--- title: "7 French Quotes By Edmund White" description: "7 French quotes by Edmund White. Plus more from Edmund White and more French sayings from other authors." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abd/edmund-white-2376_american_when-i-was-living-in-paris-in-the-80s-i_524845.png" --- > [When I was living in Paris in the '80s, I used to go out with an American model who couldn't speak French.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/when-i-was-living-in-paris-in-the-80s-i-used-to-go-out-with-an/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abd/edmund-white-2376_american_when-i-was-living-in-paris-in-the-80s-i_524845.png) > [The French are pretty thin-skinned. The few times I mentioned a French writer in 'City Boy,' the relatives would ring up in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/the-french-are-pretty-thin-skinned-the-few-times-i-mentioned-a-french/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/319/edmund-white-2376_angry_the-french-are-pretty-thin-skinned-the-f_647681.jpg) > [America thrives on identity politics, left and right. But France is opposed to the idea. Since the Revolution, the French have enthroned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/america-thrives-on-identity-politics-left-and-right-but-france-is/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/454/edmund-white-2376_abstract_america-thrives-on-identity-politics-lef_1051089.png) > [Nobody in France would ever say 'He's a Jewish novelist' or 'She's a black novelist,' even though people do write about those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/nobody-in-france-would-ever-say-he-s-a-jewish-novelist-or-she-s-a/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bb/edmund-white-2376_about_nobody-in-france-would-ever-say-he-s-a-j_1247757.jpg) > [I always feel I'm better known in England than I am here in the U.S. Americans don't read that much, and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/i-always-feel-i-m-better-known-in-england-than-i-am-here-in-the-u-s/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/138/edmund-white-2376_always_i-always-feel-i-m-better-known-in-englan_1510078.png) > [I was too prissy, too refined, too abstemious, too French to be a good American writer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/i-was-too-prissy-too-refined-too-abstemious-too-french-to-be-a-good/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/07e/edmund-white-2376_american_i-was-too-prissy-too-refined-too-abstemi_2595448.png) > [In Paris, AIDS was dismissed as an American phobia until French people started dying; then everyone said, 'Well, you have to die…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/in-paris-aids-was-dismissed-as-an-american-phobia-until-french-people/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ebc/edmund-white-2376_aids_in-paris-aids-was-dismissed-as-an-americ_2850006.png) ## Other authors on French ## More by Edmund White > [The talk shows in the States want celebrities, not authors. In France, it is different; writers are called upon to comment on everything. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/the-talk-shows-in-the-states-want-celebrities-not-authors-in-france/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [Just like Barack Obama, my views on gay marriage have evolved, and now I am a reluctant groom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/just-like-barack-obama-my-views-on-gay-marriage-have-evolved-and-now/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [In 'A Boy's Own Story' and 'Jack Holmes and His Friend,' my idea was to take someone totally different from my real self and,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/in-a-boy-s-own-story-and-jack-holmes-and-his-friend-my-idea-was-to/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [Everyone seems agreed that writing about sex is perilous, partly because it threatens to swamp highly individualised characters in a generic, featureless activity (much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/everyone-seems-agreed-that-writing-about-sex-is-perilous-partly/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > ['The Sound of Things Falling' may be a page turner, but it's also a deep meditation on fate and death. Even in translation, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/the-sound-of-things-falling-may-be-a-page-turner-but-it-s-also-a-deep/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [If you're a beach person or a golfer, Key West is not for you. Most of the sand has been imported, and the water…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/if-you-re-a-beach-person-or-a-golfer-key-west-is-not-for-you-most-of/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [First, I was opposed to gay marriage because it seemed like one more way that gays were wanting to assimilate. When I realized the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/first-i-was-opposed-to-gay-marriage-because-it-seemed-like-one-more/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [From my mother I learned just how violent and unquenchable a woman's loneliness can be. She had been sheltered excessively by her husband and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/from-my-mother-i-learned-just-how-violent-and-unquenchable-a-woman-s/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [From an early age, I had the idea that writing was truth-telling. It's on the record. Everybody can see it. Maybe it goes back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/from-an-early-age-i-had-the-idea-that-writing-was-truth-telling-it-s/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [Since, in the best Southern tradition, I was named Edmund Valentine White III, sometimes when people look up my books on Amazon they find…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/since-in-the-best-southern-tradition-i-was-named-edmund-valentine/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [When I was young, I despised old people. I was provincial and narrow-minded. It's the reason I stayed stupid so long. If you only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/when-i-was-young-i-despised-old-people-i-was-provincial-and-narrow/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [Key West is the place where your sickly house plant back in New York grows to 10 ft. It's also the place where an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/key-west-is-the-place-where-your-sickly-house-plant-back-in-new-york/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [“In the past, when gays were very flamboyant as drag queens or as leather queens or whatever, that just amused people. And most of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/in-the-past-when-gays-were-very-flamboyant-as-drag-queens-or-as/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [When a woman falls in love with me, I feel guilty. I am convinced that it's pure obstinacy that keeps me from reciprocating her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/when-a-woman-falls-in-love-with-me-i-feel-guilty-i-am-convinced-that/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [While writing 'City Boy,' I relied mainly on my own memories. In particular, I was able to describe the effect of gay liberation on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/while-writing-city-boy-i-relied-mainly-on-my-own-memories-in/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "ItemList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/french/edmund-white/#itemlist", "name": "7 French Quotes By Edmund White", "numberOfItems": 7, "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When I was living in Paris in the '80s, I used to go out with an American model who couldn't speak French. 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