French Women: The New Sexual Predators

French women are becoming increasingly assertive in their sexual habits, while one-in-five younger French men "has no interest in sex", according to one of the most comprehensive surveys of the nation's love lives.

Women now have more than twice as many partners as they did in the 1970s, according to the study by the French Aids research agency, which is backed by the government.

"Are women just like men?" asked Le Nouvel Observateur yesterday, which released extracts of the Study on Sexuality in France, a 600-page tome that brings together 12,000 in-depth interviews with people of all ages conducted during 2005-06.

One of the biggest changes in recent years, according to the report, was that male and female sexual behaviour had become increasingly similar.

To read more on the sexual prowess of french women, click here.

Carla Bruni, the new wife of French president Nicholas Sarkozy, is one of HuffPost's fave frenchies. Her thoughts:

Female sexual emancipation has been a hot topic in France ever since President Nicolas Sarkozy met Carla Bruni, the Italian model and singer. The couple married last month.

Ms Bruni recently declared monogamy "terribly boring" and spoke in relaxed fashion about her numerous past conquests, including Mick Jagger and Eric Clapton.

"I am a tamer [of men], a cat, an Italian", she told Le Figaro last year.

"I am faithful... to myself. I am monogamous from time to time but I prefer polygamy and polyandry [its female equivalent]."

You can find more of our thoughts on French women and what we can learn from them, here.

Comments

[kfdan]

Americans have been effected too deeply by a Puritan and prudish mentality that permeates the culture in a powerful and generally negative way! Live and let live! Make love not war! Viva la France!

[hansk]

Vive la France---Viva Italia---- compris???

[sa]

dude,
if french women are "predators"
hell yeah with the prey.
i pray i am prey.

of course, this is another
manufactured press item
that derails the iraq "conversation".

this is white noise
to not talk about
an american president who is a war criminal.

history will look upon this period aghast.
the press and the american people
will be a spectacle for all of civilization.
we will stand as the bad example
for all generations to learn from.
bush of course will be the bottom line of the bottom line.
business and ethics will all unite under the low water mark
of america 2000-2008.

we have, yet again, set a new standard.
this one, reprehensible.

[TimN]

At the age of 20 the idea of assertive women would have been appealing, not so much after having mastered the art of the chase. I'll keep the demure flower who's heart I've won and leave these wanton French females to this generation of young men. May they somehow learn to be real men someday.

[Nooneyouknow]

"Demure flower"? "Art of the chase"? What a timmy.

[johnnycanuck]

Finally some good news.....now excuse me please, I have a plane to catch.

[OlskoolDem]

back to Heidie land.

[Orikinla]

I was thinkng of migrating to America before, but this article has changed my mind.
I would be happier with French women.
I love hot French kisses.

Mon amour, I am coming!

[panchovilla]

The headline chosen by the UK's is a tad sensationalist. Unfounded on the report in Le Nouvel Observateur. French women are not predators, sexual or whatever. What the report says it's that the notion of *men* as sexual predators is being questioned by the data -- not reversed, questioned, challenged! For all we know, French women may simply feel assertive enough of their own needs to fool around a little. And what's "love" (in the idealized form in which it is typically defined in Anglo cultures) got to do with it? The idea that French (or any other) women who engage in sex with multiple partners (in the U.S. and Britain the term for that is pejorative: "sluts") is a victim because they lack realization of the American or British ideal of "love" is preposterous. The victims of the disconnection from reality of the Anglo conception of "love" are -- first and foremost -- the Americans and the Brits, because they believe their own crap and then act it out.

[Uselessboy]

Sexually mature women?

Ou can je sign haute?

[semorg]

only if french women showered more often

[Bluesman48]

Someone who has never left the U.S. chimes in.

[HamletsMill]

Well, it was a long time ago in my wayward youth, but do modern French women shave their armpits these days? Has THAT changed? And I must admit the most drop dead gorgeous woman I ever saw on this planet in my lifetime was at a train station in Paris. The lovely monogamous phrase "We'll always have Paris" may not be in the mindset of people today, but it still works for me.

Viva La France!

[Boris]

French girls, French Women....they dont have to bathe, they dont have to shave and they are still the most sexiest women on the planet.

[MalloMel]

I can see not shaving, but not bathing is nasty.

