the evidence of experience

In French, the word expérience is more often used to mean "experiment" than "experience," implying a certain resistance to the typical American fetishization of experience: an experience (e.g., the "life-changing experience" of going to France!!) is not an end in itself, but rather a means to a greater understanding, a mere although by no means purely utilitarian part of a larger epistemological enterprise.

The experience of my job orientation has led me to the understanding that little bits of linguistic jouissance such as the above have little practical effect, because there are too many Americans in France, and because in benevolent racism as in warnings about fat and sugar content in food (Pour votre santé, veuillez visiter mangerbouger.fr), France is more American than America.

Yesterday, the fresh-faced representative from the American consulate regaled us with stories of her own life-changing experience, in Guinea. Turns out, her authentic native Guinean acquaintances, concerned for the future of this jeune fille à marier, suggested that in order to obtain a husband, she should sacrifice a white cow (not all by herself ha-ha she didn't have to like kill it!), wrap the tongue of a bull in fabrics of many colors, present rare fruits to a mother of twins, and dance around in a circle. After punctuating this authentic account with some nervous giggles, she explained that were it not for her deep respect for the culture, her willingness to really put herself out there and humor the adorably godless heathens, she would, uh, she would never be the...she would never have had that experience. La tautologie encore... Luckily I was able to shoot a glance infused with disgust and smug awareness at my favorite fellow assistante, Liz, a sharp-tongued fellow traveler on the neocolonalist safari that is Marseille. Liz and I tend to fetishize our experiences of neocolonialism almost as much as neocolonialists fetishize the experience of the other...but our recidivist cultural capitalism is what makes us so authentically American.

Today, the woman in charge of our program announced that this year's crop of assistants includes two real Chinese people, whom she promptly produced and made to speak in French...she stood there between them for about five minutes, grasping their arms, waiting for someone to take a picture.