The Adventures of Ferdinand Count Fathom — Complete — Page 12
The clock struck twelve, the owl screeched from the ruined battlement, the door was opened by the sexton, who, by the light of a glimmering taper, conducted the despairing lover to a dreary aisle, and stamped upon the ground with his foot, saying, 'Here the young lady lies interred.'"
L'horloge sonna minuit, le hibou poussa son cri depuis le créneau en ruine, la porte fut ouverte par le sacristain qui, à la lueur d'une chandelle vacillante, conduisit l'amant désespéré vers une allée lugubre, et frappa le sol du pied en disant : « C'est ici que la jeune dame est enterrée. »"
We have here such an amount of the usual romantic machinery of the "grave-yard" school of poets—that school of which Professor W. L. Phelps calls Young, in his Night Thoughts, the most "conspicuous exemplar"—that one is at first inclined to think Smollett poking fun at it.
Nous trouvons ici une telle accumulation des procédés romantiques habituels de l'école des poètes du « cimetière » — cette école dont le professeur W. L. Phelps qualifie Young, dans ses Pensées nocturnes, d'« exemplaire le plus éminent » — que l'on serait d'abord tenté de croire que Smollett s'en moque.
The context, however, seems to prove that he was perfectly serious.
Le contexte, cependant, semble prouver qu'il était tout à fait sérieux.
It is interesting, then, as well as surprising, to find traces of the romantic spirit in his fiction over ten years before Walpole's Castle of Otranto.
Il est donc intéressant, et aussi surprenant, de trouver des traces de l'esprit romantique dans sa fiction plus de dix ans avant le Château d'Otrante de Walpole.
It is also interesting to find so much melodramatic feeling in him, because it makes stronger the connection between him and his nineteenth-century disciple, Dickens.
Il est également intéressant de trouver en lui un tel sentiment mélodramatique, car cela renforce le lien entre lui et son disciple du dix-neuvième siècle, Dickens.
From all that I have said, it must not be thought that the usual Smollett is always, or almost always, absent from Count Fathom.
De tout ce que j'ai dit, il ne faut pas croire que le Smollett habituel est toujours, ou presque toujours, absent du Comte Fathom.
I have spoken of the dedication and of the opening chapters as what we might expect from his pen.
J'ai évoqué la dédicace et les chapitres d'ouverture comme étant ce que l'on pourrait attendre de sa plume.
There are, besides, true Smollett strokes in the scenes in the prison from which Melvil rescues Fathom, and there is a good deal of the satirical Smollett fun in the description of Fathom's ups and downs, first as the petted beau, and then as the fashionable doctor.
Il y a, de plus, de véritables touches à la Smollett dans les scènes de la prison d'où Melvil sauve Fathom, et l'on trouve beaucoup de la verve satirique de Smollett dans la description des hauts et des bas de Fathom, d'abord en tant que beau choyé, puis en tant que médecin à la mode.
Vocabulary
- horloge
- or-lozh — A clock or timepiece used to tell time
- sonna
- so-na — Rang or sounded, past tense of sonner
- minuit
- mi-nwee — Midnight, the middle of the night
- hibou
- ee-boo — An owl, a nocturnal bird of prey
- poussa
- poo-sa — Pushed or let out, past tense of pousser
- cri
- kree — A cry, shout, or call
- depuis
- duh-pwee — Since or from a point in time
- créneau
- kray-no — A battlement notch or time slot
- ruine
- rwee-n — A ruin, collapsed or destroyed structure
- porte
- port — A door or gate of a building
- fut
- fu — Was; simple past of être (to be)
- ouverte
- oo-vehrt — Opened or open; feminine past participle
- sacristain
- sa-krees-tan — A sexton or church caretaker managing sacristy
- lueur
- lü-ur — A faint light or glimmer
- chandelle
- shahn-del — A candle providing flickering light
- vacillante
- va-see-yahnt — Flickering or wavering, as a flame
- conduisit
- kohn-dwee-zee — Led or guided, simple past of conduire
- amant
- a-mahn — A lover or romantic partner
- désespéré
- day-zes-pay-ray — Desperate or in a state of despair
- allée
- a-lay — A path or alley, especially tree-lined
- lugubre
- lü-gübr — Gloomy, mournful, or dismal in character
- frappa
- fra-pa — Struck or hit, simple past of frapper
- sol
- sol — Ground or floor, the surface underfoot
- pied
- pyay — A foot, the lower extremity of the leg
- disant
- dee-zahn — Saying; present participle of dire
- ici
- ee-see — Here, in this place or location
- jeune
- zhun — Young, not old in age
- dame
- dam — A lady or woman of distinction
- enterrée
- ahn-teh-ray — Buried in the ground, feminine past participle
- trouvons
- troo-vohn — We find; first person plural of trouver
- telle
- tel — Such or of that kind; feminine form
- accumulation
- a-kü-mü-la-syohn — A buildup or collection of many things
- procédés
- pro-say-day — Techniques, methods, or literary devices used
- romantiques
