Contemporary France by Helen Drake (review)

Part of a series of introductory works ‘conceived to meet the needs of today’s students’, Contemporary France shares a common structure with other Palgrave titles covering countries as disparate as India, Russia, and Japan. In a couple of hundred pages authors are expected to range well beyond their specialist domain to provide an accessible survey of history, politics, socio-economic arrangements, and cultural life. Here Helen Drake, whose own research has been particularly concerned with France’s relationship to European integration, has succeeded in producing a well-balanced and coherent sweep of the field. The book is divided into eight chapters, beginning with a historical overview that considers the legacy of past events and sets up classic themes such as grandeur, exceptionalism, and the republican tradition. Subsequent chapters focus on the Fifth Republic and are weighted towards the present, addressing image and identity, politics, the state and policy-making, social structures and education, culture, the economy, and France’s international relations. Linked by frequent cross-referencing, the sections do a pretty consistent job of condensing large amounts of information into convincing and readable syntheses. The main analytical thread is that of ‘challenges’, and how France has adapted to change over the last half century. This allows Drake to consider both how republican ideals have fared as a template, and how national cohesion and identities have been affected by decades of transformation. With space and therefore nuance at a premium, Drake navigates this terrain skilfully. Avoiding undue reverence and excessive pessimism about France in the twenty-first century, her even-handed analysis nonetheless succeeds in conveying something of the peculiar urgency and intensity of French debates over identity and the state of the nation. Periodic references to English-language scholarship introduce readers to the wider literature, notably concerning the idea of exceptionalism. The latter theme is also woven into the book, sometimes as a framework for comparison — for example, with other European states buffeted by the same macroeconomic forces — and at other times as normative discourse — for instance, during the 2005 referendum debate. Published in 2011, the book does not quite reach Marine Le Pen’s succession as Front National leader, but it clearly traces the trajectory of the last quinquennat. As Drake wryly notes, ‘France expects something special, almost other-worldly, from its presidents, and presidents do not come much worldlier than Nicolas Sarkozy’ (p. 223). One minor criticism concerns the bibliography and referencing. Bearing in mind the publisher’s pitch, some suggested further readings organized by chapter theme might have been welcome, and would certainly have been more useful than the rather superfluous UK press articles (often secondary sources for well-established information) that accrue in the bibliography. That small point aside, this book is a lively and accessible guide to contemporary France that will be a valuable resource for students. Drake opens her Conclusions by observing that ‘it is impossible to take a neutral stance on France’ (p. 220), but she has produced an admirably balanced survey that should equip and inspire its readers to continue exploring the subject.