French Culture Deep-Dive: Beyond the Clichés

Welcome to this extensive collection of articles born from years of curiosity—fragments filed away, questions left simmering, until the moment arrives when they demand to be written primarily with PAID subscribers in mind.

These aren’t your typical France articles. No Eiffel Tower romance, no beret-wearing stereotypes. These are deep-research explorations into the contradictions, philosophies, and peculiarities that make French culture endlessly fascinating and impossibly complex.

Here you’ll find the France that argues film is philosophy, that turns fashion into intellectual warfare, that pulls off spectacularly botched heists with almost artistic flair. The France that refuses to be simple, predictable, or easily categorised.

Most of these pieces are exclusively for paid subscribers—because understanding France beyond the surface takes time, research, and the kind of deep dive that can’t be rushed. A few are free to give you a taste of what awaits.

Mostly deep, some uplifting, others concerning, and yes—some deliciously frivolous.

Bonne lecture.
Judy