/lit/ - Literature

[Anonymous No.2621354]

French Thread:

Building on the language learning thread that is floating around. I'm not very good at French at all but I can read it if it is simple enough

I'll just start by posting some hasics

[Anonymous No.2621366]

First: The best way to learn a language is to move to the country where that language is spoken (immerse yourself) For most of us that isn't an option.

so

Immerse yourself at home
>Switch your electronics/ facebook to french
>put french subtitles on when watching movies
>listen to french music (links on some decent stuff to come)
>read in french even if if you can't really understand it and just take notes
>get dual language translation books they are amazing, Barnes and Noble has a good dual language starting from Voltaire and ending with Camus

if anyone wants me to keep going I will

[Anonymous No.2621377]

This is a bit off-base, but can someone recommend some good Spanish music?

[Anonymous No.2621380]

Here are some decent french songs

>Les Innocents, C'est un monde parfait
(The innocent, It's a perfect world)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0idjdy8Hhv0

>Yelle, Je Veux Te Voir
(Yelle, I want to see you)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y99UqvgCmE8&ob=av2e

>TTC, Travailler
(TTC, Work)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=miZN_ECkVtk

I know the music isn't the best but it helps to hear the language and the human brain is hard wired for music so we respond well

As for the book
http://www.amazon.com/Stories-Français-Dual-Language-English-Edition/dp/0486264432

[Anonymous No.2621402]

Renaud - La teigne
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b8_z0GGsGwg

I know all the words to this fucking song but I couldn't tell you what they mean.

[Anonymous No.2621403]

Other tips:

Rosetta Stone: 1-2 hours a day and then study more on your own
>I know a lot of people will piss and moan about how it doesn't "teach" you the language. Of course it doesn't. It does however give you a great ear for French and makes your pronunciation ROCK solid.

>Learn the alphabet
There are so many vids on youtube of people singing the French alphabet just watch over and over and repeat. Practice the alphabet, spell words in your head. Read labels and spell each word out using the French letter.

>learn numbers
Same thing, just youtube it ffs

>go pick up a french while you drive cd set
they are cheap and on your way to work or school it helps to just have it playing because it will help teach a few words and basic grammar
it also helps to reinforce what you have been studying

[Anonymous No.2621408]

JE PARLE UN PEUT LE FRANCAIS QUI J'APPRIS PAR BOITES DE CEREAL PARCE QUE J'HABITE AU CANADA

[Anonymous No.2621413]

A few tips and resources than lesson 1:

>Go try and read Le Monde
(the world). It will just help to show you how similar French and English are

>The more you learn try to start thinking in French to yourself, have imaginary conversations using what you know. It sounds crazy but it helps

Some helpful resources:
>Grammar book
http://www.amazon.com/Mastering-French-Grammar-Barrons/dp/0764136550

>Dictionary
http://www.amazon.com/Merriam-Websters-French-English-Dictionary-Merriam-Webster/dp/0877799172/ref=s
r_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1336343361&sr=1-2

>Idioms
http://www.amazon.com/French-Idioms-Barrons-Foreign-Language/dp/0764135589/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie
=UTF8&qid=1336343381&sr=1-3

>Dirty French
http://www.amazon.com/Dirty-French-Everyday-Slang-Whats/dp/1569756589/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8
&qid=1336343408&sr=1-1

>A cheap older edition French textbook
(go for used)
http://www.amazon.com/Debuts-Introduction-Edition-Bind--Passcode/dp/0073228672/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&am
p;ie=UTF8&qid=1336343455&sr=1-2

[Anonymous No.2621436]

I worry that no one cares and I should stop
If anyone is actually trying and cares...

Lesson 1: Nouns

French nouns have two genders (Masculine and Feminine) there is no Neuter like in German or other languages

For masculine nouns use the article(s)
>le (the)
(pronounced Luh) but more rounded.
>un (a)
(pronounced (uh)

as far as pronunciation goes Google Translate is actually decent when it comes to phonetic rendering.

For Feminine nouns use the arcile
>la (the)
(pronounced just like you think)
>une (a)
(pronounced like "moon" without the "m"

There aren't fixed rules for just looking at a noun and saying if it is Masc or Fem. like in Spanish or Italian so you actually need to learn the articles

>La table
(The table)
>La chaise
(The chairs)
>Le frommage
(The cheese)
>La souris
(the mouse)
>un homme
(a man)
>une femme
(a woman)

For plural:
most nouns form the plural by just adding s
>homme>>>hommes
>pomme(apple)>>>pommes (apples)

the plural article corresponding to (la/le) is
>les
(pronounced: leh)

>les hommes
>les femmes
>les pommes

Try this:
Just write out 10 nouns and then look up what gender they are in French. Use google translate to help

If you are really ambition start labeling everything in your house with French label tags

[Anonymous No.2621443]

Bel effort!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eryzp0Pklc8

[Anonymous No.2621445]

>>2621436
something I forgot to mention

the men would be
>l'homme

the "le/la" + (noun stating in verb OR h (which is always silent) get smushed together so that it flows

>l'animal
(the animal)
>l'enfant
(the child)

[Anonymous No.2621449]

>>2621443
>>2621402
another good song

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-uI0fxIoSgg&feature=related

[Anonymous No.2621453]

pas mal comme intention, mais quand même... ceci n'est comprehensible que pour celui qui parle déjà.

venez en france pour apprendre le français! les fachos ne sont plus la majorité au pouvoir.

