Les Français Qui Consomment

Abstract

Small markets remain one of the enduring pleasures of visits to France. The atmosphere, the quality of the merchandise, the babble of language, all make the foreigner feel that he or she is getting close to a part of the real France, the France of tradition, with its roots in the country. Yet, in recent years, the hypermarket seems to have become as big an attraction for the visitor, and to be just as characteristically French in its own way. The following pair of texts present aspects of these two very different sides of shopping in France.