French versions

[Gaynor Thomas]

No: HPFGUIDX 16937

--- In HPforGrownups at y..., Sheryll Townsend <s_ings at y...> wrote:
 

> Interesting, I have the same edition. Could there be
> more than one version in French? Mine is copyright
> 1998 for the translation. Is yours a more recent
> translation, I wonder? The scenes in question are on
> pages 52 and 53 of my book.

Mine is also copyright 1998. But there is also a note saying Harry 
Potter names etc. are copyright and trademark to Warner Bros. c2000. 
Perhaps mine is a revised edition?

> 
>'Je veux tout le monde 
>
<snip French>
>
>sans pulveriser un extraterrestre sur son ordinateur."
>
> How does this read in your version?
> 


"Je veux que tout le mode pret a partir dans cinq minutes. On s'en 
va. Emportez simplement quelques vetements, et pas de discussion!

Il paraissait tellement menacant, avec sa moustache degarnie, que 
personne n'osa plus faire un geste. Dix minutes plus tard, apres 
avoir arrache les planches qui condamnait la porte, ils monterent 
dans la voiture qui fonca vers l'autoroute. Dudley pleurnichait a 
l'arriere, a cause du coup que son pere lui avait donne sur la tete 
pour les avoir retardes en voulant a tout prix emporter sa 
television, son magnetoscope et son ordinateur dans son sac de sport. 
Ils roulerent, roulerent, roulerent. La tante Petunia elle-meme 
n'osait pas demander a son mari ou il comptait les emmener. De temps 
a autre, l'once Vernon faisait demi-tour et repartait dans la 
direction opposee.

On va les semer, on va les semer, marmonnait-il.

Ils roulerent ainsi toute la journee sans prendre le temps de 
s'arreter pour boire our manger quelque chose. A la tombee du jour, 
Dudley poussa de longs hurlements. Il avait faim, il avait rate cinq 
emissions de television qu'il tenait absolument a voir et il n'avait 
jamais passe autant de tmps sans pulveriser un extraterrestre sur son 
ordinateur." (p46/7)


I've looked up my English version of PS and it's about as close as 
you can get to the original English.

About a year ago, I did hear that the French translations weren't 
very good, so I resisted buying them. When I did buy them, (at least 
PS and PoA), I was surprised to find the translations better than I 
had expected. Perhaps they rushed out a translation of PS in 1998 and 
then revised it in a later edition - the one Florence and I have 
bought.

Have you found many other omissions from the text? I haven't read all 
of PS in French yet, but I've read PoA in its entirity, and apart 
from the odd word, it's close to the original. 

Gaynor