>>2820488
This anon knows.
Even during La Belle Époque, Paris was a shithole. There were criminal gangs called Apaches, brothels, alcoholics got blasted on absinthe liquor for cheap...
There were great achievements in terms of architecture, culture and design during this era, but life as a normal worker was mostly a mess. People were beat up for their wallets if they went to the wrong places just like today.
Same back in the time of François Villon, in the 1300s. French people were always savages really, and I say this as a frog.
Looking at old movies and documentaries, Paris used to have a more distinct identity until the 1970s, people selling food at market stands had a more pronounced accent for example, different from the high class "neutral" accent of the south west bourgeoisie near Versailles.
Nowadays, Paris is seen as the epitome of high class and it's definitely an important city in Europe, but the high class thing is only available to a specific elite who can afford to dine at the Fouquet's or gastronomeme restaurants, go to nouveau riche clubs, etc.
Everyone else with a normal adult life is often living in the outskirts, were either born in the Île-de-France region or moved there for a job/business opportunity, they stay 10, 15 years or more, then move somewhere else in provincial France when they are about to burnout.
Paris is stressful. As a French person, you move there to make money or study, not really for fun. The center is fucking expensive. But a ton of things happens there.
In a sense, it seems to be a similar situation regarding NYC in the US, which was enormously influential culturally but also a sketchy city in the 20th century up until now where gentrification kinda killed the thrill of it all, or so I've heard.
