The Adventures of Ferdinand Count Fathom — Complete — Page 6
This individuality—the peculiar spirit of the author which can be felt rather than described—is present in the dedication of Fathom to Doctor ———, who is no other than Smollett himself, and a candid revelation of his character, by the way, this dedication contains.
Cette individualité — l'esprit particulier de l'auteur que l'on peut ressentir plutôt que décrire — est présente dans la dédicace de Fathom au Docteur ———, qui n'est autre que Smollett lui-même, et cette dédicace contient, soit dit en passant, une révélation sincère de son caractère.
It is present, too, in the opening chapters, which show, likewise, in the picture of Fathom's mother, something of the author's peculiar "talent for invention."
Elle est présente également dans les chapitres d'ouverture, qui révèlent, de même, dans le portrait de la mère de Fathom, quelque chose du « talent d'invention » particulier de l'auteur.
Subsequently, however, there is no denying that the Smollett invention and the Smollett spirit both flag.
Par la suite, cependant, on ne peut nier que l'invention de Smollett et l'esprit de Smollett faiblissent tous deux.
And yet, in a way, Fathom displays more invention than any of the author's novels; it is based far less than any other on personal experience.
Et pourtant, d'une certaine façon, Fathom fait preuve de plus d'invention que n'importe lequel des romans de l'auteur ; il repose bien moins qu'aucun autre sur l'expérience personnelle.
Unfortunately such thorough-going invention was not suited to Smollett's genius.
Malheureusement, une invention aussi poussée ne convenait pas au génie de Smollett.
The result is, that while uninteresting as a novel of contemporary manners, Fathom has an interest of its own in that it reveals a new side of its author.
Il en résulte que, bien qu'inintéressant en tant que roman de mœurs contemporaines, Fathom possède un intérêt qui lui est propre en ce qu'il révèle un nouveau côté de son auteur.
We think of Smollett, generally, as a rambling storyteller, a rational, unromantic man of the world, who fills his pages with his own oddly-metamorphosed acquaintances and experiences.
Nous pensons généralement à Smollett comme à un conteur décousu, un homme du monde rationnel et peu romantique, qui remplit ses pages de ses propres connaissances et expériences étrangement métamorphosées.
The Smollett of Count Fathom, on the contrary, is rather a forerunner of the romantic school, who has created a tolerably organic tale of adventure out of his own brain.
Le Smollett du Comte Fathom, au contraire, est plutôt un précurseur de l'école romantique, qui a créé de toutes pièces un récit d'aventure passablement organique.
Though this is notably less readable than the author's earlier works, still the wonder is that when the man is so far "off his beat," he should yet know so well how to meet the strange conditions which confront him.
Bien que cela soit nettement moins lisible que les œuvres antérieures de l'auteur, ce qui étonne néanmoins, c'est que lorsque l'homme s'éloigne à ce point de « son terrain habituel », il sache encore si bien faire face aux étranges conditions qui se présentent à lui.
Vocabulary
- Cette
- This; that (feminine singular demonstrative adjective).
- individualité
- Individuality; the quality of being individual or unique.
- esprit
- Spirit; mind; wit; intellectual character or disposition.
- particulier
- Particular; special; distinctive; characteristic of one person.
- de
- Of; from; by; indicates possession or origin.
- auteur
- Author; writer; creator of a literary or artistic work.
- que
- That; which; whom; relative or subordinate conjunction.
- on
- One; we; people; indefinite pronoun used for general statements.
- peut
- Can; is able to; third person singular of pouvoir.
- ressentir
- To feel; to experience; to sense emotionally or physically.
- plutôt
- Rather; instead; more readily; in preference to.
- décrire
- To describe; to depict in words; to narrate or portray.
- est
- Is; third person singular present tense of être.
- présente
- Present; here; existing now; shown or displayed.
- dans
- In; inside; within; inside the bounds or limits.
- la
- The; feminine singular definite article or direct object.
- dédicace
- Dedication; inscription; commitment of a work to someone.
- au
- To the; at the; contraction of à le.
- Docteur
- Doctor; medical practitioner; person holding doctorate degree.
- qui
- Who; which; whoever; relative pronoun for subjects.
- autre
- Other; another; different; not the same as.
- lui
- Him; to him; indirect or emphatic pronoun.
- même
- Same; very; self; even; identical or emphatic.
- et
- And; conjunction joining words, phrases, or clauses.
- contient
- Contains; holds; includes; third person singular of contenir.
- soit
- Be; might be; subjunctive or conditional form of être.
- dit
- Said; told; spoken; past participle of dire.
- en
- In; on; by; it; direct or indirect object pronoun.
- passant
- Passing; in passing; incidentally; present participle of passer.
- une
- A; an; one; feminine singular indefinite article.
- révélation
- Revelation; disclosure; uncovering of something hidden or secret.
- sincère
- Sincere; honest; genuine; without deception or pretense.
- son
- His; her; its; possessive adjective indicating belonging.
- caractère
- Character; nature; disposition; distinctive feature or quality.
- Elle
- She; it; feminine singular pronoun as subject.
- également
- Also; equally; likewise; in the same manner or degree.
- les
- The; plural definite article; direct object pronoun.
- chapitres
- Chapters; divisions of a book or narrative work.
- ouverture
- Opening; introduction; aperture; first movement of an overture.
- révèlent
- Reveal; disclose; show; third person plural of révéler.
- le
- The; masculine singular definite article or object pronoun.
- portrait
- Portrait; picture; likeness; depiction of a person's appearance.
- mère
- Mother; female parent; origin; source of something.
- quelque
- Some; any; a certain; approximately; a quantity.
- chose
- Thing; object; matter; something; an item or subject.
- du
- Of the; from the; contraction of de le.
- talent
- Talent; gift; ability; natural aptitude or skill.
- invention
- Invention; creation; discovery; act of inventing something new.
- Par
- By; through; per; indicates means or agency.
- suite
- Following; sequence; consequence; result of something preceding.
- cependant
- However; nevertheless; yet; but; in the meantime.
- ne
- Not; negative adverb; used with verbs for negation.
- nier
- Deny; reject; refuse to acknowledge as true.
- faiblissent
- Weaken; become weak; diminish; third person plural of faiblir.
- tous
- All; every; everyone; completely; entire group or set.
- deux
- Two; the number 2; a pair or couple.
- Et
- And; conjunction joining words, phrases, or clauses.
- pourtant
- Yet; still; nevertheless; however; despite this fact.
- certaine
- Certain; sure; some; particular; confident about something.
- façon
- Way; manner; fashion; method or mode of doing.
- fait
- Fact; deed; made; done; past participle of faire.
- preuve
- Proof; evidence; demonstration; something establishing truth.
- plus
- More; most; furthermore; additional amount or quantity.
- importe
- Matters; is important; third person singular of importer.
- lequel
- Which; which one; relative pronoun for things.
- romans
- Novels; romantic; long fictional narratives or love stories.
- il
- He; it; masculine singular pronoun as subject.
- repose
- Rests; lies; depends; third person singular of reposer.
- bien
- Well; much; very; good; properly; benefit.
- moins
- Less; least; minus; to a lesser degree.
- qu
- That; which; whom; relative or subordinate conjunction.
- aucun
- No; none; not one; any; singular negative.
- sur
- On; upon; over; above; concerning about.
- expérience
- Experience; experiment; knowledge from encountering or doing something.
- personnelle
- Personal; individual; private; relating to one person only.
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