France And Its People (1955)

[Music] The morning mist over Paris is clearing under the summer sun in this old residential section. Parisians, the Brion family look forward all year long to their summer vacation, which they usually spend at the family farm in Normandy. That's where Monsieur Brion was born. And where Pierre, Claude, and Mama will spend the next few weeks with Grandpere and Grandmere Brion. [Music] Uncle Jules is taking them in his taxi. It'll save train fare and they'll share the gas bill. Mama Brion thinks that Uncle Jules Monsieur Brion cannot go. His handbag shop is a one-man business. He makes and sells his own merchandise. He works hard to keep up with his customers' needs. But hard as he works, he never seems to catch up. He never has time for a vacation. [Music] Uncle Jules is taking his sister and nephews the long way out of town. For he knows that the Brions rarely take time for sightseeing. [Music] The route takes them past many famous landmarks along the Seine. Past the Cathedral of Notre Dame. Then across the Place de l'Opéra. And past many historic buildings to one of the largest squares in the world, the Place de la Concorde. [Music] From there, Uncle Jules turns his car into the wide avenue called Les Champs-Élysées, which leads to the Arc de Triomphe and out of Paris. [Music] As Claude's road map shows, Normandy is a region in northwestern France on the English Channel. The coast of Normandy is part of the 1,600 mi of French coastline. Because of the influence of the warm ocean currents, France has an extremely mild, humid climate, favoring a great variety of crops in the rich soil. France is divided into five great agricultural basins, each watered by a river. These rivers and their connecting canals provide cheap inland transportation. The road to Normandy takes the Brions through the Parisian Basin, where the principal crop is wheat for the bread that is a basic food for all Frenchmen. As he drives along, Uncle Jules tells Claude about the many towns and villages. He knows every bend in the road and many farmers in this region. Most of the land in France is owned by small farmers, and so the countryside is dotted with farmhouses and small farm communities. The time passes quickly and soon they arrive at the gate of the old family farm. Many generations of Brions have been born and reared in this solid farmhouse. Grandpere and Grandmere have been waiting impatiently for their visitors. And although it's only a few hours by train or car to Paris, they have been to the city only twice. And then they thought it too noisy and confusing. According to tradition, kisses are exchanged on both cheeks. Grandpere is surprised at how Claude has grown since last summer. Most French farms are occupied and worked by their owners. A farmer like Grandpere Brion considers himself only the guardian and trustee of the family land and keeps it up diligently for the next generation. By careful fertilization, crop rotation, and intensive cultivation, productivity is high. Grandpere is justly proud of his fruit trees, his vegetables, his fat cattle, and his flocks of geese and chickens. And Grandmere? [Music] She takes pride in her preserves made from home-grown fruit, her butter and cheese, for which Normandy is famous throughout France and indeed the world. Part of her day is spent in planning the meals. This mackerel was caught fresh this morning off the nearby coast. So nearby you can smell the salt spray in the air. The salt spray that the wind carries inland from the neighboring fishing village. [Music] Just like the farmers, Norman fishermen follow the calling of their forefathers. Herring and mackerel fishing is a hazardous occupation and many have lost their lives in the stormy Atlantic. These people are a hardy folk, descendants of the Vikings of old. Their seafaring tradition has endured. Today there are French ships and sailors in all the ports of call throughout the world. Here is one of them, Uncle Jacques Brion, second officer on the freighter Southwind, which takes passengers and goods from Cherbourg to Tunis, to Madagascar, Tahiti, New Caledonia, and on the way back makes stops in many ports of the French possessions overseas. Jacques, home on leave, tells his nephew Claude of a typhoon his ship encountered in the Indian Ocean. But they got through safely with their cargo of rubber, copra, and cocoa for the markets of France. Although France is more nearly self-sufficient than any other European nation in most of the things Frenchmen eat, drink, and wear, no country is completely self-sufficient anymore. Today the prosperity of France depends on foreign trade with her Commonwealth and the rest of the world. Like Uncle Jacques, some Frenchmen make their living from shipping, especially in the great port cities like Cherbourg and Le Havre, which are ports of embarkation to and from America. Or Marseille, the great Mediterranean port city. But in spite of the far-flung foreign trade of France, few Frenchmen travel and even fewer migrate. [Music] Why? Probably Grandpere Brion would answer that love of the land and the sense of vocation are deep in the nature of a Frenchman, whether he is a Norman farmer, a skilled craftsman like Monsieur Brion, an expert mechanic like his son Pierre, or a tapestry weaver in the Gobelins plant. Each takes pride in his work. Over the years, the label made in France has spread the prestige of French workmanship and taste throughout the world. Many skills, like French cooking, are passed down from one generation to the next. And whether it's a famous Paris hotel or a small, well-known inn along the good roads of France, cooking is an art, an art that is taken seriously. Every province has its specialties. [Music] Wherever Frenchmen live, wine is a traditional part of the daily diet. And in several provinces, wine growing is so important that their names have become synonymous with their wines. Anjou, Bourgogne, Cognac, Champagne, and so on. Born and reared in a historic setting, Frenchmen are deeply conscious of tradition. Surrounded by works of art, Frenchmen appreciate beauty. France has long been the refuge of artists from many lands. The people of France live close to the great monuments of medieval faith. Indeed, religion and community life are inseparable in France. While church and state are separated and religious freedom rigorously observed, the Roman Catholic Church exerts a powerful influence. Monsieur le Curé is a friend and advisor to the villagers. Feast days are of religious character. They provide a welcome change from the quiet village life. [Music] But France, the country of farmers, shopkeepers, fishermen, and craftsmen, is also an industrial nation. [Music] More and more people work in factories and mines. And France needs more men to mine their natural resources, more hands for industry, more hands for farms, more hands than there are in France. Therefore, workers are brought in from Italy, Yugoslavia, and other countries to man the expanding industries of France. [Music] Three wars in less than 100 years have taken a heavy toll on French manpower. The loss commemorated by the eternal flame under the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. The French population does not increase as rapidly as that of other European countries, and Germany's expanding production and power are a continual source of anxiety. The formation of an international authority under which steel should be made with French coal and German iron appeared as the first sign of cooperation instead of competition between France and Germany. But if France's traditional rival is across the Rhine, her traditional friend lies across the wide Atlantic. This friendship is old and deep. France helped America to achieve independence. The Statue of Liberty, a gift from the people of France, symbolizes this friendship. And so does Omaha Beach where American troops landed June 6th, 1944 to begin the second liberation of France from German occupation within a generation. Now, Uncle Jacques' leave is up. He's off to make the rounds of the seaports of the world once again. And Pierre's vacation draws to a close. [Music] The old folks insist upon sending the family back loaded with fresh food from the farm. Grand-père Brion advises Claude to study hard. He may even become a professeur, which would be a great honor for the Brion family. But Claude hasn't decided what he wants to be. Perhaps an artist. Perhaps a mechanic like his brother Pierre. Or a ship's officer like his Uncle Jacques. A member of the Garde Républicaine. Or even the president of the French Republic. [Music] Claude and his other schoolmates will have the opportunity to become any of these. For France is a true democracy where a boy's youthful dream may come true. [Music]