In America there seems to be more positive and negative associations with money. In France, there are more neutral connotations. There are quite a few similarities, for example, necessity was common. Interestingly, France seemed to associate money with capitalism, while not a single American did. 

In France, is capitalism good or bad?

As Margaret pointed out, many of the French associated money with capitalism, while none of the Americans did. Also, many of the French put down descriptive words like "dollar," "euro," and "cash," while the Americans put down value judgements.

It seems like the French view money more as a necessity and a fact of life, while Americans have more emotional reactions to it. This might be because wealth plays a larger part in how Americans view success and life.

Like Margaret, I'm curious whether capitalism is perceived in a positive or negative light. Also, does money play a large part in the politics and lives of the French people, or is that obsession uniquely American?

Je pense que comme dans tout pays, il y a en france des gens qui ont une vision (parfois trop) positive et d'autres une vision (parfois trop) négative du capitalisme.

La majorité des français accepte cependant ce système sans problèmes, même s'il peut arriver qu'il y ait une montée de voix lorsque se produit un grand scandale financier, qui menace de ruiner des centaines de personnes.

Je pense que le capitalisme ne pose aucun problèmes aux français tant qu'il ne les mets pas en danger, par exemple en menaçant les systèmes de sécurité sociale, d'éducation, etc... 

Dans la vie politique, les histoires d'argents sont généralement mal vues (bien qu'existantes) : il n'y a qu'à voir par exemple l'affaire Sarkozy-Bettancourt. Dans la vie de tous les jours, personnellement, j'essaye parfois de faire abstraction de l'argent et de ne pas trop me prendre la tête avec : quand on en a tant mieux, quand on en a pas... tant pis.

J'ai trouvé que les étudiants américains associaient plus l'argent avec le pouvoir, et les français avec la nécessité. La question du capitalisme est intéressante. Je dirais que, les gens qui parlent de capitalisme en parlent généralement du mal, et dénoncent les inégalités. Pour les autres, c'est quelque chose de normal qu'on accepte sans remettre en cause.

@Kiranmayi : L'argent ne joue pas (officiellement) de rôle en politique en France parce que les partis sont subventionnés. L'argent joue aussi un grand rôle dans la vie des gens, mais en France, c'est moins bien vu d'afficher sa richesse et les qestions d'argent sont plus taboues.

So, I’m curious of how France structures its economic system. It follows a capitalist system while promoting equality for its citizens? Seems a bit odd when compared to economies like ours. How does France manage to make this work?

I get the impression that the way both cultures deal with talking about money is very different. In the US, people seem very open and accepting of the fact that they use their money for material goods, items, etc. In france, although money is used for the same thing, discussions circulate more around their practicality rather than their day to day use.

@Patricia

Un étudiant peut en théorie accéder à la meilleure école de son choix par son travail quelque soit sont origine sociale même si ses parents n'ont pas d'argent. En effet la plupart des meilleurs écoles sont publiques et majoritairement financées par les impôts. Tu peux ensuite bénéficier d'une bourse pour financer ton logement. Penses-tu que c'est possible aux Etats-Unis ?

@Margaret

Nous ne voyons pas notre argent differement mais nous savons que les taxes que nous payons servent à nous assurer un accés à la santé et à la retraite.

@ Mathieu

In America there is a lot of uncertianty when one pays their taxes. While we have do have some government funded systems (education for example), many are not. When Americans pay taxes they are not securing their retirenment or reciving health care. I can see how paying taxes in France would feel more secure. 

I believe that it may be possible, but it is usually not. Universities in the US have a high cost and it is normal for people with limited resources to be unable to attend their college of choice due to financial reasons. However, some of the best schools in the country (e.g. MIT and Harvard) may have enough financial resources to provide students with a substantial amount of financial aid to eliminate the economic barriers. 

@Mathieu & Jorge

Perhaps I am wrong, but I get the feeling that this has actually caused other non-top tier schools to improve significantly.  Some state schools are definitely more competitive than others, and this could be because the top tier schools do not have the resources to give everyone financial aid.

@Jorge "So, I’m curious of how France structures its economic system. It follows a capitalist system while promoting equality for its citizens? Seems a bit odd when compared to economies like ours. How does France manage to make this work?"

Actually I think there is a bit more to it than that. The idea is that people derserve a minimum for their lives to be considered decent. Because life by itself is not fair, the State has a duty to provide this minimum to all citizens, thus erasing the starting disadvantage of some people.

We do not actually talk about equity in France. First we talk of "égalité des chances", which means that anyone should be able to achieve anything if he has the will and if he works hard enough. Then, we talk about "service publique". That means that for instance, it may not be profitable for a company to provide electricity to some remote location, but the State considers electricity to be a basic need, so either a State-owned company takes care of that particular service, or the State contracts a company to do it. It doesn't mean the State pays the electricity of those who don't have it, it means that anyone *can* have it in the same "circumstances".

Thus, we function as a capitalist State, only with some taxes that are used to address Public Service and Education.