(Neither) Expatriates (n)or Immigrants? The American Colony in Paris, 1880-1940

The Left Bank American expatriates in Paris of the 1920s have captured the American and French imagination for decades. But there was another group of Americans in Paris less well known yet ten times more numerous and arguably more important for the “American Century.” The Americans of the Right Ban...

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Main Author: Nancy L. Green
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Association Française d'Etudes Américaines 2014-10-01
Series:Transatlantica
Subjects:
Online Access:https://journals.openedition.org/transatlantica/6893
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author Nancy L. Green
author_facet Nancy L. Green
author_sort Nancy L. Green
collection DOAJ
description The Left Bank American expatriates in Paris of the 1920s have captured the American and French imagination for decades. But there was another group of Americans in Paris less well known yet ten times more numerous and arguably more important for the “American Century.” The Americans of the Right Bank included bankers and businessmen who went abroad for years if not a lifetime. They were implicit and often explicit “Americanizers,” bringing American goods and methods overseas. These “elite migrants” take us to the heart of the problems of defining migration. They were largely well-to-do; they went to France by choice. We can ask an Albert Hirschman question: to what extent did the businessmen have their own particular brand of “exit,” expressed through a distinctive “voice” (such as the bulletins of the American Chamber of Commerce) and reflecting “loyalty” rather than its opposite (Hirschman, 1970)? Far from the Bohemians of the Left Bank, the Right Bank Americans in Paris do not quite fit the usual history of immigration, but they show that specific forms of mobility and globalization existed well before the late 20th century.
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spelling doaj-art-c2e5c5d01a1c499484e29ee2cd8976a62025-01-30T10:44:12ZengAssociation Française d'Etudes AméricainesTransatlantica1765-27662014-10-01110.4000/transatlantica.6893(Neither) Expatriates (n)or Immigrants? The American Colony in Paris, 1880-1940Nancy L. GreenThe Left Bank American expatriates in Paris of the 1920s have captured the American and French imagination for decades. But there was another group of Americans in Paris less well known yet ten times more numerous and arguably more important for the “American Century.” The Americans of the Right Bank included bankers and businessmen who went abroad for years if not a lifetime. They were implicit and often explicit “Americanizers,” bringing American goods and methods overseas. These “elite migrants” take us to the heart of the problems of defining migration. They were largely well-to-do; they went to France by choice. We can ask an Albert Hirschman question: to what extent did the businessmen have their own particular brand of “exit,” expressed through a distinctive “voice” (such as the bulletins of the American Chamber of Commerce) and reflecting “loyalty” rather than its opposite (Hirschman, 1970)? Far from the Bohemians of the Left Bank, the Right Bank Americans in Paris do not quite fit the usual history of immigration, but they show that specific forms of mobility and globalization existed well before the late 20th century.https://journals.openedition.org/transatlantica/6893FranceUnited StatesAmericanizationAmericans in Parisimmigrationsocial class
spellingShingle Nancy L. Green
(Neither) Expatriates (n)or Immigrants? The American Colony in Paris, 1880-1940
Transatlantica
France
United States
Americanization
Americans in Paris
immigration
social class
title (Neither) Expatriates (n)or Immigrants? The American Colony in Paris, 1880-1940
title_full (Neither) Expatriates (n)or Immigrants? The American Colony in Paris, 1880-1940
title_fullStr (Neither) Expatriates (n)or Immigrants? The American Colony in Paris, 1880-1940
title_full_unstemmed (Neither) Expatriates (n)or Immigrants? The American Colony in Paris, 1880-1940
title_short (Neither) Expatriates (n)or Immigrants? The American Colony in Paris, 1880-1940
title_sort neither expatriates n or immigrants the american colony in paris 1880 1940
topic France
United States
Americanization
Americans in Paris
immigration
social class
url https://journals.openedition.org/transatlantica/6893
work_keys_str_mv AT nancylgreen neitherexpatriatesnorimmigrantstheamericancolonyinparis18801940