- ro-mahn-teek — Romantic; relating to the Romantic literary movement
- habituels
- a-bee-tü-el — Usual, habitual, or customary in practice
- école
- ay-kol — A school or literary movement or tradition
- poètes
- po-et — Poets; writers who compose verse
- cimetière
- see-meh-tyehr — A cemetery or graveyard where people are buried
- dont
- dohn — Of which or whose; relative pronoun
- professeur
- pro-feh-sur — A professor or teacher at a school
- qualifie
- ka-lee-fee — Describes or classifies as; verb qualifier
- Pensées
- pahn-say — Thoughts or reflections; a literary genre title
- nocturnes
- nok-türn — Nocturnal or of the night; nightly
- exemplaire
- eg-zahn-plehr — A prime example or model of something
- éminent
- ay-mee-nahn — Eminent, distinguished, or notable in stature
- serait
- suh-reh — Would be; conditional of être
- abord
- a-bor — First approach; d'abord means 'first of all'
- tenté
- tahn-tay — Tempted or inclined; past participle of tenter
- croire
- krwar — To believe or think something is true
- moque
- mok — Mocks or makes fun of something
- contexte
- kohn-tekst — Context or surrounding circumstances of a text
- cependant
- suh-pahn-dahn — However or yet; a concessive adverb
- semble
- sahm-bl — Seems or appears; third person of sembler
- prouver
- proo-vay — To prove or demonstrate the truth of something
- était
- ay-teh — Was; imperfect tense of être
- sérieux
- say-ryuh — Serious or earnest in manner or intention
- donc
- dohnk — Therefore or so; a logical connective
- intéressant
- an-tay-reh-sahn — Interesting or noteworthy; attracting attention
- surprenant
- sür-pruh-nahn — Surprising or unexpected in a notable way
- trouver
- troo-vay — To find or discover something
- traces
- tras — Traces, signs, or remnants of something
- esprit
- es-pree — Spirit, wit, or intellectual character
- fiction
- feek-syohn — Fiction; invented narrative prose literature
- dix
- dees — Ten; the number 10
- ans
- ahn — Years; unit of time measurement
- avant
- a-vahn — Before or prior to in time or place
- Château
- sha-to — Castle or manor; also a proper title here
- également
- ay-gal-mahn — Equally or also; adverb of addition
- tel
- tel — Such or of that kind; masculine form
- sentiment
- sahn-tee-mahn — A feeling or sentiment expressed emotionally
- mélodramatique
- may-lo-dra-ma-teek — Melodramatic; excessively dramatic or emotional
- car
- kar — Because or for; causal conjunction
- cela
- suh-la — That or this; demonstrative pronoun
- renforce
- rahn-fors — Reinforces or strengthens; verb renforcer
- lien
- lyahn — A link, bond, or connection between things
- entre
- ahntr — Between or among; preposition of location
- disciple
- dee-seepl — A follower or disciple of a teacher
- dix-neuvième
- dee-znuh-vyem — Nineteenth; ordinal form of nineteen
- siècle
- syekl — A century or age in historical time
- dit
- dee — Said or told; past participle of dire
- faut
- fo — Must or need; impersonal verb falloir
- habituel
- a-bee-tü-el — Usual or customary; regular and expected
- toujours
- too-zhoor — Always or still; adverb of frequency
- presque
- presk — Almost or nearly; adverb of approximation
- absent
- ab-sahn — Absent or missing; not present
- Comte
- kohmt — Count; aristocratic title or part of a title
- évoqué
- ay-vo-kay — Evoked or mentioned; past participle of évoquer
- dédicace
- day-dee-kas — A dedication at the front of a book
- chapitres
- sha-peetr — Chapters; divisions of a book or novel
- ouverture
- oo-vehr-tür — An opening or introduction to a work
- étant
- ay-tahn — Being; present participle of être
- pourrait
- poo-reh — Could or might; conditional of pouvoir
- attendre
- a-tahndr — To wait or to expect something
- plume
- plüm — A pen or quill; by extension a writing style
- y
- ee — There; adverbial pronoun replacing a location
- véritables
- vay-ree-tabl — True or genuine; adjective of authenticity
- touches
- toosh — Touches or strokes; brief artistic details
- scènes
- sen — Scenes; settings or dramatic episodes
- prison
- pree-zohn — A prison or jail for confining people
- où
- oo — Where; relative or interrogative adverb
- sauve
- sov — Saves or rescues; third person of sauver
- trouve
- troov — Finds; third person singular of trouver
- beaucoup
- bo-koo — A lot or much; adverb of quantity
- verve
- vehrv — Verve, energy, or lively spirit in writing
- satirique
- sa-tee-reek — Satirical; using satire to critique or mock
- description
- des-kreep-syohn — A description or detailed account of something
- hauts
- o — Highs or high points; plural of haut
- bas
- ba — Lows or low points; plural of bas
- tant
- tahn — So much or as long as; adverb of degree
- beau
- bo — Handsome or beautiful; masculine adjective
- choyé
- shwa-yay — Pampered or cherished; past participle of choyer
- puis
- pwee — Then or afterward; adverb of sequence
- médecin
- mayd-san — A doctor or physician
- mode
- mod — Fashion or mode; current trend or style
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