[Anonymous No.2621454]

I would like to know OP, why french?

[Anonymous No.2621456]

>>2621453
Ou si l'outre-mer vous est incommodant, le Quebec est enorme et pas tres dense.

[Anonymous No.2621461]

Can anyone link some of the dual-language French and English books for French lit?

[Anonymous No.2621463]

>>2621454
there was a language thread floating around here and most of it was geared towards French.

I figured no one else would take the initiative so I decided to make some basic introductory stuff, if it helps anyone then awesome, if not, whatever.

[Anonymous No.2621466]

>>2621453
I'll be in France in about 3 weeks
I will of course pretend to be Canadian because lord knows the rest of the world hates America

>>2621461
see
>>2621380

[Anonymous No.2621467]

>>2621463
Fair enough.

[Anonymous No.2621468]

>>2621377

[Anonymous No.2621475]

>>2621466
As a Canadian you might be expected to know a decent amount of french.

[Anonymous No.2621481]

>>2621475
Not if I'm from Alberta or Nova Scotia

[Anonymous No.2621482]

>>2621463
people here in France, do not really hate canada, but think they could not be more stupid. if i were you i would be a proud american. least worst

[Anonymous No.2621487]

>>2621482
In every province? My sister spent six months in Strasbourg. People are very accepting there, apparently.

[Anonymous No.2621495]

>>2621482
If I do go Muhrican I'm promising myself and the world not to be a douchenozzle

I will not be loud
I will not talk about WWII
I will know some basic politics

I will probably rearead l'étranger because fuckyeahcamus

Should I keep going with the lessons?
I'd like to let a native take over

[Anonymous No.2621498]

>>2621482
The French hate Canada? More than the US? Why?

I mean, we're demonstrably smarter. I'm not even saying that as a point of pride. We have marginally better test scores and such, more bilinguals, less rampant nationalism..

[Anonymous No.2621499]

>>2621495
You should read Boris Vian.

I fucking love Boris Vian.

[Anonymous No.2621501]

>>2621498
There is a love/hate relationship between Quebec and France. Similar to Belgium, if a bit softer. The rest of Canada is culturally irrelevant.

But I'm way too biased to be speaking about this.

[Anonymous No.2621502]

>>2621498

I'd imagine it's for the same reason everyone else doesn't like you, it's the fact that you can't take it that you are just muricans with a superiority complex.

[Anonymous No.2621505]

>>2621498
lol i didnt say french people hate canadians. can u even read?

u actually proved my point

[Anonymous No.2621509]

Hey, Frenchfag here. Ask me anything.

P.S. Stop derailing the thread into "hnggg durr my country better than yourz, u hating nigga herrrp"

[Anonymous No.2621510]

>be European
>see Canada as the only country in the Americas that somewhat comes near North/West Europe in terms of civilisation and decency
>the Yanks are dumb fat barbarians with the exception of a handful of decent people mostly on the east coast and perhaps three on the west coast
>Mexico and below are easily angered sweaty drug traffickers with a hypocrite form of Catholicism
> Caribbean is lazy blacks
>Cuba kind of adorable

[Anonymous No.2621512]

>>2621510
Honestly, Canada is half British banality, half American simplicity. Cultural substance is scarce at best.

[Anonymous No.2621517]

>>2621512
Isn't it still the best thing to happen on that wretched continent, though? At least they have some idea of health care and not wanting to kill each other/the world.

[Anonymous No.2621518]

>>2621509

What's the hardest thing to grasp about french for a native english speaker.

[Anonymous No.2621519]

>>2621518
culture

[Anonymous No.2621523]

>>2621518
Not the guy you're replying too, but french is excessively circumstantial. Think of rules like "i before e except after c" all over the god damn place.

[Anonymous No.2621525]

>>2621517

Depends on what you prioritize, I guess. Canada is probably the best place to live, and has some of the best people. The United States churns out a lot of art and cultural movements, and South and Middle America have similar contributions. All that turmoil and pent up energy has to produce something, I suppose.

[Anonymous No.2621527]

>>2621518

Our conjugation seems to be the real deal. I mean, there are more tenses than in English.
For example, lot of French people can't write conditional or subjunctive correctly.

[Anonymous No.2621536]

>>2621518
French has a shitload of arbitrary exceptions that should actually follow the rule. The subjonctif is kinda hard as well.

But nothing that practice cant beat, except >>2621519

[Anonymous No.2621541]

native portuguese speaker here, my mother tongue helps or not to learn french?

(btw, sorry my barbarian english)

[Anonymous No.2621545]

>>2621518
The exceptions. It's the ugliest, most arbitrary Romance language of the big three. That said, it's still among the easiest.

