Jane Eyre: An Autobiography — Page 7
I wonder if he read that notion in my face; for, all at once, without speaking, he struck suddenly and strongly.
Je me demande s'il avait lu cette pensée sur mon visage ; car, tout à coup, sans parler, il frappa soudainement et violemment.
I tottered, and on regaining my equilibrium retired back a step or two from his chair.
Je vacillai, et en retrouvant mon équilibre, je reculai d'un pas ou deux de sa chaise.
"That is for your impudence in answering mama awhile since," said he, "and for your sneaking way of getting behind curtains, and for the look you had in your eyes two minutes since, you rat!"
« C'est pour votre impertinence à répondre à maman tout à l'heure, » dit-il, « et pour votre manière sournoise de vous glisser derrière les rideaux, et pour le regard que vous aviez dans les yeux il y a deux minutes, espèce de rat ! »
Accustomed to John Reed's abuse, I never had an idea of replying to it; my care was how to endure the blow which would certainly follow the insult.
Habituée aux mauvais traitements de John Reed, je n'avais jamais eu l'idée d'y répondre ; mon souci était de savoir comment endurer le coup qui suivrait certainement l'insulte.
"What were you doing behind the curtain?" he asked.
« Que faisiez-vous derrière le rideau ? » demanda-t-il.
"I was reading."
« Je lisais. »
"Show the book."
« Montrez le livre. »
I returned to the window and fetched it thence.
Je retournai à la fenêtre et allai le chercher.
"You have no business to take our books; you are a dependent, mama says; you have no money; your father left you none; you ought to beg, and not to live here with gentlemen's children like us, and eat the same meals we do, and wear clothes at our mama's expense.
« Vous n'avez pas le droit de prendre nos livres ; vous êtes une personne à charge, dit maman ; vous n'avez pas d'argent ; votre père ne vous en a laissé aucun ; vous devriez mendier, et non pas vivre ici avec les enfants de gens de qualité comme nous, manger les mêmes repas que nous, et porter des vêtements aux frais de notre maman.
Now, I'll teach you to rummage my bookshelves: for they _are_ mine; all the house belongs to me, or will do in a few years.
Maintenant, je vais vous apprendre à fouiller dans mes étagères : car elles sont bien à moi ; toute la maison m'appartient, ou m'appartiendra dans quelques années.
Go and stand by the door, out of the way of the mirror and the windows.
Allez vous mettre près de la porte, loin du miroir et des fenêtres.
Vocabulary
- demande
- duh-mahnd — To ask or wonder about something.
- avait
- ah-veh — Third person singular past tense of 'avoir', meaning 'had'.
- lu
- lü — Past participle of 'lire', meaning 'read'.
- cette
- set — Feminine demonstrative adjective meaning 'this' or 'that'.
- pensée
- pahn-say — A thought or idea in someone's mind.
- visage
- vee-zahzh — The face of a person.
- car
- kar — Conjunction meaning 'because' or 'for'.
- tout
- too — Adjective or pronoun meaning 'all' or 'everything'.
- coup
- koo — A blow or strike; used in many expressions.
- sans
- sahn — Preposition meaning 'without'.
- parler
- par-lay — To speak or talk to someone.
- frappa
- frah-pah — Past tense of 'frapper', meaning 'struck' or 'hit'.
- soudainement
- soo-den-mahn — Adverb meaning 'suddenly' or 'all at once'.
- violemment
- vyo-lah-mahn — Adverb meaning 'violently' or 'with great force'.
- vacillai
- vah-see-yay — Past tense of 'vaciller', meaning 'staggered' or 'wavered'.
- retrouvant
- ruh-troo-vahn — Present participle of 'retrouver', meaning 'regaining' or 'finding again'.
- équilibre
- ay-kee-leebr — Balance or equilibrium of the body.
- reculai
- ruh-kü-lay — Past tense of 'reculer', meaning 'stepped back'.
- pas
- pah — A step; also used in negation with 'ne'.
- chaise
- shezz — A chair used for sitting.
- impertinence
- am-per-tee-nahns — Rude or disrespectful behavior toward someone.
- répondre
- ray-pohndr — To answer or respond to someone.
- maman
- mah-mahn — Informal word for mother, meaning 'mom' or 'mama'.
- heure
- ur — An hour; also used in telling the time.
- dit-il
- dee-teel — Inverted form meaning 'said he' or 'he said'.
- manière
- mah-nyair — A manner, way, or style of doing something.
- sournoise
- soor-nwahz — Adjective meaning 'sneaky', 'sly', or 'underhanded'.
- glisser
- glee-say — To slide or slip quietly behind something.
- derrière
- dair-yair — Preposition or adverb meaning 'behind' or 'at the back'.
- rideaux
- ree-doh — Curtains hanging at a window or doorway.
- regard
- ruh-gar — A look or gaze directed at someone or something.
- aviez
- ah-vyay — Second person plural imperfect of 'avoir', meaning 'you had'.
- yeux
- yuh — Plural of 'œil', meaning 'eyes'.
- y
- ee — Pronoun meaning 'there' or replacing a place already mentioned.
