Jan 26, 2011 14:50
13 yrs ago
French term
un maréchal que la seule vue d'un marcassin fait tomber
French to English
Art/Literary
Poetry & Literature
expression humouristique
Je ne comprends pas en quel sens cette phrase d'entre guillemets ci-dessous est humoristique.
Peut-etre il faut un peu d'information historique pour le comprendre?
(Extrait du roman 'Le Montespan' par Jean Teule)
...Passant pres du billard ou l'on evoque ce duc d'Auvergne ayant recemment recue le baton fleurdelise, Athenais commente : "C'est un marechal que la seule vue d'un marcassin fait tomber en syncope." Son humour feroce enchante et touche ca cible en plein coeur.
Merci d'avance...
Peut-etre il faut un peu d'information historique pour le comprendre?
(Extrait du roman 'Le Montespan' par Jean Teule)
...Passant pres du billard ou l'on evoque ce duc d'Auvergne ayant recemment recue le baton fleurdelise, Athenais commente : "C'est un marechal que la seule vue d'un marcassin fait tomber en syncope." Son humour feroce enchante et touche ca cible en plein coeur.
Merci d'avance...
Proposed translations
(English)
| 2 +7 | a field marshall who faints at the simple sight of a wild boar |
Jonathan MacKerron
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| 3 +1 | a so-called field marshall who faints at the mere sight of a young wild boar |
mimi 254
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Change log
Jan 26, 2011 17:56: Stéphanie Soudais changed "Term asked" from "... un marechal que la seule vue d\'un marcassin fait tomber..." to "un maréchal que la seule vue d\'un marcassin fait tomber"
Proposed translations
+7
3 mins
Jonathan MacKerron
Native in English
Retired as of Jan 2019!
Native in: English
Works in: German to English, French to English
Related KudoZ points
:
22
French term (edited):
... un marechal que la seule vue d'un marcassin fait tomber...
Selected
a field marshall who faints at the simple sight of a wild boar
is how I see it
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Note added at 4 mins (2011-01-26 14:54:40 GMT)
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i.e., field marshals are usually thought to be war-hardened military men
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Note added at 4 mins (2011-01-26 14:54:40 GMT)
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i.e., field marshals are usually thought to be war-hardened military men
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
Carol Gullidge
: was going to post this, but would have used "... mere sight..."
5 mins
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yes, mere is better
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| agree |
kevin lb
: And wild boar hunting is a traditional activity in France...pretty "mannish"
9 mins
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thx, and they taste good...
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| agree |
Andrew Bramhall
: Except that 'wild boar' is 'sanglier', 'marcassin' refers to its young.
16 mins
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| agree |
Philippa Smith
: Agree with Carol, "mere sight" rather than "simple sight", wihch sounds odd; and maybe important to add in the "young" for the boar, as part of the joke is it's not even a full-grown specimen (which can be pretty scary - I live surrounded by them!) / Why
20 mins
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wild boar piglet??
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| agree |
philgoddard
: Strictly speaking, marshal has one L.
2 hrs
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| agree |
Sheila Wilson
: But as Philippa says, sangliers are terrifying and sometimes quite dangerous. A marcassin is a "baby boar" or a "boar piglet" and they're sweet.
4 hrs
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| agree |
Yvonne Gallagher
: +"mere", + baby/piglet
7 hrs
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4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "merci"
+1
8 mins
French term (edited):
... un marechal que la seule vue d'un marcassin fait tomber...
a so-called field marshall who faints at the mere sight of a young wild boar
-
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Note added at 11 mins (2011-01-26 15:01:29 GMT)
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le "so-called" ajoute peut-être cette pointe d'humour
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Note added at 11 mins (2011-01-26 15:01:29 GMT)
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le "so-called" ajoute peut-être cette pointe d'humour
Note from asker:
| Thanks |
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
Tony M
: Yes, i'd even say a 'baby wild boar' to emphasize the ridiculousness of it
3 hrs
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Yes, "baby wild boar" indeed brings in that ironic humour - Thanks!
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Discussion