The people are absolutely horrid as well. They're Americans whose empire faded ages ago, yet they still think they're the natural political and cultural leaders of Europe. Literally everyone fucking hates them and they hate everyone else. Think Southern Americans, if 200 years ago the ancestors of Southern Americans had written some really nice literature, so they actually had one tiny kernel of truth to their endless bragging and arrogance.

>>2621541
Yeah, you guys are in the same family, so most of the features of French should be familiar. Conjugation, inflection, phrase construction, should all be familiar to you. Way more similar to French than English is, at least.

[Anonymous No.2621546]

>>2621541
Portuguese is a Latin derivative right?

[Anonymous No.2621554]

OP here

good job /lit/ you really derailed this thread
this is not /pol/ or /b/ so behave yourself and act civilized

[Anonymous No.2621556]

>>2621509
thank you for existing

how poorly do the french respond to american?
I plan to at least try and use my piss poor broken french, will I be totally looked down on?

[Anonymous No.2621557]

>>2621545

Actually, I'm French and this is a wrong prejudice. Most of French people doesn't hate anybody, and certainly not the USA. I mean like, go to France, anything modern will have an english name, most of young people are found of the american culture (movies, burgers, series, etc.)

[Anonymous No.2621560]

>>the last few posts

Even tho french is a latin language, phonetically it is quite different from the other latin languages. It has a much more complex set of phonemes that do not exist in other latin languages. That is why a french native speaker can speak spanish or italian easily without being phonetically noticed whilst it is quite hard for a native spanish etc. speaker to speak french without a hard accent.

Americans have a quite pronounced accent too.

imo spanish/italian accent is ugly, american is funny.

[Anonymous No.2621563]

>>2621556
The funny thing is, France is not more xenophobic or stereotypical than America.

[Anonymous No.2621566]

>>2621556

If you don't go to isolated villages full of retarded people, you will be welcomed warmly and there will be no problems of communication, especially with young people (everybody learns English at school, so they do speak it... more or less).

[Anonymous No.2621569]

>>2621546
yes, thanks, I was portuguese teacher (before my current job) and.......is a difficult language, I like english because is more "simple" (well, the mechanism, I love english writers and they are very complex), I'll start to learning

>>2621545
I know, like every language from Lazio

[Anonymous No.2621570]

>>2621557
There still is that conceit. With Quebec, and especially with France proper. It's less a hatred and more a palpable arrogance. I've had numerous Frenchmen and Quebecois literally tell me to my face that their culture and origins are objectively superior to mine. Not even out of anger or derision - just to let me know.

>>2621556
Enjoy one of the few countries on earth whose citizens will actively be disgusted that your attempts to learn their language haven't been reverentially perfect and infinitely studious.

[Anonymous No.2621572]

For any Francophones when it comes to pronunciation I always have trouble with words that end in consonants.
Does every other word have an exception to the rule?
Par example, Foucault, obviously you don't pronounce the t but what about the l, is it not pronounced or just really subtle.
Also lets say you followed Foucault up with et would the pronunciation of Foucault change?

[Anonymous No.2621573]

>>2621563

Sure it isn't more xenophobic, we just elected a socialist president today !

[Anonymous No.2621576]

>>2621573
>Hollande
>Socialist

[Anonymous No.2621582]

>>2621572

Generally, when there is no "e" at the end of the word, you don't prononce any of the consonants, so we don't prononce the "l" either.
We wouldn't prononce the "t" if their was "et" after either because it's a "nom propre" (not sure how you call it in English), but with common nouns, you are supposed to do the liaison (but generally, people don't do this)

[Anonymous No.2621587]

>>2621576

How is it funny ? He sure is a socialist.

[Anonymous No.2621590]

>>2621587

[Anonymous No.2621592]

>>2621582

Thanks for the help bro.

[Anonymous No.2621594]

>>2621590

>Arguments

[Anonymous No.2621596]

>>2621594
get out newfrog

[Anonymous No.2621603]

>>2621592

You're welcome. Keep in mind that there are lots of exception to this pronounciation rule and don't mind the liaison thing, nobody gives a shit about it.

[Anonymous No.2621604]

>>2621594
>>2621594
>needs arguments for the evident

[Anonymous No.2621606]

>>2621604
Yes I do need arguments. Would you mind giving me some ? Otherwise this conversation would be finished.

[Anonymous No.2621608]

>>2621606

[Anonymous No.2621616]

Is it just me or does anyone else get embarrassed when practicing the 'u' sound.
It just sounds so retarded and people look at you like a mentally deficient even when you don't mess it up.

[Anonymous No.2621624]

>>2621616

It must be annoying to pronounce a sound that doesn't exist in your native language. I have no idea how you could improve your pronounciation of the [u].

[Anonymous No.2621631]

>>2621616
lol yeah i know that feel. there are like 4 different sounds for e and u. theres a point where context tells you what the word means cause in itself it is fucking hard to get.

e.g. vent / vin

thats why it is so easy to make charades in french.

e.g. le nom du père / les non-dupes errent.

