I have been asked...

The question was posed to me as to whether or not I am more of a Francophobe (the nation, not the late saintly jefe of Spain) or an Anglophobe. I honestly can't say, but there are more things about French culture that I like than about the English. So, let us make a list and give points:

1. Literature. Now, the English have the depth here, but the French have some gems. From Chaucer to Shakespeare to Graham Greene, though, the English (and we are not even counting the English colonies: America, Ireland, Canada, India, etc., except for writers in those colonies who remain English subjects) are remarkable. We will have to give them 10 points here, to France's 7 (they are no slouches, either).

England 10, France 7

2. Music. Here is where the French kick some serious Anglo behind. For heavy hitters, the Angloes have Byrd, Tallis, Vaughan Williams, Britton (I am probably giving him a promotion, but there were a few great pieces), and Purcell (Handel was German, sorry boys). Many of their big names were boring, unmitigated doo doo like Holst and Elgar. We will give the English a 3. The French, on the other hand, have a musical tradition that goes back to the Leonin and has shining lights in every generation, with major dominance in the Ars Nova, the Baroque, and modern years (with remarkable contributions in Romanticism and the Renaissance). So, Leonin, Perotin, de Vitry, Machaut, Lully (OK, he probably should count as an Italian, if the English can't claim Handel), Rameau, Couperin, Marais, Saint Saens, Berlioz, Faure, Satie, Ravel, Debussy, Messaien, Henri, Schaeffer, Boulez, Risset, et al, give France a 10.

England 13, France 17

Painting. In the visual arts, we are looking at two countries with remarkable achievements, albeit both rather recent. When it comes to the 18th, 19th, and 20th centuries, both countries have long lists of great painters. Before and after those centuries, however, neither one is that great. The French have some lovely medieval painting, and the English kept good painting going longer in the twentieth century, after the French gave up (sometime around WWII), so the balance is kept. Let's give both countries a 7 and be done with it.

England 20, France 24

And that will end the first quarter of the great English-French Battle of 2007. The referee must go shower and get dressed for mass, so the second quarter, with its food, film and architecture rounds will happen this afternoon/evening.