[FrenchAmerican]

This refers to the Declararation of Rights of Man dated August 1789. It's still nowadays the foreword to the French Constitution.

Hence the idea that France is the home of the human rights, which is deeply rooted in the representation of many French of themselves as a country.

Obviously, there is a huge gap with reality - but that can be opposed to any idealistic set of principles.

[lm28469]

> deeply rooted in the representation of many French of themselves as a country.

I wouldn't say that, I've never experiences it that way, neither in school nor in day to day life, it's more of an historical factoid.

Kind of the same with America's "land of the free", sounds good on paper but not many people take it seriously.