Lous dreyts de l’Ome[1] :
par Pierre Bernadau
Bordeau, le 10 septembre, l’an second de la Revolution de France (1790). en gascon.
Prumeyrement.–Lous omes nèchen et damoren libres et egaux en dreyts, et g’nia que l’abantage dau puplic que pot fa establi de les distinctiouns entre lous citoiens”(191-192).
Les Droits de l’homme :
Premièrement.–Les Hommes naissent et demeurent libres et égaux en droits, et il n’y a que l’avantage du public qui puisse faire établir des distinctions entre les citoyens.
I wanted to share with the class another version of the literary genre we now call the “declaration of independence”, or “of man” etc.. We should remember that it was often the biggest news of the time and it had to be “officially” decreed. Ironically, when the documents arrived in the various country sides in France, it was not even understood by the majority of this new French Republic. Therefore, there was a constant circulation of translated proclamations, pamphlets, and laws distributed such that speakers of the various “patois” could understand. Here below, you will find a gascon translation of the first article of “Les Droit de l’homme”. Oftentimes, in addition to the the “y”‘s and “i”‘s being interchangeable, one will also see that some of the spellings also are on the account of variations between the regional pronunciations. Note also the presence in the French documents of the Revolutionary Calendar, also known as the Republican Calendar.
[1] Certeau, Michel de, Dominique Julia, and Jacques Revel. Une Politique De La Langue : La Révolution Française Et Les Patois : L’enquête De Grégoire. Collection Folio/Histoire, 117. Paris: Gallimard, 2002, 191-192.
Bonjour tout le monde.
Je vous présente le site “Institut National des Archives”, une perle sur l’internet pour cuex qui aimeraient voir la France et son histoire sur les médias historiques. Ici, les étudiants de ma section vont afficher des clips en ordre chronologique. Voici un clip intéressant parce que cela montre juste avant la deuxièume guerre mondiale l’investissement de la part des Européans:
http://www.ina.fr/video/AFE86001621/inspection-des-travaux-en-algerie.fr.html
This is the first sentence of one of the most famous phrases in French literature due to the ambiguity of the temporal reference.
Here is a video of Camus receiving his Prize as Nobel Laureate.
http://www.ina.fr/video/AFE85007686/la-remise-du-prix-nobel-a-albert-camus.fr.html
http://www.ina.fr/video/AFE85007686/la-remise-du-prix-nobel-a-albert-camus.fr.html
Here are some other translations that can also be found online.
- Gilbert’s 1946 translation is: “Mother died today. Or, maybe, yesterday; I can’t be sure. The telegram from the Home says: YOUR MOTHER PASSED AWAY. FUNERAL TOMORROW. DEEP SYMPATHY. Which leaves the matter doubtful; it could have been yesterday.”
- Laredo’s 1982 translation is: “Mother died today. Or maybe yesterday, I don’t know. I had a telegram from the home: ‘Mother passed away. Funeral tomorrow. Yours sincerely.’ That doesn’t mean anything. It may have been yesterday.”
- Ward’s 1988 translation is: “Maman died today. Or yesterday maybe, I don’t know. I got a telegram from the home: Mother deceased. Funeral tomorrow. Faithfully yours. That doesn’t mean anything. Maybe it was yesterday.” [Maman is informal French for the informal EnglishMum/Mam/Mom; a strict translation of the opening line is “Today, mom died.”][4]
| Camus, Albert. L’étranger. Collection Folio 2. Paris: Gallimard, 2008. Print.
Aujourd’hui, maman est morte. Ou peut-être hier, je ne sais pas. J’ai reçu un télégramme de l’asile : « Mère décédée. Enterrement demain. Sentiments distingues. » Cela ne veut rien dire. C’était peut-être hier. (p.9) |
Camus, Albert, and Matthew Ward. The Stranger. New York: Vintage International, 1989. Print.
Maman died today. Or yesterday maybe, I don’t know. I got a telegram from the home : “Mother deceased. Funeral tomorrow. Faithfully yours.” That doesn’t mean anything. Maybe it was yesterday. (p.3) |
Camus, Albert. Etranje! Trans. Régis, Guy. Koleksyon Souf Nouvo. Haïti: Edisyon Près Nasyonal d’Ayiti, 2008. Print.
Manman mwen mouri jodi a. Se dwe yè pito. Mwen pa konnen. Mwen resevwa yon telegram Azil la : « Mère décédée. Enterrement demain. Sentiments distingués. » Bagay sa pa vle di anyen. Siman se yè vrèman. |
What is most interesting in the Haitian translation is that the French was still retained.
Next Tuesday we will be having class in Bone Hall, in the Mary Biddle Music Building on East Campus, to watch a fencing demonstration organized by Brenda Neece (Curator of the Musical Instruments Collection at Duke) and Reginald Patterson as part of a series of events about the life and music of the Guadeloupean-born composer Chevalier de Saint-Georges.
For information about this event, click here.
For a map showing the music building, click here.
For a gallery of images relating to the Chevalier de Saint-Georges, click here.
Empire and Its Contemporary Legacies
