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paris eiffel tower and city
paris eiffel tower and city
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Career

How a Netflix show Inspired Me to Take on a French Minor

Chelsea Cash
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Winthrop chapter.

         As a child,  I was obsessed with the French and their clothes and food. By the time I was twelve I knew I wanted to go to Paris, France one day. This obsession came to be because of my grandma’s love for Hallmark love stories, which usually surround the French. Now, as a freshman in college, I am taking French 101 thanks to my love for France and its people. It came time to ask myself the question, what do I want to do with my life? Netflix answered this when they released a show called “Emily in Paris”.

         The show was released on October 2nd, 2020, and I watched the entire first season in a week. The show begins when Emily follows her dreams and moves from Chicago to Paris for her job in marketing. She leaves her entire world behind and moves to the city of love. She moves to Paris without knowing any French or knowing anyone there. She soon learns that being American in France is a not-so-good thing because everyone assumes she is a tourist and is arrogant due to the stereotype that Americans are seen as stupid people. She begins her job at the French marketing company as the executive marketer and the employees immediately disliked her and her ideas. Over time they adjusted their opinion and fell in with love her but not before she was fired for ruining the Fashion Show for Fashion Week Paris with Pierre Cadeau, a bigtime fashion designer.

Courtesy
          Due to her being in Paris, she is forced to break up with her boyfriend on the day he was supposed to visit her in Paris because he refuses to do long distance. Although she is sad about her breakup, she meets her neighbor Gabriel. A hot French man that is into her is surprising to Emily and she doesn’t realize how attractive of a woman she is. She has a line of men waiting to be with her. She and Gabriel both denied their love for each other for the majority of the show, but they ended up having multiple steamy make-out sessions but were forced to keep it a secret because of Emily’s best friend Camille who happens to also be Gabriel’s girlfriend. Emily attempts to date different people besides Gabriel but none of them can compare to him. By the end of the show, Emily learns to speak French and has made a lot of friends. She has continued her relationship with Gabriel and was rehired her job back at Savior, the French marketing company.

        The show helped me make my decision to take on a minor in French. I love France and its people so I always considered learning French, but Emily taught me that if I have a dream, I should follow them because, like Emily, it is my dream to travel to Paris. Although taking on a French minor is a lot more work, it is the best way to follow my 10-year plan. My 10-year plan is to graduate from college and move to Europe and earn my graduate degree. I hope to eventually work for the Louvre Museum and live somewhere in France with a family. Although this plan may not work out perfectly, I know that taking on this minor and studying abroad in France is a good start to this plan. “Emily in Paris” although your usual rom com, can help people discover who they are, and it can teach people of all ages to follow their dreams no matter how crazy they may seem.

Chelsea Cash

Winthrop '24

Hi, I am a freshman at Winthrop University. I am a History major and I plan to pursue a Journalism degree. I hope to one day work for a big time magazine such as Vogue or Cosmopolitan. I love to read and bake, I am currently hooked on the "After" series.