[Anonymous No.2621633]

Voulez-vous couchez avec moi?

[Anonymous No.2621639]

>>2621631
elle a chaud au cul

[Anonymous No.2621640]

>>2621633

That sounds pretty awkward when you think about it.

[Anonymous No.2621643]

>>2621572
I was taugt the "CAREFULL" rule

CRFL

if it ends in one of those consonants... pronounce it

[Anonymous No.2621645]

>>2621633
*coucher

[Anonymous No.2621647]

>>2621633
Non, vous êtes un faget.

[Anonymous No.2621650]

>>2621639

Hercule
l'encule

[Anonymous No.2621653]

>>2621631

You don't see the difference between " in " and " en " ? Woh, that's surprising. I'm French and I thought it was as obvious as the difference between "a" and "o".
I had no idea it was difficult.

Also, with le nom du père and les non-dupes errent, "le" and "les" isn't the same sound.
But I can understand how you are confused with those "e" sounds. In France there is a difference between "é" and "è".

[Anonymous No.2621660]

>>2621633
Peut-être, si vous sucez mon pénis...

[Anonymous No.2621662]

What's the easiest way to type those fucking accents really quickly?

[Anonymous No.2621665]

>>2621653
>there is a difference between "é" and "è"

yeah thats my point. there is e, é, è, ê, ai... same shit for me when speaking.

[Anonymous No.2621667]

Fils de pute folle nommée Ice Cube du gang appelé negres avec attitude

[Anonymous No.2621668]

>>2621662

Listen to French people speaking. Watch the few good french movies in VOSTA, or something like this.

[Anonymous No.2621669]

>>2621660

I would have gone with "ma bitte".

[Anonymous No.2621671]

WIR WERDEN DIE FRANZÖSISCHEN SCHWEINEN WIEDER ZU EROBERN

[Anonymous No.2621672]

>>2621662

[Anonymous No.2621675]

>>2621662
Oh sorry, I misread.

[Anonymous No.2621677]

>>2621669
bite*

[Anonymous No.2621687]

>>2621677

Merci.
Bitches love it when I drop the "Suce ma bite salope" all sexy on them.

[Anonymous No.2621688]

Merci OP je vais utiliser ces tout

[Anonymous No.2621690]

>>2621687
Ohh, Anon? You speak French? That's soooooo cool! What does that mean?

[Anonymous No.2621705]

>>2621690

Jajaja I see you are acquainted with that technique.
I use to drop the Espagnol on them but since I moved to California that is a no-go.

[Anonymous No.2621707]

>>2621688

not "ces tout" but "tout ça".

In fact, "that" or "this" have different translation depending of the context. "This dogs" would be translated "ces chiens", for example.

[Anonymous No.2621712]

>>2621707
>this dogs
Uh...

[Anonymous No.2621713]

>>2621707
>>2621707
those. Mah mistake.

[Anonymous No.2621721]

>>2621713

Those and these bro.
I think you meant these.

[Anonymous No.2621726]

Cela sentiment quand l'absence de gf

[Anonymous No.2621727]

>>2621721
Wait, there is a difference between those and these ? Looks like it's my turn to learn something.

[Anonymous No.2621731]

>>2621727
If there were dogs sitting right at your feet, you'd say "Let's fuck these dogs."
But if the dogs were across the room, you'd point and say "Let's fuck those dogs."

[Anonymous No.2621742]

>>2621726
That would be wrong.
First, it's not "cela" (which means the same as "ça") in this case but "ce"
Then, you can't really literaly translate " when no girlfriend ", you'd really need to put a verb, in French.

Ce sentiment quand j'ai pas de copine/petite copine/petite amie/ meuf (slang word that most of young people use)

[Anonymous No.2621745]

>>2621731

Ahw, okay. I wasn't aware of this.

[Anonymous No.2621750]

>>2621742
Because "That feel when no gf" is a shining example of English grammar, right?

[Anonymous No.2621751]

>>2621742
Lol, you surrendered in WW2

[Anonymous No.2621757]

>>2621688
De rien, je suis hereux de vous aider

[Anonymous No.2621761]

>>2621751
Vous me dégoûtez, le porc américain.

[Anonymous No.2621766]

>>2621742

Not so fast brolet.
You could just say "Ce sentiment quand pas de copine/petite copine/petite amie".
It sounds dumb but thats the point.

>csq pas de copine
>csq veux de copine

[Anonymous No.2621769]

>>2621751
Actually, we were forced to ally with Germany because England was not helping yet and USA didn't give a fuck because they hadn't been attacked yet. We were all alone to fight Nazis at the time. By the way, we're part of the winners of WWII.

But that doesn't matter because I didn't do anything during WWII : I wasn't fucking born.

[Anonymous No.2621770]

>>2621751
>Lol

please, adults only

[Anonymous No.2621776]

>>2621766

It would still be wrong without a verb between "quand" and "pas". It'd sound really weird.

[Anonymous No.2621782]

>>2621776
That's the point. That feel when no gf sounds stupid too.

