[originaltext] The French are at heart traditionalists. Though they dearly l

The French are at heart traditionalists. Though they dearly love revolutions, they disapprove of shifts in behavior. Everything must be done properly, an expression that applies equally to getting married and getting drunk, stuffing a duck and filling in a form, addressing an envelop and addressing a teacher. There is an established order of things, and the order was established by the French.
    The desire to maintain standards is best seen on any holiday in the summer. Where the Italians, the British, and even the Germans, relax sufficiently to leave their faces unshaven, or mealtimes become irregular, or dresses become strange, the French behave as though they were still under the microscope of real life.
    French men and women take two hours over their morning making up. Watch any Frenchman at a campsite in the summer and see how long he spends shaving, trimming his moustache, and on general showers.
    Wives cook three-course lunches which they serve to their husbands in the stuffy heat at little tables with linen napkins and polished dishware. The white wine must stand in an ice bucket. Everything is correct -- the bread, the cheese, the sauce.
    Mr. eats greedily. Mrs. stands behind him, and a little to the side, nodding happily. She will do the washing-up immediately the meal is finished. All will be neat and tidy before any other activity is even considered.