Abstract: | The paper analyses the influence of a cultural model exercised upon and through the Romanian educational practices. We have chosen the French language for objective reasons: on the one hand, for the major role of the French culture influence in the period we analyze; on the other hand, we consider it may stand as a starting point for a comparative analysis with the English language and its tremendous influence on the Romanian cultural life in the latter half of the 20th and the first decades of the 21st centuries.
The French culture and civilization, an important catalyst for the Romanian culture until mid-20th century, have been conveyed for over two centuries mainly through the educational system and the intellectuals who have facilitated contact with the West, which was seen as a new model of civilization and which contributed to the modernization of the Romanian society. The study on the historical evolution of this complex cultural phenomenon has been done through a qualitative analysis of some instruments (such as, textbooks, dictionaries and school books) regarded as major factors influencing the moulding of cultural values. |