[Anonymous No.2621792]

>>2621782

Hm, now you say so... I knew it wasn't gramatically perfect but I assumed it was something more natural in English.

[Anonymous No.2621808]

>>2621792
If you were going to use it in conversation you'd probably say something more like "Hey, you know that feeling when you have no girlfriend?" If you were inclined to bitch about your loneliness, anyway.

[Anonymous No.2621821]

Is there a French imageboard? Initial googling didn't turn up anything.

[Anonymous No.2621835]

>>2621821
http://underfoule.net/

[Anonymous No.2621860]

>>2621835

Be careful, anons. I didn't know it but it looks like non-native speakers pretending they are french.

[Anonymous No.2621865]

>>2621860
What makes you say that?

[Anonymous No.2621874]

>>2621865

Hm, after a few minutes, I'd say that sounds like french people translating 4chan words in an akward way.

>tfw /lit/ is also for mangas and comics

[Anonymous No.2621890]

>>2621835
>(OH NON TU NE LE PAS)

[Anonymous No.2621898]

Hey guys.

Quick question: When is it appropriate to use "Tu" as opposed to "Vous"? Would it be ok to always use Vous instead of Tu? Because it just sounds so much cooler.

[Anonymous No.2621899]

>>2621890

Yes, this isn't French. But it may be a joke, too.

[Anonymous No.2621903]

>>2621898

Actually, you say "vous" as a sign of respect. You only say "vous" to someone you don't know well, to a teacher, etc.
When you are speaking to a teenager or a child, you say "tu" even if you don't know them.

[Anonymous No.2621901]

>>2621898
I think tu is only for very close friends or family. I'm Canadian (not Quebec) and only know French from school though, so my knowledge isn't too great.

[Anonymous No.2621905]

>>2621898

Using tu with your elders or strangers is kind of rude and a sign of bad breeding.
Of course people probably don't stick to that rule so hard anymore.

[Anonymous No.2621907]

>>2621835
They're just like us...

[Anonymous No.2621910]

>>2621907
What the fuck does Floflo mean?

[Anonymous No.2621911]

>>2621905
Well, we still do ! If I said "tu" to a teacher, he would be really surprised. Same for an adult stranger.

I forgot to precise but, of course, when it's plural, it's always "vous".

[Anonymous No.2621918]

>>2621910

a nickname for " Florient ". Probably a tripcode, here.

[Anonymous No.2621919]

>>2621903
is it true that the closer you are to Paris the more formal you need to be but if you go farther away towards, say, Provence, it is more informal?

If I go to Paris should I use vous with shopkeepers and strangers?

[Anonymous No.2621920]

>>2621918
This board seems to be forced anon, though. I don't see a "nom" field anywhere

[Anonymous No.2621925]

>>2621905
>>2621911
Well, I guess I'll learn both, although this is exactly the kind of thing I'm worried about when learning French from an outsiders perspective. The little idiosyncrasies of the language that aren't actual written rules. Either vous or tu could be grammatically correct, but one is socially frowned upon.

Mostly though, I'm worried about slang.

[Anonymous No.2621926]

>>2621919

Well, people in Paris speaks the same way than other people nowadays. But now, expect for accents, it is the same. Nobody speaks real formal French anymore, even our (ex)president made grammar mistakes. Lots of young people, even in Paris, use a lot of slang when they speak together, they can even speak in a way that older people or foreigners wouldn't understand.

And you should definitely say " Vous" to shopkeepers and strangers anywhere, not only in Paris.

[Anonymous No.2621928]

>>2621919

I would always use vous with strangers, elders, superiors, and the help if I was you.
You wouldnt want people to think that your parents raised you like shit.
Although as a foreigner I doubt people would hold it against you.

[Anonymous No.2621931]

>>2621920

Well, maybe the person signed with his nickname then, but that's the only meaning of Floflo.

[Anonymous No.2621934]

>>2621926
Almost every French primer makes talking to actual French people sound like a fucking nightmare, like they're going to correct every single word you say.

[Anonymous No.2621935]

Aside from the b.s. off topic nonsense this is actually a pretty helpful thread.

[Anonymous No.2621937]

>>2621934
When I was in Paris half the time when I tried to talk to someone in French they just sighed and started talking in English.
;_;

[Anonymous No.2621938]

>>2621934

Id rather be corrected than be thought a retard.
Its no big deal bro, as a foreigner you can expect some lenience.

[Anonymous No.2621940]

>Cela se sentir en l'absence de gf

[Anonymous No.2621944]

>>2621940
>Cela se sentir en l'absence de gf
Nice google translate bro. We actually just had a discussion about how to translate that if you scroll up.

[Anonymous No.2621945]

>>2621925

Slang is not a big deal because people who speak slang can speak without using slang.
What you need to know :

There are two slangs :

-Old slang :
Not in use anymore. Back in the 50's anybody from the lower class would speak this way, but forget about it now, you could only hear it in Audiard's films.


"Verlan" :
The slang every young people use. There is a "rule" for it : lots of words are changed by reversing the first and the last syllable.
For example, "femme" (woman) became mefem, then for it to be easily prononced, it became meuf (prononced "mef").
There are lot of complicated stuff with this one but this is the basis.