[Kane]

I realize that some might take a partner’s affair as an act of betrayal, but I don’t. I’ve always felt that sex is a personal choice, and if someone apologizes to me for having sex, then it enters into control issues that I don’t desire. If you want to have sex with someone, have sex with them. Just protect yourself. And by all means, don’t come asking for forgiveness afterwards.

I’ve never felt a need to have an affair while in a relationship. Again, it comes out of personal choice. The way I see it, there are so many things in life that each of us compromises on. We learn to conveniently bend the rules to fit our own behaviors, and we make far too many concessions on our principles. I decided long ago that remaining faithful is one such principle that I could and would stick to, not so much out of loyalty to another, but to myself.

[indrakaran]

That is very sensible of you.
regards,
karan.

[ApplesandPears]

Cher Monsieur Dogma,

Petit menteur. Petit Monsieur, Grand Con!!!

[nypoet22]

a brilliant answer, and a wise policy. sex already has far too much unnecessary shame and guilt attached. why add more?

[Dogma]

I am an American ex-pat married to a French woman, living in France. Believe me when I say American men are a sought after commodity over here. If you have the chance I highly recommend it. Viva la France!

[Jonahson]

Either that or the French men are out of tune.

[who38]

I can understand women being more assertive; however, I have difficulty believing that one out of five YOUNG French men isn't interested in sex. Are they getting too much estrogen in their food?

[ConnectTheDots]

I'm sold. (no need to twist my, uh, 'arm').

[francoise]

What, I think, makes the difference is open mindedness.

In France one doesn't judge people on the basis of what they're doing in the bedroom. Because what's happening in the bedroom isn't a cause of problems.

Life is short. Just live it as you like. If what brings you happiness is to have as many partners as you can, just do it. If what brings you happiness is to live in love with your first partner forever, just do it. Who cares ? Live and let live.

Keep in mind that one day you'll be old and sex won't be on the menu anymore. So don't waste years keeping you from doing what you want and like just because of useless ideas like sin or the neighbors' opinions. Your sex habits won't ever start a war, so enjoy having sex your way before it's too late !

[silenttristerosempire]

Hey Francoise--like the Thomas Pynchon reference in my new login? You would not make a good American Republican. You prefer life to death and reality to empty rhetoric. Give your dogs a belly rub for me, and heave a great day

[nikto]

The problem is that the Freedom Fries we get here
in the USA are full of nitrite. It makes keeping
Amurkans under the yoke a tad easier.

In France, the French Fries are
pure and non-inhibiting.
That must be it.

Or maybe it's just that, in a number of ways, France has
a superior culture we would do well to emulate??

My American Pride!
Ouch!!

Or as They would say ... Touche?

[lyingtruth]

Does this aggressive behavior in women mean that we can expect Hillary Clinton will be having sex with interns in the Oval Office if she becomes President?

[Repubnomore]

Only if she employs the blind. (sorry, didn't mean to insult the blind).

[Fulcanelli]

God, I hope so...
We don't want someone as ambitious, driven and self-obsessed as her anywhere near the nuclear button if they aren't gettin' any. She's definitely got something to prove.

We all know Bubba Clinton was a Mac Daddy and we had 6 years of the Stock Market raging, jobs aplenty and a focused, fairly tidy war in the Balkans in which the troops DID home come on his watch among other benefits, if I remember correctly. And that's with the Newt-led Moral Hypocracy squad in Congress chewing on his groin 24/7/365.

With any luck, if she does get elected when that phone rings at 3AM Bill will be out tomcattin' around as usual and she'll be in the Lincoln bedroom with her ankles up aside her head, getting pounded by some studly aide, howling her pet names for Barry Goldwater, and America can get back down to the business of being the best place on Earth to live.

Haven't we had enough of this this repressed, self-centered alpha male bullshit with W to last 10 lifetimes?

[who38]

In her dreams!

[thatsitfortheotherone]

One thing's for sure, lyingdog, you won't have to worry about any Repubes having sex with WOMEN in the white house. Ha ha ha.

They prefer bathroom pickup guys or young male pages.

OBTW, they're gonna lose the White House big time anyway.

( . )

[BlackWidowPilot]

We can hope.

IMH-(independent voter)-O it would be a substantive advance over the hypocrisy and venal depravity of the "party of family values" currently infesting DC...

Leland R. Erickson

Citizen