

L'accent grave

Katrina explains the effect of the accent grave* on pronunciation. If you think of it making the sound of the letter 'e' in the English words 'bed' or 'egg' you'll be very close indeed.

*grave accent.

Le Coronavirus et La Covid-19

The Académie française* is the guardian of the French language. Not known for their vitesse* (the 9th edition of their gold-standard dictionary was started last century and they're still only up to the letter 's'), in the age of Coronavirus, they have shown an extraordinarily short response time to deciding the gender of the illness.

This article appeared in Moncole Magazine and was passed on to us by the lovely Xavier Amouroux, whom many of you know. Merci, Xav*!

*The French Academy (esteemed body who looks after the integrity of the French language) | *speed | *Thanks, Xav!

Society / France
Deadlier than the male

It was only a matter of time before the authorities got involved. In France, the masculine le Covid-19 has crept into daily use in conversation and the media, angering Francophone linguists in the process. Thankfully, the Académie Française has put a stop to it, ruling that the virus is, in fact, feminine. The Académie goes into impressive detail in laying out its reasoning behind the change from le to the feminine la, primarily using precedents from other acronyms, which are the gender of their core word. State-owned railway firm SNCF (the Société Nationale des Chemins de Fer), for example, is feminine because of la Société. After citing everything from Latin to English, the Académie found the core of Covid-19 to be la maladie (illness). Such a simple explanation begs the question: how did this error make it into French conversation in the first place? Well, that’s because le coronavirus (which refers to the family of viruses rather than Covid-19 specifically) remains masculine. And that isn’t confusing at all...

Digital ‘coups de cœur’

We took a straw poll recently here at Lingua Franca to find about the team’s coups de cœur* in the world of digital platforms, whether they were des sites web*, des applis* or des podcasts*, and here are the results.

Remember, there is always value in taking a look at a wide range of media when you're learning French. Even if you don't think you understand much at all, you will pick up the odd word or phrase here and there and equally importantly, you'll be getting un petit aperçu* of true contemporary French culture.

*crushes | *websites | *apps | *podcasts | *glimpse

Ressource Peintures

Katrina

"C'est un bon compte Insta juste pour zapper et se détendre"

"This is a great Insta page to use to just relax your brain"

Marie Claire - Idées

Josephine

"Vu que je fais une tonne d'arts manuels, de la couture et du bricolage, je suis souvent sur ce site à chercher de nouvelles idées."

"Since I do a LOT of craft, sewing and DIY, I'm often on this site looking for new ideas"

Une souris dans mon dressing

Caroline

"Je suis le blog d'une femme créative et que je trouve très amusante : "une souris dans mon dressing". Voici sa page Instagram."

"I follow the blog of a female creative who I find very funny: "a mouse in my wardrobe"" Here is her Instagram page.

Marmiton

David

"Aimant cuisiner et pâtissier j'utilise très souvent le site Marmiton."

"Since I love cooking and baking, I often use the Marmiton site.

Nouvelles Écoutes

Fiona

"J’écoute beaucoup de podcasts et celui-là est mon préféré car il donne la parole à des femmes inspirantes."

"I listen to lots of podcasts and this is my favourite because it highlights inspiring women."

TED Talks - French

Deborah

“J’aime avoir la possibilité de filtrer les vidéos par langue et regarder des TED Talks en français.”

”I like being able to filter videos by language and watch TED Talks in French.”

Gad Elmaleh

Une courte vidéo* to prove that the French struggle just as much as we do when they learn "the English". French Moroccan comedian Gad Elmaleh takes us through their equivalent of 'ouvrez la fenêtre*'.

PS C'est promis* - ask any French person who has learned English at school and they'll tell you all about the infamous Brian and his kitchen. Enjoy!

*a short video | *open the window | *It's a promise

Capucine

If you find the 'r' difficult in French, this video of an adorable young girl called Capucine will provide plenty of inspiration. Her énorme* imagination is quite something as well!

I used to think students could either make this sound or not, however over the years I've been proven very wrong. I now believe everybody can do it, you just have to know how. I'll put together a video to explain the technique soon, so keep an eye out in future Le Chouchou News.

*enormous

L'accent aigu

I absolutely love teaching about the acute accent (accent aigu in French). I find it really interesting.

Firstly, it's a sound we're relatively familiar with even before we come to learn French, since it appears in some very common words we've borrowed: café, risqué, touché, for example.

Secondly, there is a really neat trick I was taught by my French teacher which I now love to pass on. It goes like this: if ever you're faced with a French word that starts with an 'é' and you're having trouble deciphering it, try dropping the 'é' and replacing it with an 's' instead.

For example:

étranger = stranger
état = state
Écosse = Scotland

Pourquoi? Well, the history of language is a long and complicated one, but this is my simple (and by no means authoritative) take on it. Modern French is derived from Latin via Old French. Several other modern languages are also based on Latin, for example Italian, Spanish, Portugese and Romanian. These are often called western Romance languages. If we take an example of the evolution of the word 'study' from Latin to Old French to Modern French, you may start to see an interesting pattern.

Latin: studium
Old French: estude
Modern French: étude

Can you see how when the 's' dropped out of use in the transition between Old and Modern French, the acute accent makes an appearance? It seems English borrowed many words from Old French, and just removed the 'e' over time, leaving us, in this example at least, with 'stude' which is quite close to the Modern English word 'study'. Interestingly, Spanish also borrowed many words at this stage, and yet they chose to keep the 'es' (their word for study is 'estudio').

World Wellness Group

For those of you who are new to Lingua Franca, you may not have noticed a basket of groceries as you enter the office.

We're putting it in a more prominent place in the coming weeks in case any of you are interested in contributing to the collection of goods for our friends, the World Wellness Group, a not-for-profit organisation located in Stones Corner who provide medical care for some of our most at-risk fellow Brisbanites. Helping to keep their community pantry with staples such as rice, pasta, canned beans and UHT milk allows the WWG to maintain their high levels of care.

All contributions gratefully accepted, none expected.

Le Vlog de Deborah

We all miss Deborah, but luckily for us she's going to be checking in via the Chouchou News each month. Being janvier*, it's all about la galette des rois* and who gets to be king for a day and wear the crown.

For those of you who don't know Deborah...well, you missed out! Deborah worked at Lingua Franca in Brisbane for 7 years as a tutor and also took over the design from me (Katrina) in the early years of Lingua Franca (trust me, you should be thankful for that). In December 2019, Deborah and her family moved back to France but Deborah continues to be a very valuable member of the Lingua Franca family, taking care of all our graphic design work à distance.*

*January *Epiphany cake *remotely