[Anonymous No.2621952]

Remember to use the conditional properly englishfags, "les si mangent les raies"

[Anonymous No.2621956]

>>2621945
This verlan sounds like it will trip me up so bad

[Anonymous No.2621962]

>>2621956

Its slang.
No one would expect you to speak like that.
In fact a foreigner speaking heavy slang would sound weird or pretentious as fuck.
Just learn proper french and you wont go wrong.

[Anonymous No.2621967]

>>2621945
>"Verlan"

Wow, even their approach to slang is fancy.

We usually just take words that exist and use them in sentences they don't belong.

Or replace letters q's. Black people seem to do this a lot.

[Anonymous No.2621971]

Babby's first French question.

How exactly does Ca Va translate to "I am well"?

[Anonymous No.2621972]

>>2621956

If you try learning it, it will. It's a huge mess. Most of the words come from the " ghettos ". It's evolving really fast because the people who use it first are hipsters and don't want other people to speak the same way than them, so they come up with new expressions when the other ones get old.
There's even a kind of accent that goes with it. It's so complicated old people and everybody who is not used to it can't even understand it.

You should ignore it, you probably won't need it anyway.

[Anonymous No.2621975]

>>2621971

Well, it as nothing to do with grammar rules, it's something usual. I guess it must have come up as an answer to " Ça va ? " (Are you ok ?/How are you?)

[Anonymous No.2621984]

>>2621975

Completing my answer : here, " ça " means everything. Va is the third person conjugation of the présent de l'indicatif for the verb " to go" which also means "to be alright, to be fine".
So, " ça va " means " everything is alright ".
Now, in the question form " ça va ? " , there is a contraction of " Est-ce que " : "Est-ce que ça va ?" would be the correct form. But it's a very common contraction.

[Anonymous No.2621987]

Hello everyone.

I actually started with a French textbook a few days ago (nice timing with the thread). It has audio tapes with it to help me nail the pronunciations, however, it's really hard to judge how well I actually sound - kind of hard to judge my own voice.

1) How long does it take to be able to reasonable hit the pronunciation of words naturally (not playing them back or thinking about it, or forcefully controlling your accent)
and
2) How can I go about making sure I don't sound like a complete retard?

Pic related, btw. I highly recommend it to anyone taking place in this thread.

[Anonymous No.2621996]

>>2621987

If you have a webcam or mic there are sites where you can go and talk with francophones.
Dont remember any off the top of my head but Im sure someone else will.

[Anonymous No.2622000]

>>2621987

> How long does it take to be able to reasonable hit the pronunciation of words naturally (not playing them back or thinking about it, or forcefully controlling your accent)

I have no idea. I think it may be long to get familiar with sounds you that doesn't exist in your native language but maybe you will speak decently soon.

>How can I go about making sure I don't sound like a complete retard?

http://vocaroo*com/ Come at me bro.

[Anonymous No.2622001]

I have a question:

Why is the ce in est-ce que and qu'est-ce que not pronounced

also which is more acceptable
est-ce que
or
qu'est-ce que

[Anonymous No.2622014]

>>2622000

>mfw I dont have a mic on hand so I can talk dirty to a Frenchman

Sens mal homme.

[Anonymous No.2622016]

>>2622001

>Why is the ce in est-ce que and qu'est-ce que not pronounced ?

Because it's a contraction. We say " Est-c'que ". But it is correct to pronounce it even though nobody does. In poetry, you would pronounce it because it counts as a syllable.

There is a difference between " Est-ce que " et "Qu'est-ce que" : " Est-ce que tu manges ? " means " Are you eating ? " whereas " Qu'est-ce que tu manges ? " means "What are you eating ? "

[Anonymous No.2622015]

>That feel when you're learning mechanical engineering in French

Double the learning. Come at me faggots.

[Anonymous No.2622019]

OMELLETE DU FROMAGE

[Anonymous No.2622021]

>>2622014
Too bad. ;_;

>>2622019

Omelette au* fromage

[Anonymous No.2622025]

>>2622021
Tu es une baguette

[Anonymous No.2622032]

>>2622025

Tu es un pain à hamburger.

[Anonymous No.2622033]

>>2622016
so est-ce que is more like a verbal question mark, it just identifies what you are saying as a question and qu'est-ce que is the equivalent to "what"

[Anonymous No.2622035]

RIP France

now The Islamic Socialist Republic of New Algeria

[Anonymous No.2622037]

>>2622033

[Anonymous No.2622038]

>>2622037
Oh wow I forgot the s after mange
Oh well

[Anonymous No.2622043]

>>2622035

GTFO Nazi.

>>2622033
Exactly. However, for a question starting with " Est-ce que ", you usually don't use it. It's familiar language but everybody speaks this way.

[Anonymous No.2622046]

>>2622035
>>>/pol/

[Anonymous No.2622049]

>>2622032
Nique ta mere

[Anonymous No.2622055]

>>2622037
awesome dude merci

also how do most frenchies feel about the maghreb

[Anonymous No.2622059]

>>2622043

If you don't think France has an immigrant problem then you should read more about it.

