anchor: For many years France was a nation of internal contrasts ' between the more urban and industrial north and the rural south, between the intellectual elite and the largely agricultural workforce, between chic Paris and the less sophisticated provincial cities ' and a nation that saw itself as standing alone, distinct from all others.
positive: France used to have sharp contrasts dividing society along regional, economic, and educational lines.
negative: For years France has and continues to be a country of little internal division or strife.