This is a response to a post from Immutably Me about the Conan O’Brien incident.
I thought your take on this story was interesting. I saw this from quite a different perspective, being francophone I guess, and also originally from Quebec City, a place that so many people like to make fun of because « it’s so French » – as if there was something slightly wrong with that. I know for having spoken with other anglophones that you are not the only one who is surprised by the big reaction to this incident. I also know that my impatient and slightly angry reaction to the insults of that dog puppet is not completely rational. It has deeper roots, otherwise why would I care about a stupid puppet who is often quite funny?
You said:
After watching the « Triumph the insult dog au Quebec bit » I could see more fault with the quebecois he joked and jabbed at than with the comedian as many of them either stared blankly, uncomprehending at this strange language some call English or at the hostility that others showed at the nerve some tourist would have for not only speaking something other than French but for daring to make fun of their intolerance and ignorance.
Most francophones I know who don’t speak English don’t make a point of it. They just didn’t get to learn it well or never have a chance to practice, so they’re not very good at it. They don’t use English in daily life because they don’t need to. It doesn’t make them ignorant. It’s not a big cultural loss to not know who Conan O’Brien and the Insult Puppet are.
It’s the same thing with someone from Vancouver or Winnipeg. They learn the basic of French in school but they don’t use it in daily life. Yet nobody makes a big deal out of the fact that they don’t speak a second language. Francophones often feel bad when they don’t speak English well. They feel like something is missing from their education and they are constantly reminded that their life and career are limited without English. No wonder francophones get so defensive and want to keep some place where they are not made to feel inadequate, hence the « On parle fran�ais ici! » reaction.
I had seen that puppet before on tv and knew his kind of humor, so I actually thought it was funny when he played on the stereotypes that everybody knows well: « You are French Canadian? Oh, so that means you are obnoxious AND dull! » (a sentence that most francophone media translated wrong: obnoxious does not mean idiot).
But then the puppet’s anger started feeding on the quebecois’ cold reaction and he seemed to get impatient with their ignorance of his celebrity. I sensed his tone change when I heard him yell angrily at people on the street: « You’re in North America. Learn the language! ». I felt that he was no longer joking and his comments were reflecting some deep belief (of the writer? The handler?): that other languages than English, and by extension other cultures, have no place in North America, that it’s pretentious to not blend in and fit with the norm. And when I heard the docile audience (oooh, a big American star gives us the honor of a visit) clap and cheer even louder when he angrily made fun of francophones, then I got uncomfortable.
This kind of reaction discourages me and it makes me lose hope that the rest of Canada will ever understand what Quebec is about. Contrary to what a lot of people believe, separatism in Quebec may have its roots in discouragement more than in hostility and antagonism.