Monday, February 14, 2022

 

Poor

Marcel Pagnol (1895-1974), Manon of the Springs (tr. W.E. van Heyningen), chapter 6:
"And where does she come from?" cried M. Belloiseau.

"She's the daughter of the poor hunchback," said Pamphile.

In Provence "poor" means the person being spoken of is dead. It is a word used by pagans who believe that a dead man no longer possesses anything.

«Peste!» s'écria M. Belloiseau. «Et d'où sort-elle?»

«C'est la fille du pauvre bossu!» dit Pamphile.

En Provence, «pauvre» veut dire que la personne dont on parle est morte. Parole de païens, qui considèrent qu'un mort ne possède plus rien.
Cf. id., chapter 8:
"The truth is, the more you've got, the more you want, and finally, the cemetery. So what good is it?"

«La vérité, c'est que plus on en a, plus on en veut, et finalement, au cimetière. Alors, à quoi ça sert?»



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