Princess Charlene Current Events - Part 1: July 2011 - December 2013

[Moonmaiden23]

There may be valid reasons why Charlene is struggling with picking up French.

The average human brain is hard wired to pick up languages very quickly until about 6-8 years of age. Then for most of us, information carrying channels close up and it becomes much harder work. As with all things in the brain the degree of difficulty for cognitive acts differs from person to person.

For some, mechanical or engineering imagery is easy and for others it's a real task. Ditto with understanding math, music and other cognitive skills including the ability to learn languages as an adult.

We used to call people that lacked common skills DUMB, but we have learned that all people have their own areas of cognitive weakness.

It may have nothing to do with Charlene's desire and everything to do with her cognitive profile.

One of my weakness is in facial and name recognition. I don't recognize people very easily - and if I do, I have certainly forgotten their name. It's not that I am rude or uncaring - it's that I am solidly bad at the skill. I have tried to fix it - but with little success.

I guess I'd ask each of you what cognitive challenges are difficult for you? Or for one of your children? Then I'd ask if you still want to pick up those stones to throw at Charlene?

This is such a great post. I can pick up languages without much effort, but to this day have the most brutal time with even basic fractions. It used to baffle my teachers. It was humiliating.

And I also tend to forget names.

As for Charlene, I am certainly not "throwing stones" at her. But she has better resources than the average man or woman, and the fact that she doesn't even appear to be trying(in public) anymore seems lazy at best and arrogant at worst.

I like Charlene. She is one of only two or three European princesses that I have any interest in at all. But as DoM said, after nearly a decade it's becoming increasingly difficult to continue to make excuses for her inability to speak French.

 

[Duke of Marmalade]

Here is the proove that she speaks a little in french when she is with persons , it is little but I show you how it happens. I wait fot the proove that she did not speak a lirrle in french to the young children. As I am saying , it is little but it was in may 2012. i hope she has done does progress since the GP.

Vido Zone interdite : Intimit et pouvoir : un an dans la vie du Prince Albert de Monaco ! - M6

'a little french' should be more than 'merci', 'bien' or 'bonjour'. Its the most basic words I can teach a 3 year old in 10 minutes.

Having said that, its perfectly possible that Charlene understands french very well. From my own experience, I am not a native speaker but I used to be fluent in french when I was in school, did school exchanges. Since then, I have lost the ability to speak because of lack of practice. Still I can watch movies or follow conversations. If I get back in the country for a few weeks, I guess I get fluent again very quickly. What I want to say is that it is possible that Charlene can understand but doesnt speak because she doesnt have the practice as she speaks english to those who she deals with on a daily basis (incl her husband), because its easier for her. Learning a language thoroughly is an effort, I was just trying to explain, but again, it is not an excuse. With effort, everyone can learn and practise, especially somebody in Charlene's position.

 

[Moonmaiden23]

I believe Charlene does indeed understand the language pretty well. During her engagement interviews she asked for permission to respond in English to questions put to her in French, and during the brief clip above she seems to understand what the people are saying to her.

 

[TRCRoyal]

I have to say I'm disappointed in the documentary itself because I thought it was all about Charlene and now it turned to be about Monaco, I liked the one that was done earlier this year more.

As for French, I'm pretty sure she can carry up a decent conversation, but it's okay that she prefers to be interviewed in English since we usually think in a certain language and it'd be easier for her to control her words. However, I wanna see her speaking French ASAP!

 

[gerry]

I have to say I'm disappointed in the documentary itself because I thought it was all about Charlene and now it turned to be about Monaco, I liked the one that was done earlier this year more.

As for French, I'm pretty sure she can carry up a decent conversation, but it's okay that she prefers to be interviewed in English since we usually think in a certain language and it'd be easier for her to control her words. However, I wanna see her speaking French ASAP!

As a French teacher in an English speaking part of Canada, I can assure you that the princess is in an ideal situation to learn French through the simple process of immersion. However, I believe her husband has chosen to speak to her in English, presumably because his mother, an American English speaker, spoke to him in that language so that he is not only used but probably charmed to use l'anglais at home. Until she fires up the gumption (very colloquial English!) to tell him to speak to her in French, she will continue to use English and incur the wrath of board members, qui ne peuvent pas parler la langue de Moliere

 

[C4A]

Part 3 of the documentary is still missing on Youtube. Can someone please upload it? I believe it's the best part...

