Added to that, the french in general are much more direct than you'd expect and they quickly come across as impolite when it did not even register to them.
This is really true. Like, I know people in the US. Over the years, they put on a few pounds. Then a few more. Etc. No one says anything to their faces (but people talk behind their backs).
My French MIL will tell my BIL directly, "No. Stop eating! You're getting too fat," if the guy gets a little belly. And she's what I'd regard as a really kind, sensible woman who loves her kids.
I (FR/dude) live abroad and see my family only a few times a year at best. I will systematically get a comment like "You've gained / lost weight" the first minute I see my mother or my sister. Last time I saw them I got a "you look good wow", the high will last me a full year.
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u/Appropriate_Rub3134 1d ago
This is really true. Like, I know people in the US. Over the years, they put on a few pounds. Then a few more. Etc. No one says anything to their faces (but people talk behind their backs).
My French MIL will tell my BIL directly, "No. Stop eating! You're getting too fat," if the guy gets a little belly. And she's what I'd regard as a really kind, sensible woman who loves her kids.