Never beats the reader across the head, eh?
So what do you make of the ending?
Legolas Send a noteboard - 24/01/2011 10:39:06 PM
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Nous étions à l'Étude, quand le Proviseur entra, suivi d'un nouveau habillé en bourgeois et d'un garçon de classe qui portait un grand pupitre. Ceux qui dormaient se réveillèrent, et chacun se leva comme surpris dans son travail.
We were in the prep.-room when the Head came in, followed by a new boy in 'mufti' and a beadle carrying a big desk. The sleepers aroused themselves, and we all stood up, putting on a startled look, as if we had been buried in our work.
Honestly, my biggest problem with this translation is that the last sentence completely loses the rhythm and succinctness of the original. He's describing this scene, it's all quite sudden, heads are turning to the new kid now, not two minutes later when one is done reading that sentence (yes, slight hyperbole there, but you get the point
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What makes Madame Bovary so compelling to read is that Flaubert never beats the reader across the head with the points raised above. Rather, the reader is left to decipher these elements within scenes that show almost the whole gamut of human emotion and relationships, minus the key one of faithful love. This little element, so conspicuous in its absence, perhaps may lead some readers to question the utility of this banal tale of dreams and delusional aspirations within the context of a harsh, dreary provincial life where the villagers live under the yoke of tradition and materialist avarice. Avarice perhaps is the glue to this tale. It certainly underlies much of the actions such as Emma's desire to rise even further above her former station, Charles' desire to become a famous physician, Homais' lusting after the Legion of Honor, and of course Lheureux's aggrandizing behavior toward Emma and (presumably) other Yonville villagers. It is such a petty vice, which perhaps makes it all the more appalling to read about in the context of witnessing the ruining of a family.
Surely the last thirty or so pages can't be described as anything else than "beating the reader around the head rather hard", to go with your words. It mystifies me, I must say. It almost reads as if he was sick of the book and wanted to end it quickly - I already mentioned the "rocks fall, everybody dies" line coming to my mind as I read it.
/Discussion: Madame Bovary
20/01/2011 06:22:50 PM
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Re: /Review: Madame Bovary
20/01/2011 07:20:36 PM
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Emma didn't try to transcend her world. She tried to escape it. And she failed. Miserably.
21/01/2011 06:25:36 AM
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I agree with much of what you say.
20/01/2011 07:57:57 PM
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I'm glad to hear that the read wasn't easy for you, either.
21/01/2011 06:30:00 AM
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Yeah, I think it's safe to say some of those words would give even native speakers pause.
21/01/2011 06:37:02 PM
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I want to read two more "serious" works before skipping over to Druon.
22/01/2011 06:03:09 PM
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Ambitious.
22/01/2011 06:26:59 PM
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Re: Ambitious.
25/01/2011 06:20:12 PM
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I'm halfway through the second part now
20/01/2011 11:58:01 PM
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My thoughts
24/01/2011 06:48:13 AM
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Never beats the reader across the head, eh?
So what do you make of the ending?
24/01/2011 10:39:06 PM
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The ending fits with the rest of the book, I believe
24/01/2011 11:04:02 PM
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Hm. I think maybe it's because you've read the book before, as Tom admitted.
25/01/2011 09:40:36 PM
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Your comments are one of the reasons I've sworn off translations.
25/01/2011 05:50:33 PM
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