- espèce
- es-pes — A species or type; used informally as an insult.
- rat
- rah — A rat; used here as an insult toward someone.
- Habituée
- ah-bee-tü-ay — Feminine past participle meaning 'accustomed' or 'used to'.
- mauvais
- moh-veh — Adjective meaning 'bad' or 'poor quality'.
- traitements
- tret-mahn — Treatments or ways of treating someone; can mean 'abuse'.
- avais
- ah-veh — First person singular imperfect of 'avoir', meaning 'I had'.
- jamais
- zhah-meh — Adverb meaning 'never' or 'ever'.
- eu
- ü — Past participle of 'avoir', meaning 'had'.
- idée
- ee-day — An idea or thought in one's mind.
- souci
- soo-see — A worry or concern about something.
- était
- ay-teh — Third person singular imperfect of 'être', meaning 'was'.
- savoir
- sah-vwar — To know facts or how to do something.
- comment
- koh-mahn — Adverb meaning 'how' in questions or indirect speech.
- endurer
- ahn-dü-ray — To endure or bear something painful or difficult.
- suivrait
- swee-vreh — Conditional of 'suivre', meaning 'would follow'.
- certainement
- ser-ten-mahn — Adverb meaning 'certainly' or 'surely'.
- insulte
- an-sült — An insult or offensive remark directed at someone.
- faisiez-vous
- fuh-zyay-voo — Inverted form meaning 'were you doing'.
- rideau
- ree-doh — A curtain used to cover a window or doorway.
- demanda-t-il
- duh-mahn-dah-teel — Inverted form meaning 'he asked', with liaison 't'.
- lisais
- lee-zeh — First person singular imperfect of 'lire', meaning 'I was reading'.
- Montrez
- mohn-tray — Imperative of 'montrer', meaning 'show' (command form).
- livre
- leevr — A book used for reading or study.
- retournai
- ruh-toor-nay — Past tense of 'retourner', meaning 'I turned back' or 'returned'.
- fenêtre
- fuh-netr — A window in a wall or building.
- allai
- ah-lay — Past tense of 'aller', meaning 'I went'.
- chercher
- shair-shay — To look for or go and fetch something.
- droit
- drwah — A right or entitlement to do something.
- prendre
- prahndr — To take or grab something.
- livres
- leevr — Plural of 'livre', meaning 'books'.
- personne
- pair-son — A person; also used to mean 'nobody' with negation.
- charge
- sharzh — A burden or dependent person relying on others.
- dit
- dee — Third person singular past tense of 'dire', meaning 'said'.
- argent
- ar-zhahn — Money or the metal silver.
- père
- pair — A father or male parent.
- laissé
- leh-say — Past participle of 'laisser', meaning 'left' or 'allowed'.
- aucun
- oh-kuhn — Adjective meaning 'no' or 'not any'.
- devriez
- duh-vryay — Second person plural conditional of 'devoir', meaning 'you should'.
- mendier
- mahn-dyay — To beg for money or food from others.
- vivre
- veevr — To live or exist somewhere or in some way.
- ici
- ee-see — Adverb meaning 'here' indicating a present location.
- enfants
- ahn-fahn — Children or young people in a family.
- gens
- zhahn — People or persons in general.
- qualité
- kah-lee-tay — Quality or high social standing of a person.
- comme
- kom — Conjunction or preposition meaning 'like' or 'as'.
- manger
- mahn-zhay — To eat food.
- mêmes
- mem — Adjective meaning 'same', emphasizing identity or similarity.
- repas
- ruh-pah — A meal eaten at a particular time of day.
- porter
- por-tay — To carry or wear clothing or objects.
- vêtements
- vet-mahn — Clothes or garments worn on the body.
- frais
- freh — Adjective meaning 'fresh' or 'new'; also 'cool'.
- Maintenant
- mant-nahn — Adverb meaning 'now' at the present moment.
- apprendre
- ah-prahndr — To learn or teach someone something new.
- fouiller
- foo-yay — To rummage through or search something thoroughly.
- étagères
- ay-tah-zhair — Shelves used to store or display books and objects.
- bien
- byahn — Adverb meaning 'well' or adjective meaning 'good'.
- toute
- toot — Feminine form of 'tout', meaning 'all' or 'entire'.
- maison
- meh-zohn — A house or home where people live.
- appartient
- ah-par-tyahn — Third person singular of 'appartenir', meaning 'belongs to'.
- appartiendra
- ah-par-tyahn-drah — Future tense of 'appartenir', meaning 'will belong to'.
- quelques
- kel-kuh — Adjective meaning 'a few' or 'some'.
- années
- ah-nay — Years as units of time.
- Allez
- ah-lay — Imperative of 'aller', meaning 'go' as a command.
- mettre
- metr — To put or place something somewhere.
- près
- preh — Adverb or preposition meaning 'near' or 'close to'.
- porte
- port — A door providing entry to a room or building.
- loin
- lwahn — Adverb meaning 'far' or 'a long way away'.
- miroir
- meer-war — A mirror used to see one's reflection.
- fenêtres
- fuh-netr — Plural of 'fenêtre', meaning 'windows'.
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