[Anonymous No.2622061]

What do French people think of Quebecois?

[Anonymous No.2622066]

>>2622055

Most of french people are fine with magrhebian immigrants. But there are more and more faschists nowadays.
But there are big issues about Islamism.

[Anonymous No.2622070]

>>2622061

They love Quebecois and think their accent is REALLY funny.

[Anonymous No.2622081]

>>2622070
Oh that's good to hear, I was under the impression that they hated us for butchering their language or something

[Anonymous No.2622083]

>>2621647
I'd go with pédé myself, the additional english connotations improve it.

[Anonymous No.2622084]

>>2622066

Completing my answer :

The french point of view about immigration and people from different origins is not the same point of view than the american one.

In France, we are taught that there are no differences between people, we're all the same. Don't ever speak about "races" to a French, he would claim that you're a Neo-nazi. French politic about immigrants has always been an assimilation politic, opposed to America's integration politic, which means the french government tries to mix everybody, and to erase the differences between people. That also means that if you want to be french, you have to adopt french's culture, which is the main issue today.

[Anonymous No.2622089]

>>2622081

Actually Quebecois French is closer to older French than the continental version of today is. So they're the butchers.

[Anonymous No.2622091]

>>2622083

Nobody use "faget" in France. The better translation of "faggot" would rather be "tapette" than pédé, even though both would be correct.

[Anonymous No.2622094]

>>2622089
QUÉBEC STRONG

[Anonymous No.2622112]

>>2622084
>>2622084
THIS!

that makes me feel so much more comfortable about traveling

I feel like I'm pretty receptive to other cultures and I'm not ignorant about my own


as it was said earlier: the hardest thing about learning French is the culture

[Anonymous No.2622135]

>>2622084
>Don't ever speak about "races" to a French

Is this true even in a scientific context? Would they view scientists who use race as a useful category for anthropological studies the same way we'd view someone claiming that all black people are naturally inferior even if they cited valid studies (not that they exist, but even if they did and were well supported, there would still be friction in our culture to accept them).

Plz dont derail thred racists

[Anonymous No.2622139]

>>2622135

It's even worth than that, dude. We learn at school that it is scientificly proved that there is only one human race. Even with flawless scientifical research, they would call you a nazi if you said that for example black people are intellectualy inferiors.

[Anonymous No.2622143]

>>2622135

Sorry, I misunderstood your question, it's 5:32 AM here and I haven't slept. The answer is basically yes.

[Anonymous No.2622296]

Le

[Anonymous No.2622303]

Hey everyone.

Could we consider taking this thread to the next level? Interest seems ample.

Maybe for the first 2-3 weeks we could just go at this pace, but then we could start having prompts at the start of each thread from there on out? So, I don't know, "What is your favourite book/movie, hobbies, etc."

Maybe even recommend French books of the month and have a discussion about it in French at the end of each month?

Or am I over estimating the longevity of this thread to begin with (most people wanting to learn, but never actually taking the initiative?)

[Anonymous No.2622324]

>>2622303
>ce sentiment quant ton post tue le thread...

[Anonymous No.2622334]

>>2622303
I agree, the problem is the time zones....well, whatever, this board is slow....

[Anonymous No.2622340]

I was a French teacher for a while, I'll help.
I'll be around tease threads, not now, I have to sleep.

[Anonymous No.2622354]

>>2622334
>>2622303
It can work if we try

this one had some basic info in it and a lot of great questions were answered.

I love the idea of recommending movies, music, and books to one another to help push along the progress

[Anonymous No.2622384]

>>2622303
Vous cons n'apprendrons jamais une langue quand il est impossible que vous lisiez meme la racaille.

[Anonymous No.2622809]

Le dead thread.

[Anonymous No.2622821]

>>2621354
>France
>just voted in commie bastards
Why would yu want to learn their disgusting language?

[Stormfront anon No.2622830]

>>2622821
You have a compelling point there, thanks.

[Anonymous No.2622877]

>>2622821
>>>/pol/

[Anonymous No.2622879]

>>2622821
>>>/pol/

[Anonymous No.2622882]

On est combien de français sur ce thread ?

Un album incontournable du rap fr :

IAM - L'école du micro d'argent :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0uQ_X6nQ8xk

[Anonymous No.2622893]

Hey, c'est moi qui ai répondu à la plupart des questions du thread hier. On peut reprendre où vous voulez. (You may consider this as a first exercise)

[Anonymous No.2622902]

>>2622893
for a foreign traveler which part of France would be best to visit?

[Anonymous No.2622912]

>>2622902

It depends on what you're interested in. Since you're on /lit/ I'd say Paris. Then culturaly, every part of France is fine. Corse is the most beautiful place, if you're into architecture, you should probably go for le Pays de la Loire.

[Anonymous No.2622914]

Congratulations to France for recovering that seriousness about democracy which has made their country the envy of thinking people across the developed world.

[Anonymous No.2622918]

>>2622912
Would I be okay in Paris knowing little to no French?

