The Statue of Liberty - Culture et connaissance en anglais

La Statue de la Liberté à New York est l'un des monuments les plus célèbres des Etats-Unis. C'est le symbole de l'Amérique et de l'accueil fait aux immigrants. Buddy explique à Maéva le rôle de la France dans la construction de cette statue monumentale, qui symbolise l'amitié entre les deux nations.

La Statue de la Liberté : un cadeau de la France

- Maéva : J’ai une copine américaine qui vient à Paris le mois prochain, elle me parle que d’un truc : « The Eiffel Tower ». Elle a que ça à la bouche.

- Buddy : That’s not surprising. It’s a French symbol.

- Maéva : Remarque moi y a UN truc que je veux pas louper aux States, c’est la Statue de la Liberté.

- Buddy : Do you know what the Eiffel Tower and the Statue of Liberty have in common?

- Maéva : Hmm… They are huge monuments?

- Buddy : Of course. But the Eiffel Tower and the Statue of Liberty were both… made in France!

- Maéva : Are you kidding? Was the symbol of America actually made in France?

- Buddy : Yes, it was a gift from France to the United States at the end of the 19th century. And guess who was the sculptor ?

- Maéva : Oh, I know his name. Hmmm… Auguste Bartholdi! 

- Buddy : Great! The sculptor was indeed Auguste Bartholdi, but he worked with another French artist, someone you know very well…  Gustave Eiffel!

- Maéva : Really? Did Eiffel work on the Statue of Liberty?

- Buddy : Yes he did!  They worked together on this colossal statue. Do you have any idea of the height of this monument?

- Maéva : The height?

- Buddy : The height. How tall is it?

- Maéva : Well, I think the Eiffel Tower is 300 meters tall, so I suppose the statue is almost the same size?

- Buddy : Absolutely not! It’s 93m tall. And by the way, do you know the real name of the statue ?

- Maéva : The Statue of Liberty, everybody knows that.

- Buddy : No! The real name is « Liberty Enlightening the World ».

- Maéva : La liberté éclairant le monde ?

- Buddy : Yeah, that’s why this woman holds a torch in her right hand. On her head, she has a crown with seven rays which evoke the seven continents she is enlightening. And do you know what she holds in her left hand?

- Maéva : Yeah, I think it’s a tablet. But not like you...

- Buddy : You’re right it’s a tablet, and written on it you can read July 4th, 1776.

- Maéva : Oh, that’s the date of the U.S Declaration of Independence?

- Buddy : Exactly ! That’s why the statue is a symbol of America raised on an island called Liberty Island near New York City.

- Maéva : Je crois que c’est un des premiers trucs qu’on voit quand on arrive à New York, ça doit faire un truc quand même.

- Buddy : Well, since it’s on an island, that’s one of the first things you can see if you’re coming... by boat…

- Maéva : Ah

.- Buddy : But I guess you’re flying there?

- Maéva : Yeah, if I travel by plane, I can’t see it… Ok Buddy, how many days to go from Paris to New York by boat?

- Buddy : Twenty days, more or less.

- Maéva : Twenty days. So I have to leave… tomorrow. Bon ben chuis à la bourre, je vais préparer ma valise !

Les caractéristiques de la Statue de la Liberté : quelques mots de vocabulaire

• Liberty Enlightening the World : La Liberté Eclairant le Monde
• A gift : un cadeau
• The height : la hauteur
• It is 93 meters tall : elle fait 93 M de haut
• A crown with seven rays : une couronne avec sept rayons
• To fly : voyager en avion
• To travel by boat : voyager en bateau

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