Victorians! discussion

Please post background info and resources here.

Hi everyone,
First off, apologies for diverting us from the shores of the UK and over La Manche into France. I mistakenly thought the group was Victorian Era.
Anyhow, here I am and I look forward to leading the discussion on this book.
I have not read this book before but I wanted to read it based on reviews.
Here is a link to information about Dumas:

http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/e...


The book is available on-line so you do not need to buy the book. I prefer to read from the page rather than a screen so have purchased mine. Here is the link:

http://literature.org/authors/dumas-a...


The book has 32 chapters and a conclusion, making it 33.

The reading schedule will be:
July 1-7: ch 1-9
July 8-14: ch 10-18
July 15-21: ch 19-27
July 21-28: ch 28- the end.

That will be 9 chapters per week but only 6 for the last week to allow a discussion of the book as a whole.

I look forward to leading this discussion, and all the great input from the group.
Thanks
Tracey

Hi Tracey

I'm looking forward to our discussion. I have not read the book either.

An interesting article outlining Dumas Père's colourful life and the influence it had on his novels:

https://www.theguardian.com/books/200...

Essay from the London Review of Books, published in The Guardian, with no Tulipe Noire spoilers that I can see.

I just realized that the Gutenberg Project version of the novel is abbreviated. I wanted to cut and paste part of a paragraph, and found it much shortened from the original, leaving all of the humor out! ...now what's up with that?...

I am reading the novel in German translation, and needed the English version - sigh!

Oh that's so frustrating! I had the same problem with Bel-Ami. The old translators abridged and censored willy-nilly without needing to mark their work as 'abridged.' And in many cases, it completely changes the novel.

I read a translation of Journey to the Center of the Earth that was so different from the original that the "translator" had written in whole scenes and chapters of his own! And this was the version most English-speaking people knew for decades.

Renee wrote: "Oh that's so frustrating! I had the same problem with Bel-Ami. The old translators abridged and censored willy-nilly without needing to mark their work as 'abridged.' And in many case..."

Was this just part of the time, these sloppy translations without disclaimer, or do you find the practice even today?

I think it was common practice at one time. At least with the French novels. I haven't read enough, say, Russian to tell. Also, things like the Thousand and One Nights. All the "naughty" bits got sanitized, or just left out, for the consumption of the English speaking public. And, yes, without disclaimer. Even now you have to really LOOK for a translation of Bel Ami that is true to the original. I think even many publishers don't know that the version their printing is a less than direct translation.

Not to discourage anyone from the Gutenberg project. It's just worth doing a little research to see if the translation you choose is the one you want.

For anyone interested in exploring the setting of the novel further, I found this website I liked:

http://www.historyworld.net/wrldhis/P...

I always find it enjoyable how historic novels can springboard you into a whole wealth of new information.

Great link, Clari! Thanks.
I read Niccolo Rising several years ago, and realized (for the first time really) how influential the Netherlands was/were at one time. France, England, and Italy have always taken center stage in my studies, so there's so many interesting things I've still to explore.

The Netherlands were indeed a major player and Britain had many a clash with them over production of textiles and other commodities in attempts to be the world leader in such. They influenced much in trade and religion as well the arts.

Renee wrote: "Great link, Clari! Thanks.
I read Niccolo Rising several years ago, and realized (for the first time really) how influential the Netherlands was/were at one time. France, England, ..."

When we went to the Netherlands in 2004, our tour guide suggested we read The Island at the Center of the World: The Epic Story of Dutch Manhattan and the Forgotten Colony That Shaped America by Russell Shorto. I found it dull enough, despite well researched, that I have never finished it. But it was one of several books, as well as that trip, that helped make me aware of little Holland's pivotal role in world commerce (partly through its centuries long battles with the sea), religious persecution and asylum, and international politics, especially European.

More fun than Shorto's scholarly work, I found The Coffee Trader by David Liss. But through little Holland, struggles with control of the sea (so important for the years ahead); Catholic, Jewish, Puritan, Huguenot persecution, especially in their countries of origin; Spanish, French, English struggles for royal denomination; the East India Trading Company,..., one comes into contact with such an incredible array of the power plays of commerce, science, art, and politics.

Thanks, lily. You're the second person to mention Island at Top in as many weeks. The Coffee Trader looks good, too. How exiting!

Lily wrote: "Renee wrote: "Great link, Clari! Thanks.
I read Niccolo Rising several years ago, and realized (for the first time really) how influential the Netherlands was/were at one time. Fra..."

Thanks for your post. I think it is important to know where we have come from to know where we are going. Otherwise we keep repeating history over and over.