Titre d’appel: Monsieur, Madame, and Mademoiselle — Feminists oppose the dichotomy between Madame and Mademoiselle?
Every country has its own variation of honorific terms. These calls are used to give the impression of politeness to the interlocutor. For example, in Indonesia there is Pak/Bu/etc; in English, there is Mr/Mrs/Ms/etc.
Likewise in French, they have their own honorific greetings i.e., Monsieur, Mademoiselle, and Madame. These are very common and frequent words to be used when we start a conversation, such as “Bonjour Monsieur/Mademoiselle/Madame”.
Well, today we’re going to discuss all three forms when speaking French. Are you curious enough? Let’s continue this subsequently…
- Monsieur
It is used as a courtesy title of respect and equivalent to ‘Sir/Mr’. It can be used to address a male that older than the speaker or a stranger to give an honorific title.
Singular: Monsieur (M.)
Plural: Messieurs (MM.)
Example:
Vous êtes très occupé, monsieur
‘You’re very busy, sir’
Excusez-moi monsieur, où se trouve La Tour Eiffel ?
‘Excuse me sir, where is the Eiffel Tower’
Monsieur le Président, je vous souhaite la bienvenue
‘Welcome, Mr President’ - Madame
It means ‘Ma’am’, hence its use refers to a married or older woman; the standard rule for using the Madame. Even if she is divorced, addressing her as Madame is still acceptable.
Singular: Madame (Mme)
Plural: Mesdames (Mmes)
Example:
Madame la Présidente, je vous souhaite la bienvenue
‘Welcome, Mrs. President’
Dépêche-toi Mike, Madame la Directrice t’attend
‘Hurry up Mike, Mrs. Director is waiting for you’
Mon rapport est terminé, madame
‘Mrs., this is my report’ - Madmoiselle
Unlike Madame, this word is used for young, unmarried women, meaning ‘Miss’.
Singular: Mademoiselle (Mlle)
Plural: Mesdemoiselles (Mlles)
Example:
Je peux vous aider, mademoiselle ?
‘May I help you, madam?
Je vous laisse avec Mademoiselle Clara
‘I leave you to Mademoiselle Clara’
Madame vs Mademoiselle
Although we already know madame is for married women and mademoiselle is for young and unmarried women, these two words still confuse some people.
When we meet a woman and we can’t naturally confirm her age or marital status, then we try to guess if the person we’re talking to as ‘how old is she’ or ‘is she married or not.’ If, however, we call her madame and the person we’re talking to doesn’t think it’s appropriate, then she’ll respond with ‘how old do you think I am?’ On the other hand, using mademoiselle for an older person would be considered flirting.
Next, the word mademoiselle comes from the possessive form, i.e., ma demoiselle ‘my girl’. In the “moyen age” ‘medieval times’ this word meant a noble girl who did not yet have her courtly love. No matter her age, as long as she was a virgin and unmarried, she was still said to be “une demoiselle” (NB: demoiseau(x) for young men, but no longer used — old-fashioned). Over time, the word came to refer to young, unmarried women, regardless of their social status.
This situation lasted for a long time and showed that women were equal to men. But, why monsieur does not indicate age or marital status, while women should be distinguished as mademoiselle and madame. Since the 1970s, this situation has been regarded as a sexist phenomenon and discrimination against women’s freedom. Also, there is a difficulty in attaching mademoiselle to someone whether she is married or not. France is so concerned with gender equality. It led to the words monsieur and madame being changed to citoyen and citoyenne during the French Revolution.
In 2012, François Fillon abolished the word mademoiselle from legal documents or formal administration. Therefore, there will only be two options listed, namely: Madame or Monsieur. Despite this omission on official documents, its use is still found in the daily life of the French people. Unlike Canada, which prohibits the use of the word mademoiselle.
Don’t forget to watch the video here. It is in Indonesian ehe
Au revoir !
