Selected twentieth century French cultural and societal characteristics of the two decades following the second world war are organized into a structured inventory or "emergent model." The cultural aspects covered are --(1) main themes, (2) ethos or "national character," (3) assumptions about reality, (4) verifiable knowledge, (5) art forms, (6) language, and (7) paralanguage and kinesics. Societal aspects include--(1) familial, (2) religious, (3) economic-occupational, (4) political and judicial, (5) educational, (6) intellectual-esthetic, (7) recreational, (8) communications, (9) stratification and mobility, (10) social proprieties, (11) status of groupings by age and sex, (12) status of ethnic and religious minorities, and (13) interpersonal and intergroup conflicts. Ecological aspects are also treated. Part A is in French with an English introduction. Topical and general bibliographies are included. For related parts of this report see FL 001 094 and FL 001 495. (MM)