 

[TRCRoyal]

As a French teacher in an English speaking part of Canada, I can assure you that the princess is in an ideal situation to learn French through the simple process of immersion. However, I believe her husband has chosen to speak to her in English, presumably because his mother, an American English speaker, spoke to him in that language so that he is not only used but probably charmed to use l'anglais at home. Until she fires up the gumption (very colloquial English!) to tell him to speak to her in French, she will continue to use English and incur the wrath of board members, qui ne peuvent pas parler la langue de Moliere

My point is that conducting an interview in English doesn't mean she can't speak French, it means that she is not comfortable in it yet. Which is bad tbh. But as a multilingual person myself I know it's hard to control what I say in different languages. But yeah for sure that interaction Is the best way to learn a language.

 

[KittyAtlanta]

All the sincerity in the world does not make up for the fact that almost a decade in she can not carry on even the most basic of conversations in the language of the people she purports to love and represent. If this were Mary or Maxima everyone would be up in arms, not making excuses. People still criticize Mary or Maxima for mistakes in grammar but they at least they have each made an effort and devoted themselves to learn their adopted countries language. Charlene has not even done that.

Charlene has a Responsibility to learn the language, period. She has all the resources available to do so. It is just plain lazy at this point. Even an attempt to show the people she is trying would be better.

As for the interview...This was falsely billed as an interview of Charlene and it only shows her briefly, her voice is never heard, only a translation. I know she does not interview well from past videos so they are careful to control her presence. Still, this was no interview. It was a quick parrot about her "works" which she repeats again and again in different mediums. Time for a new script that discusses how she devotes more time to attempting the language.

It is more accurate to describe it as a documentary of Monaco with most of the interviews by Albert and others who do speak French. Pity.



I watched it live. I can confirm this is NOT the case. She spoke in English. Her own voice was never heard and there was only a french translator. The "interview" was brief. Albert made more of an interview than she did. She spoke mainly about her "cause" which she seems to repeat verbatim constantly like a script.

This is not a comment, it is a rant. Charlene doesn't speak French, again and again and again. Does anyone other than me NOT care if she doesn't speak French?

 

[EDOEP]

This is not a comment, it is a rant. Charlene doesn't speak French, again and again and again. Does anyone other than me NOT care if she doesn't speak French?

LOL, interesting point of view. i don't see it as a rant - i regard it as a well put opinion.

question: if your first lady's = michelle obama's skills in understanding and speaking english were as 'basic' (to put it mildly) as HSH's abilities in speaking french: you wouldn't mind that either, would you?

i'm just trying to imagine now an imaginary future FLOTUS, wedded wife of a US-born POTUS, representing her country by speaking .... lithuanian or portugese .... only in public, her native tongue. LOL. again.

 

[Lee-Z]

Well, I learned yesterday over in the Swedish forums here that people still criticize the way Queen Silvia speaks swedish (after 37 years)... so we have a looooooong way to go with this Charlene-meets-FrenchLanguage thread...

 

[C4A]

Kitty Atlanta, I for one agree with your view. And again, we don't know exactly what her level of proficiency is. The Monegasque people seem to love her, she's doing good things in Monaco and her husband seems proud of her achievements. To me these positives are far more important...

 

[melina premiere]

KittyAtlanta and C4A you are not only the alone persons who don'tcare she is not speaking well french. in France Many persons liked a lot the documentary and Charlene was very at ease. Wait to watch the entire documentary before judging What is saying Charlene. It is comic to read that some persons are criticing Charlene and they did not yet watched the entire documentary.
I think that the end of the documentary will be on Youtube only after january 4th because the documentary will be aired again this day.



Yes C4A, there is not only the language . Charlene does good thing , she does good job with her foundation. Many french towns are happy to be helped by the foundation. In september 2014, a center of learning sae rescue for the children and young people will open; All the children of the college will have lessons of rescue. The minister of education said in monaco Matin it will be the first center which will give lessons during the time of school. In The foundation will help in Tustin California and in Quebec ( read the translation on the board princess charlene event). She does a lot for Autism and handicaped children. she is very at ease with children , the children like her and the aged persons were very happy to be with her, she found her very natural.

 

[KittyAtlanta]

LOL, interesting point of view. i don't see it as a rant - i regard it as a well put opinion.

question: if your first lady's = michelle obama's skills in understanding and speaking english were as 'basic' (to put it mildly) as HSH's abilities in speaking french: you wouldn't mind that either, would you?

i'm just trying to imagine now an imaginary future FLOTUS, wedded wife of a US-born POTUS, representing her country by speaking .... lithuanian or portugese .... only in public, her native tongue. LOL. again.

