Wolf Lepenies on the culture struggle between the Americans and the French

German writer Wolf Lepenies analyses the controversy triggered by an article in 'Time' Magazine on the death of French culture. "The French see their criticism of themselves, which occasionally reaches the point of entirely surrendering their identity, as a privilege which they are loathe to relinquish to outsiders - much less to Americans, who are basically still supposed to regard Europe as the source of their own culture. ... The impertinence of the Americans in daring to pronounce judgement on French culture has its compensation in the recent rapprochement between American and French politicians. The Americans would never have dared announce the 'death' of French culture if relations between the two countries had not improved considerably in recent times. Among those to blame for the anger of many French 'immortals' is their very president, 'Sarko l'Américain'."

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