. . . the French people, from a 1944 Army booklet for American servicemen:
MANY of you are no doubt wondering what kind of people the French are. You will soon see for yourselves. You will find that aside from the fact that they speak another (and very musical) language, they are very much like . . .
. . . a lot of the people you knew back home. Here are a few facts about them which apply generally, but you must remember that each one of them is an individual, and that Pierre Ducrot is as different from Paul Boucher as you are from Joe Jones.
Frenchmen are much like us in one particular respect -- they are all Frenchmen together and are as intensely proud of the fact as we are of being American. . . .
You will soon discover for yourself that the French have what might be called a national character. It is made up of a half dozen outstanding characteristics:
(1) The French are mentally quick.
(2) Rich or poor, they are economical. Ever since the Nazis took over and French business came to a standstill, thousands of French families have kept themselves alive on their modest savings.
(3) The French are what they themselves call realistic. It's what we call having hard common sense. French common sense consists of looking the facts straight in the eye. Because they soon saw through the Nazi scheme of so-called collaboration, the Nazis have called the French cynical. Even in defeat the French can't easily be fooled.
(4) The French of all classes have respect for the traditionally important values of the life of civilized man. They have respect for religion and for artistic ideas. They have an extreme respect for property, whether public or private. To them property represents the result of work. To destroy property means to belittle work. Respect for work is a profound principle in France. The Frenchman's woodpile is just as sacred to him as the Banque de France. Above all, the French respect the family circle as the natural center of social and economic life. It is a country of eleven million family circles. There is very little divorce in France. The economies of French life are based on their parents' rule of working and saving for their children's future. French life is based on looking ahead.
(5) The French are individualists. The Frenchman believes in himself rather than the necessity of being like everyone else. This has its good as well as its bad side. It has often led the French into being a nation of biverse [sic] and even conflicting opinion. There aren't just two ways of looking at things in France -- yours and the other fellow's. There are dozens of ways. Despite the political miseries this has recent brought to the French, France is still full of partisanships. Right now there are red hot topics which the French must decide for themselves. The future set-up in France is the Frenchman's business and nobody else's. His defeat has made him fear for this future independence. The Allied invasion will bring up extra problems and lots of talk. Stay out of these local discussions, even if you have had French II in High School. In any French argument on internal French affairs, you will either be drowned out or find yourself involved in a first class French row. Quarrels between those who are fighting Hitler can still give him a big dangerous boost. He started this war on the principle of Divide and Conquer and his propaganda experts still believe they can make it work.
[6] The French are good talkers and magnificent cooks -- if there is still anything lefty to put in the pot. French talk and French food have contributed more than anything else to the French reputation for gayety. Learn how to speak a few essential words of French. . . . Like most good talkers the French are polite. The courtesy words ("please" -- "thank you" etec.) are the first things French children are taught.
(Army Information Branch, Army Service Forces, the United States Army, "Instructions for American Servicemen in France During World War II," published in 1944, republished by The University of Chicago Press in 2008)
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