A Very Colorful Character

Tuesday, April 8. As it turns out, first impressions are not necessarily the lasting ones. I have totally changed spots vis-a-vis my new French professor. He is amazing.

First, there are the clothes. Always, black cargo pants tucked into low black boots. Black shirt and vest. Today, a brightly multi-colored (predominantly shades of lime green but also yellows and blues) sweater from Peru along with a wool plaid scarf (orange, blue, green) and a tie with big, bright flowers (orange, yellow, green). Somehow it all works, and he has the personality to pull it off.

Then there is the personality. He is very funny, and most importantly, is able to engage the class at every moment. You simply cannot NOT pay attention to him! He is worldly, erudite and brings so many interesting things into the conversation. He is also, I think, a frustrated artist. He draws cartoons on the board to illustrate the various points he's making. He is completely forthright and does not hesitate to say exactly what he thinks (for example, he hates the Pompidou Center and has never set foot in it!) but he does it in such an easy manner that it makes you laugh. He has a very light touch.

And then there is the teaching. You hardly even know you are being taught. He has us do "pronons gymnastiques" for 10 minutes or so during every class. This is one of the harder things to do in French, especially when using the "passe compose." For example, he will ask (in French, of course), "John, have I told you about my scandalous and immoral youth?" (Nearly every question he asks is designed to entertain us at some level.) And John has to answer, "No, you haven't told me about it." But in French this is much harder: "Non, vous ne m'en avez pas parler." All the pronouns hop to the front (hence, "gymnastique") and get mixed in with the negative indicators ("ne . . . pas") as well as with the compound form of the verb. Not only that, but there is a specific order depending on which pronouns are being used: Non, il ne le lui a pas donne. We all sound like idiots when responding. Non, . . . uh . . . il . . ne . . lui, non, le . . lui . . pas, non, uh, a . . pas . . donne. It's hysterical: nerve-racking and funny, with everyone laughing at everyone's mistakes, because we all know we're going to be making them too! But after you've listened to sixteen questions and tried to think through each one yourself, it's very effective practice.