Becoming Americans in Paris: Transatlantic Politics and Culture between the World

Wars. By Brooke L. Blower (New York: Oxford University Press, 2011. 368 pp. $38.95).
Interwar Paris has always held a special place in the American imagination. It was the
land of Hemingway, Stein, and Hughes and a flourishing American expatriate community.
However, the truth is somewhat different. In this volume, Blower explodes the myth of Gay
Paree, instead opting for a nuanced approach to Paris.1 She covers a wide variety of topics, from
the origin of the American colony in Paris to the reaction to the Sacco-Vanzetti trial. She further
expands into the American Legions 1928 Paris convention, finally ending with the gathering
shadow of the Second World War. Brooke Blowers Becoming Americans in Paris examines how
Paris shaped American identity and culture in the 1920s and 1930s.
Chapters One and Two, Triumphant Arrivals and Reluctant Hosts explore the life of the
American colony and French reactions to increasing American presence. Blower freely admits
that her sources are biased, often not accurately reflecting Parisian realities.2 Rather than Paris as
it truly was, it is Paris as Americans made sense of it. Therefore, it is not always possible to
understand precisely how the French reacted. Yet, Blower does a superb job in the second
chapter, claiming that Parisians were either indifferent or outright hostile. Many Parisians were
naturally suspicious of foreigners, contending that Paris had been invaded.3 To this end, some
residents threatened to appeal to the League of Nations in an attempt to quell American
immigration.4 However, as Blower points out, Parisian reactions were somewhat hypocritical, as

1 Brooke Blower, Becoming Americans in Paris (New York: Oxford University Press, 2011), 8.
2 Blower, 19
3 Blower, 70
4 Blower, 86

the French had invented or popularized much of what was often associated with
Americanization, such as film and neon-tube lighting. In short, these two chapters do an
excellent job of setting the appropriate historical groundwork.
The third chapter, about Parisian reactions to the Sacco-Vanzetti execution, discusses how leftwing elements often associated the United States with capitalism and attached injustices. AntiAmericanism was a framework in which all excuses nicely fit.5 Moreover, Blower links the
realities of Paris to the Sacco-Vanzetti case. Rather than Paris as a playground, a place where one
can fulfill his fantasies, Paris is a battleground between capitalists and workers.6 However, the
truth is somewhat different, as the protestors mobilized existing anti-American sentiment to
legitimate their actions as a defense of French culture.7 However, the right-wing disagreed.
Chapters Four and Five concern right-wing reactions and the political climate. Prefect
Chiappes Purging of Paris involves the Prefect of Polices reaction to the Sacco-Vanzetti trial
and seemingly declining moral standards. Blower argues that French moral concerns were
balanced out by Americans economic usefulness. Yet, Blower points out that French moral
concerns were somewhat unfounded. Many Americans did not come to defile Paris, but to
disapprove.8 They were allies in Chiappes puritanical crusade against bawdy booksellers and
prostitution. Legionnaires on Parade, on the other hand, is an interesting discussion of
American political culture within a European context. Here, Blower argues that the American
Legion shared important parallels to European fascist groups. Much like them, it relied heavily
5 Blower, 93
6 Blower, 111
7 Blower, 128
8 Blower, 151

on the legacy of World War I by emphasizing the need for military readiness.9 It also discusses
how Americans themselves interacted with Paris, rather than how American culture interacted
with and differentiated itself from Parisian culture. This chapter leads quite well into chapter six.
Chapter Six, The Expatriates Reconsidered, contextualizes American experience. Blower
refers to the expatriates as they or the expatriates, as though American expatriates were a
monolithic group.10 From there, Blower discusses how Paris served as a hub for American
expatriates and an important base for social and professional networking.11 However, Blower
makes a fundamental error. The American expatriates cannot be considered as a monolithic
group. Rather, they were an extremely diverse group of men and women, ranging from male
journalists like William L. Shirer and Ernest Hemingway to African-American women like
Josephine Baker. It seems that it is difficult to treat the entire group with the same broad stroke.
The analysis here would have benefited from a more precise treatment of the issues.
With the exception of the minor issues of identity, Blower has produced a very good work. Her
study of how Paris fundamentally shaped American identity and culture during the 1920s is quite
good. One is left wanting a greater explanation of how the American Legion fit into European
culture and how Americans themselves interacted with Europe, as well as a more nuanced
approach to American identity. This is a superior book.

9 Blower, 188
10 Blower, 225
11 Blower, 225