University Daily Kansan
Thursday, October 28, 1976
13
Couple finds U.S. ways exotic
Josee Kamoun, visiting assistant professor of French, said recently that she didn't know what to expect beyond wheat, corn and beef in Kansas when she and her husband, Patrick, left Paris to come to the "so ever so different" city of Lawrence.
Josee had decided to take advantage of a Fulbright Scholarship to come to the University of Kansas shortly after the birth of couple a four-month-old son, Yael, said he
They arrived in New York City in August shortly after hurricane Belle, and because of their child and limited time, they weren't able to see much of the city, Josee said.
"FOR US, IT'S all very exotic," she said. Josese is for one here for a replace J. Theodore Johnson Jr., professor of French, who is in France on a sabbatical.
Lawrence then was the first American city that the couple had ever seen.
Josee said she and her husband were surprised to find an apartment, or flat as she calls it, on their second day in Lawrence.
Their two-bedroom unit at Meadowbrook Apartments doesn't have major furnishings, although the walls are decorated with color prints by Josee's husband, who is a photographer. Some of the photographs are of Josee, and some are of an area surrounding their summer home in central France.
Joze obtained her masters degree in English, but she is now teaching her native language.
She said it was difficult to teach French when the students were advanced, but it could be when she worked with students who were starting from the beginning.
"I don't know what will be difficult for them or what will be easy," she said.
ONE OF THE courses she is teaching is called French for Travelers, and she said she had to explain everything in English to the students. She said that she didn't think the arrangement was adequate and that an American should teach the course.
She said that French universities were funded by the government and were free to any student who applied, after passing his high-school graduating exams.
Josee was reluctant to make comparisons between French and American educational systems because, she said, they are so different.
This system, she said, means that the university students would come from a wide variety of social classes, rather than middle and upper-middle classes.
SHE SAID THAT the educational system
many students and that many
man who enrolled never left.
Bachelor of Arts degrees aren't worth much in France because she said, and they don't know what the exam tests.
Photo by RICK PADDEN
This causes many French students to get depressed, she said, and it may have a great effect on their lives.
Josee Kamoun
also a primary cause for the near-revolution in France in 1968, she said.
Josee said French people were more politically married than Americans, and she even said that her husband was a Republican.
"We are shocked to see commercials during the news broadcasts," she said.
Shrugging her shoulders in frustration over American television news-broadcasting, Josese said, "It's hard to take something seriously when right in the middle they tell you to use that washing powder, or whatever."
SHE SAID SHE thought that Americans weren't really interested in the coming presidential elections in the United States and that few Americans that they asked were able to describe for her and her husband the system used to elect the president.
Josee was enthusiastic when describing the French people's interest in elections.
She said that because of such extreme
GRAD STUDENT ORGANIZATIONS:
GSC
Supplemental Budget Requests
Due November 1
Forms available in GSC office, Kansas
Union. For more information call
864-4914. Funded by Student Activities Fee
separation between left and right factions in France, their presidential candidates were quite different from each other.
Super shelter whatever the weather ... our reversible snap pocket snaps pocket snacks. Red/Nayv, Yellow/Nayv, Light Blue/Nayv
"This is why people in France get so excited about politics," she said. "There is a lot of pressure to change."
Josee doesn't think people are very satisfied in France.
"We have an economic crisis and educational problems," she said.
Jones said she also noticed some physical differences in appearances between children with and without ADHD.
"THEY LOOK VERY bored and dull in France. American girls are much healthier and nicer looking students. They look fit," she said.
Josee guessed the reason for this wholesome appearance was what she called an "almost hygienic" conception of sex in the United States.
Josee said she had a hard time convincing her husband that he wouldn't be served a drink in town unless he joined a club. She said he thought it was a toke.
She said that, in France, Americans have had the reputation of using sex to keep women safe.
Josee and Patrick said that they had been told Kansas was the "Bible Bell," and that the meaning of the term had been made known to them, so they found out about Kansas liquor laws.
Laughing, she said, "I think it's crazy." She said that there were no such regulations.
in France and that bars and liquor stores were open all night.
That is probably one of the less "exotic" aspects of Josee's trip to the United States that she will have to endure until her return to France.
VOTE YES ON NOV. 2
On the Proposition to Continue Service Programs for the Elderly in Douglas County
Pol. Adv. Paid for by Mill Levy Task Force Ralph Turner, Chairman
841- 3100
Free Delivery
Besides Great Pizza Try our Subs and Meatball Grinders.
They tell me . . .
Honesty Respect for the law
Ability to get things done
Careful study of the problems & issues
Responsibility
Hard work
Caring about people
... still works!
I'm counting on it; that's what I offer you November 2,1976.
Nancy 44th HAMBLETON
Paid for by Hambleton for State Rep. Don Metzler & Joan Golden—Co-Chairmen
Find it in Kansan classified Sell it, too. Call 864-4358.
Graduating Engineers: If your heart's in San Francisco...
Mare Island is hiring!
Work in a challenging environment at the West Coast's oldest and best-known naval institution, with unmatched potential for professional growth, reward and recognition.
Live in the heart of Northern California-America's most famous work and play land. Ideal, smog-free climate, short drive to the Golden Gate, the wine country, lots more!
Get the facts on civilian career opportunities. Contact your Placement Office.
Campus interviews: NOV 3
Vallejo, California 94592
Mare Island Naval Shipyard
An Equal Opportunity Employer U.S. Citizenship Required