[Anonymous No.2622920]

>>2622918
Paris aint france. or ok, to get to know real paris you have to live there at least a couple of years.

so as an answer to your question, yes, just bring your dollars and you'll be fine

[Anonymous No.2622994]

>>2622914
V-vous aussi...

[Anonymous No.2623005]

GOD SAVE THE SOCIALISTS!

[Anonymous No.2623008]

>>2622920
>move to paris
>work as a porter in rue de budapest
>watch as tourists get fucked up in the back alleys.
It was like being back home in Leith.

[Anonymous No.2623069]

>>2623008
>move to paris
>live in a nigger quartier
>get beaten a couple of times
It was like being in Mexico all over again.

[Anonymous No.2623114]

I took French I at university, I'm not sure whether to continue with it (potentially as a minor) or to do it in my spare time/as a hobby.

[Anonymous No.2623149]

>>2623069
>move to Paris
>live in good neighborhood
>no one bothers me

it's nothing like colombia

[Anonymous No.2623159]

>>2623008

Because Leith is all that bad.

[xXXSuper-SlaffykinsXXx No.2623183]

>>2623159
No worse than anywhere else in Scotland at the weekend.

Pure geein it laldy.

[Anonymous No.2623258]

How much more sexually liberated is France than the U.S? or is it even at all?

[Anonymous No.2623604]

So inspired by this thread I got today's LeMonde and plan on basically reading it end to end, trying looking up all the words I don't understand and writing down the important one.

Fuck, it's hard. I haven't spoken or read French since 11th grade, and even then I could barely understand anything.

Anybody else in the same boat? Or got any tips on how to have fun with a newspaper?

[Anonymous No.2623619]

>>2623604
>Or got any tips on how to have fun with a newspaper?
Start with something easier. Kids' stuff, if necessary. If you haven't read since 11th grade and had trouble then, you're going to have much more frustration than progress with a newspaper.

[Anonymous No.2624577]

>>2623604
Good on you anon

if it is to difficult try children's book as recommended, some of them have great cd's that read it to you as you read along which helps with pronunciation, or dual language books, theres a link in an earlier post.

[Anonymous No.2624597]

Does anyone have any recommendations (aside from the one in this thread) for a decent French text book for beginners? Something to help me get some of the basics down?

[Anonymous No.2624639]

>>2622994

*salutes*

[Anonymous No.2624655]

>>2624597
grammar
novel
textbook

which one(s)

[Anonymous No.2624684]

>>2624655
Not sure what you're asking?

[Anonymous No.2624695]

>>2624597
My uni used a book called Chez Nous for first year courses, which was pretty good. It's pretty pricey though and you can learn the material easily elsewhere.

[Anonymous No.2624698]

>>2624597
what kind of book are you looking for

a book for basic grammar
an easy to read novel
or a textbook

[Anonymous No.2624703]

Is it weird that I can read French (newspapers and Jules Verne) pretty smoothly but I can't understand the spoken word for shit? Unless I have subtitles I have almost no idea what anyone is saying.

Also, any good intermediate level textbooks I can read online.

[Anonymous No.2624704]

>>2624703
*download online

[Anonymous No.2624705]

>>2624698
Text book

[Anonymous No.2624709]

>>2624703
Not weird, they talk very fast and it can be hard to understand. I have the same issue.

[Anonymous No.2624722]

how do you say lick my nuts

[Anonymous No.2624725]

>>2624722
licque mon nuttez

[Anonymous No.2624727]

>>2624725

licque-vous*

[Anonymous No.2624838]

>>2624597
Vis-à-vis seems like it gets good reviews. But be aware that you probably have to buy the audio CCD/supplemental material separate from the book

[Anonymous No.2624853]

>>2624722

Lèche mes couilles/noisettes.

[Anonymous No.2625034]

Does underfoule not work anymore or something? I can't connect to it.

[Anonymous No.2625101]

This is one of the largest threads I've ever seen on /lit/

[Anonymous No.2625124]

>>2621499
>BORIS!
>>2621501
Quebec needs to make secession happen, hxc damnit. lol@ the rest of canada's irrelevance.

[Anonymous No.2625141]

Vive Le Front National! Vive Marine Le Pen!

[Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ No.2625149]

>>2625141
Looooooserrrrrrr
Meurent l'écume!

[Anonymous No.2625160]

>>2625149
Not to get all political, but the Centre Right has no choice but to embrace the last of the splintered Right Wing to amass any sort of counterweight to the Socialists.

I can't wait to see them all shaking hands.

[Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ No.2625195]

>>2625160
To get all political, its not like France hasn't had democratic socialists before. Once the economy starts to recover, the rightwingers and the fascists wont be any closer to uniting than they are today.

[Anonymous No.2625349]

>>2625160
Actually, general consensus is that the former majority right-wing party may split up, one faction (free-market advocates, pro-european) getting closer to the center-right and the other (nationalist) may want to deal with the extreme right

[Anonymous No.2625358]

c'est la vie

[Anonymous No.2625361]

I love France. Especially now.