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L'art de la bise
Duration:
3 minutes and 56 seconds
Country:
France
Language:
French (France)
License:
Public Domain
Genre:
Animated
Views:
3,291
(328
embedded)
Posted by:
julie.la.rousse on Nov 6, 2007
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Video Transcription
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- In French, we say "as simple as a hello" to describe something easy.
- As simple as a hello?
- But saying "hello" in French is far from being easy.
- And especially for a foreigner.
- Because the French don't just say "hello" or shake hands.
- They give a "bise" or kiss on the cheeks.
- And kissing is an art in itself.
- Those who haven't learned it in their childhood like most French kids,
- - "Come on, give a kiss to auntie!" -
- are often feeling uneasy.
- The unconfortable foreigner tries to lean, with his lips pushed forward and his arms hanging limply by his side,
- not knowing if he's actually supposed to touch the other with the lips or just kiss the air.
- Don't laugh.
- All the poor exchange students are familiar with this embarrassement
- when they're meeting their host families for the first time,
- and when suddenly, everybody is trying to kiss them.
- To learn how to kiss, four questions must be answered.
- When? Who? How? How many?
- When?
- When you're meeting people in your spare time,
- sometimes in the morning at work,
- and always when you're meeting friends.
- Of course, the quantity of kissing is proportionate to the amount of friends.
- If there are already 15 people at the party,
- you would starve to death before getting access to the buffet.
- Those who are used to waving their hands to say "hello" might find this a bit tiresome.
- Who?
- You need to consider the family links, the level of friendship, the working relationship,
- the age and the social status of the person.
- For instance, you can't kiss your boss.
- Or rather, you have to wait for him to initiate the kiss.
- But you can kiss your colleagues all you want.
- For men, it's more complicated.
- Some men kiss other men if they're friends or relatives,
- but not always.
- Young people tend to kiss a lot, including young men.
- How?
- Kissing creates an immediate sense of intimacy.
- As a behaviour, it can be compared to animal sniffing, but it's also a good way to start flirting.
- The intensity, the lenght and the conviction put into the kiss can thus vary.
- You just have to follow your feelings.
- But if you don't really know the person, it's better to be cautious.
- How many?
- The number of kisses is the main problem.
- Parisians kiss twice,
- people from the South three times.
- And in some regions, people even kiss four times.
- It can be very unsettling to kiss someone if you don't know where the person is coming from,
- as it is very unpleasant to reach for a third kiss when the person is already turning away,
- or to stop after two kisses when the other wants more.
- Even the French people don't really know how many kisses they are supposed to give.
- People from the same city may not agree
- on the amount of kiss you have to give.
- How can we explain those uncertainties?
- The reason is the need to take into account the social status.
- In France, the distinction between the social classes is still important.
- In a nutshell, middle and upper-middle class tend to kiss less
- than the working class, who rarely stop before four kisses.
- All those elements make it tricky for foreigners to fully understand the kissing process.
- A good idea would be to publish a French map of the kiss
- that would give the number of kisses according to the place and the social status.
- Such a map would be useful not only to the tourists, but also to the French themselves!


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