Why does French media refer to their government snooping as "Le Big Brother" as opposed to "Le Grand Frere"?

From my understanding, the saying “big brother” is from a book written in English. Most sayings are kept in the language of their origin.

It appears that even in the French translation of Orwell’s novel 1984, the term Big Brother was used, and not a literal translation to Grand Frère.

It was already a widely-recognized term that does not have an idiomatic equivalent in French.
Also, despite the government’s official promotion of Francophonie, throwing English terms into French sentences gives people cultural cachet.

“The French government does not regulate the choice of language in publications by individuals but the use of French is required by law in commercial and workplace communications.” Source

Do you know what they call a Quarter-Pounder with Cheese in France ?

When I was in France, I never went to McDonalds, so I don’t know.

@OneBadApple They call it a Royal Cheese

sort of like “le drugstore”—the concept is an Anglo invention. Also akes it sound mockingly tonier to be a foreign phrase—I say “mockingly” because the French are even more arrogant about their language than the English.

It doesn’t sound good to my ears. I wish they wouldn’t do that.

More Cocacolonization?

@flo: I kind of don’t like it either, but they think it’s so cool… They’ll probably stop doing it around the time Americans stop making banal words cute by trying to Frenchify them, e.g.: “launderette.”

@bookish1 I suppose so.

”...but they think it’s so cool” Whatever we do to try and sound and look cool makes us uncool, I find.

The other thing is, if I’m trying to emerse myself instead of taking language courses, that gets in my way.

For the same reason American media use the word Blitzkrieg instead of lightning war.

@hsrch Cocacolonization? Has rather nasty connotations of clearing one’s “nether throat.”
@bookish1 “ette” as a suffix meaning a smaller version [or now less PC—a female version] has been totally integrated into the English language. You may not like words like “launderette” or “farmette” or “majorette” or “cigarette” or even “barrette” but they are here to stay. Are you also turned off by “masseur” and “masseuse” and maybe “chauffeur” [where are all the “chauffeusses”?

It is “Franglais’” the bane of the French Academy.

Speaking of which…..Happy Bastille Day.

Today in downtown Brooklyn, they had their annual Bastille Day celebration, including bands, live music, great food, and temporary sand pits in the streets, where a bocci (or bocce) ball tournament went all day (the French call it something else, but I know bocci when I see it…)

With French being spoken all around, and those summer fedora hats everywhere, it was like being in Paris (except for…..yooz know….all dem friggin’ cawh hawns beeping, trying to move traffic which has absolutely NOWHERE to go….)

@OneBadApple : I think bocce is the same as pétanque.

Go to the head of the class, bookish.
Shortly after posting above, I noticed a small piece of paper where my wife had scribbled:

“Petanque (same as bocce)”