In Netflix’s latest, some might say controversial series, Emily Cooper gets the last minute chance of a lifetime to move to Paris where she is expected to bring her American expertise to the service of a French luxury marketing firm. Something easier said than done.
A sexy French chef living downstairs, high heels on cobblestone streets, a bouquet of roses for 6 euros . . . as an American, also named Emily, currently living in Paris, there is much I cannot (wish I could) relate to. Although, I never imagined that the series would resonate with my experience. Made by Sex and the City’s Darren Star, which I watched for the first time during the lockdown, big, beautiful exaggerations were to be expected. The series is fun, occasionally surprising, and above all a fantasy.
That said, I do confirm that French people have long lunches with an occasional glass of wine.
While there are many elements that take Emily’s experience out of the realm of reality, I find that the biggest difference comes down to language. Emily hardly speaks a word of French when she arrives in Paris. Although it causes a few problems along the way, all in all it does not stop her from speaking up in her job, making new relationships and having the “confidence” to be the American millennial that she is.
While watching the series, I was impressed by her confidence. I found myself on several occasions feeling inspired by how she took charge and did not let her judgemental French coworkers get to her. I started to ask myself why I cannot be this fun, vibrant American in my office (I also work in communications). And then I realized the biggest difference of all. I speak French. Not perfectly but well enough that people understand what I’m saying and expect me to speak French. “Oh your French is so much better than my English.” The classic argument as to why we will continue speaking French, flattering on one hand, pain in the ass on the other. Because regardless of your French level, it is NOT the same as speaking in your mother tongue.
I am not complaining about speaking French. I live in Paris, by choice, so it comes with the territory (literally). But that is why I was so surprised that Emily did not take learning French more seriously and arrived with very little knowledge of the local language. In fact, I believe the experience is (unrealistically) easier for her because of this.
I suffer from the imposter syndrome, like many women, and millennials. You’ve heard of the imposter syndrome, right? When you doubt yourself, your accomplishments, and fear that the people around you will find out you are a fraud? If you haven’t, well, if you could share that confidence with me that’d be great. Let’s now imagine how it must feel to be an imposter in a second language. Living in Paris and speaking French, I feel like my imposter syndrome has doubled. Not only do I doubt my abilities in the field that I have a master’s degree and several years of experience in, but now I’m also thinking, “Why didn’t they just hire a French person for this?”. For example, I started working in a communications agency after my studies in Paris. While some of my work for clients was in English, for others, I was writing and working 100% in French. More specifically, I was writing tweets, in French, for French farmers. Why? Really, why? No longer at this job, I now have a wealth of French vocabulary in agriculture, which is, as you guessed, extremely useful. I struggle to remember what a ladder is called but ask me what the stages of corn growth are and I got you.
Writing a tweet in English is a piece of cake. It is 280 characters. In a second language, it’s not so easy. At the beginning, I constantly doubted my ability to be creative, witty, even a good communicator in French. It took time and a lot of practice to feel comfortable, and I would not have gotten there if my team hadn’t had confidence in me. 280 characters seems like nothing, but while part of your brain is trying to come up with funny things to say about crop protection, the rest of you is fearing that your followers will find out you aren’t French.
When I first moved to Paris, I constantly feared that people would discover I wasn’t a local. Like Emily, I would also pretend I didn’t hear the cashier ask me a question rather than admit I just didn’t understand. While I use this evasion tactic less and less, the fear of embarrassment and being “found out” still lingers. This has a profound impact on one’s confidence, especially in the workplace. So while there are indeed numerous exaggerations throughout this cliche storyline, the biggest one of all is the ease at which she integrates herself into a foreign country. Without a lick of the local language. And that is coming from a real Emily in Paris.
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