As has been said before, we don't know how well Charlene speaks French. No one who matters seems to care.

As for any FLOTUS not speaking English...not going to happen. If a future POTUS were to be married to a woman whose first language was, say, Tongan, she'd already speak English.

Charlene is not the wife of the leader of the free world.

 

[Mariel]

The people of Monaco are probably bi-lingual and understand what Charlene says in English. I envy them the ability to do this--it seems normal in Europe to have English as one's business language. It is usually difficult for an English speaking person to pronounce French. I can read most of what is placed here on RF in French, but I doubt if I could pronounce it well enough to be understood (my experience while in France--really bad speaker). I believe it has something to do with not only the brain cells but also the shape of the mouth/teeth. Some of us do not have French mouths/teeth. So it
is a long process for Charlene, and those who love her are happy with her as she is.
Looking at that Irish mug of Prince Albert, I wonder how he manages to pronounce French well--but he got a REAL head start.

 

[melina premiere]

here we watch in this video , we watch princess Charlene doing shopping in Fnac, she is with her guard but she is alone when she speaks with the seller. I think she is speaking a little in frnech, all the people of Monaco do not speak english specialy the worker of Fnac.I



Princesse Charlene Shopping for Electronics in Metropole Shopping Center - Monaco - 16 Sept 2013 - YouTube

Here is a video of the visit of Princess Charlene to the schools and to the colleges of monaco. Wr saw that she spoke with pupils , I do not see a person who tranlates, I see only the teacher who present the pupils to Princess Charlene. We see very good contacts between the children and Charlene.

Visite de la Princesse Charlène dans les écoles monégasques - YouTube

She travelled in 2006 and almost all the year 2007 between South Africa and Monaco She came to live in Monaco end of 2007. In 2008 she went to the institut of Villefranches Sur Mer to learn french . These institut gives lessons to persons who want to learn very quickly french. Untill 2010 her future was not sure in Monaco, she was only the girlfriend of Albert. Her relation could be broken. What would she do with a perfect french ? after her engagement, she had an interview where she spoke little french and said that she understood the french but did not spoke very well french. before her wedding the palace said that she will give interviews in french when she will speak french fluently to avoid all errors in languages which could be understood very bad. If she can speak french to the people of Monaco and understand what they say, i don't see what is bad? she does not give a interview every day but she has events almost every day.
Saying that she does any effort, what do you know? What I know ( I read it in the newspapers) is that the staff of the palace speaks her in french, that Albert speaks with her in english. Albert is more at ease in english, ' her mother spoke with her children in english. it is also their language and they don't want to change.

Princess Charlene does not speak very well french but she has the language of the heart , which is international and that some persons have not.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?...764514.-2207520000.1388488057.&type=3&theater

i like this photo , Charlene has not enough hands to hold all the hands of the children.

Here is the announcement of the palace about the visit to the schools and to the college; the palace said that she spoke in english and in french to the pupils and she visited a n international class who travelled in South Africa. i think she spoke in english

H.S.H. Princess Charlene visits the Principality's schools - Prince

This evening there was the message of New year with Albert and charlene, Charlene spoke a little little in french but with a very strong accent. she seemed stressed.
many people thought that she would give up to speak during this message but she goes on She must not give up and make effort to speak french.

 

[Elly C]

What a lovely video. There's no doubting Charlene has a lovely relaxed way with children which transcends any language barriers.
I think she has come along way in the last 12 months and is proving to be a real plus point for Monaco. Yes, I'd like her to test her French a little more, and it might be a good New Year resolution for her, but there's so many other qualities required to being Monaco's " First Lady" which she has mastered.

(Hope she has a new current event soon so we can move on ).

 

[fandesacs2003]

She is really lovely with kids, i wish her from my heart to have soon hers!
As for the french, she surely can speak some every day sentences.
I watched the video and they said that she discussed with some students of an "international section", it means ENGLISH!

 

[carlota]

i think charlene has come a long way since her start as monaco´s princess and first lady. she´s clearly adored and respected by the monegasques, who appreciate her down to earth personality and her simplicity. i don´t think that the fact she doesn´t speak french is such an issue, particularly in monaco, with such an international influence. the monegasques clearly don´t mind and appreciate her just how she is.

i loved how she kneeled down to greet the little girl in the video from her visit to the school and how she joined the pupils to eat with them in their cantine.

 

[iceflower]

Time to close this thread! Thanks for all your contributions! The new thread can be found here.​