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The City of Light in the Dark
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Me Talk Pretty One Day, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Identity and Insecurity
Humor, Commentary, and Observation
Class and Belonging
Family, Love, and Support
Summary
Analysis
Sedaris contends with the assumptions French people make about Americans. Many assume that Americans never smoke, take Prozac, and are overweight. When Sedaris returns to the United States for five weeks, he turns a curious eye on his fellow Americans, wanting to know if they’ll confirm the stereotypes other nations have about them. For the most part, he notices that Americans are friendly, chatty, and optimistic, though he certainly has some experiences that confirm the various stereotypes (on the plane back from France, for instance, his American seat-mate asks him how much he paid for his ticket). He also notices a certain amount of American hypocrisy when he stays in hotels and sees signs about preserving water to “save the planet.” This is all well and good, he thinks, but this kind of thinking doesn’t seem to stop Americans from driving large, gas-guzzling cars.
Again, Sedaris’s time abroad puts him in a unique position, giving him an alternate vantage point from which to view his home country through a new lens. This suggests that it’s difficult to objectively observe one’s own culture while existing in the day-to-day life of that culture. When he comes back to the United States for a short period of time, though, Sedaris has a fresh perspective on the idiosyncrasies of his home country.
Themes
Sedaris is often unable to explain the behavior of his fellow Americans to people in Paris. However, he’s delighted when he can answer questions about American life. This happens one day when he goes for a haircut in Paris and the hairdresser shows him a magazine picture of Jodie Foster. The hairdresser loves Jodie Foster and has been studying this photograph, unable to discern what Jodie Foster is holding in her hand. He can tell Jodie Foster is holding a leash in one hand, but nobody he’s asked can tell what she has in the other. “Well,” Sedaris says, looking closely, “she appears to be carrying a plastic bag of dog shit.” The hairdresser refuses to believe this. As several others in the shop listen, Sedaris tries to explain why Jodie Foster would do this, and as he does so, he feels prouder of his country than ever before.
By this point, it’s quite clear that Sedaris has a strange vision of the United States. In “City of Angels,” he disapproves of Bonnie’s enthusiasm regarding the places in New York City that most people want to visit. Now, though, he feels an odd kind of patriotism about the fact that even celebrities have to clean up after their dogs in public. Why this detail makes him emotionally identify with his country more than anything else isn’t all that clear, except perhaps that he appreciates the humor inherent to the idea of a beloved celebrity carrying a “bag of dog shit.” More importantly, though, it’s possible that he enjoys this interaction at the hairdresser’s because it’s one of the few times he is able to confidently account for a part of American culture, thereby making him feel connected to his home country.
Themes
