kanewai's book shelf (current: italian)

[kanewai]

Jan 2017: Super Challenge update

Books
Marcel Proust, Sodome et Gomorrhe. 1922. One day I will actually finish the series.

Maurice Druon, Le roi de fer. 1955. A historical novel about a line of kings and queens who were cursed by the Templars to the 13th generation.

J. K. Rowling, Harry Potter y las Reliquias de la Muerte. I was struggling with the jump to native Spanish literature, and so went back to the tried and true HTLAL method: reading Harry Potter in translation.

Jorge Luis Borges, Ficciones. 1944. From Harry Potter to Borges - and my first full native Spanish book! I could've probably chosen an easier author than Borges. I enjoyed his stories, but I suspect that I missed a lot. I might have to come back to this one day.

TV Shows
Un village français  seasons 5 and 6. This was a slog to finish, and I skipped a lot of episodes. The first couple seasons were great. These last couple seasons were a big drop in quality.

Ainsi soient-ils season 2. Drama set in a French seminary. I enjoyed it; it's different than anything else I've seen on screen.

Kaboul Kitchen  season 1. Comedy set in Kaboul. Somehow, it works.

El tiempo entre costuras. Spanish series about a seamstress/spy during World War II. It's lightweight but fun.

Gomorra season 1. Excellent series about the mob.

Il commissario Montalbano season 7 (2008). I didn't like the previous season; it tried to be dark and didn't succeed. I liked this season better.

[kanewai]

2017: Books, shows, and podcasts in process

Books
Honoré de Balzac, Illusions perdues. 1843. I didn't like Père Goriot, but figured I owed Balzac another chance. He's one of the greats, right? I am enjoying Lost Illusions much more. It's the story of a beautiful and idealistic young poet who moves to Paris - where things go horribly wrong. It's great.

Mario Vargas Llosa, Travesuras de la niña mala. 2006. I am loving this book. It's the story of the on-and-off again relationship between a Peruvian ex-pat and "la niña mala." Along the way we get hip Paris in the 1950s, hippies in Swinging London, Japanese gangsters, and so much more.

Dante Alighiere. Purgatorio. 14th century. I rely so much on the English text that I don't know if I'm really 'reading' Dante. I'm enjoying it, at least. There's some beautiful poetry in Purgatorio, and the imagery is just as vivid as in Inferno.

TV Shows
I'll be continuing with a lot of the shows I already started, and have found two excellent French series to include.

Dix pour cent ("Call my agent!" on Netflix US). It's Mad Men meets The Devil Wears Prada set in a Parisian talent office. This one is fun. As a bonus, Netflix finally has closed-captions for French shows.




Le Bureau des Légendes ("The Bureau" on Sundance US). A spy thriller about an agent who is called back to service to help solve a crisis in Algeria.



I've liked other French tv in the past, but these are the first series I've seen that are on par with what HBO puts out.

[kanewai]

Feb 8 Update

French

I finished season 1 of Le Bureau des Légendes, which was excellent. Anyone who likes the books of John le Carré, or who watched The Night Manager, should check this out. I started the second season of Kaboul Kitchen, but so far it's not as engaging as the first. I liked the show when it focused on the small dramas of the expats in Kaboul. This season has some ridiculous CIA side plot that makes the show feel as silly as Hogan's Heroes.

I added two new podcasts to my lineup, F Kermesse (Le podcast qui explore les bas-fonds de la pop-culture) and Studio 404. Both use very casual French, and my comprehension varies from 80% to near zero. I feel like I'm starting to level up again, like I'm finally close to moving beyond proper, formal French and into the fun, raunchy, joking French that people really use.

And F. Kermesse is a trip. Their latest topic was Le prépuce de Krypton VS Le tabouret de la Thrace (Hercule vs Superman) (The foreskin of Krypton vs the stool of Thrace): Le Versus revient dans la FK avec cette fois-ci Hercules et Superman, deux figures mythiques de la pop-culture. Pour nous aider à faire sens de ces alpha-mâles en goguette, Charles, de Whoniverse et des Têtes à Clique, se joint à nous pour une émission incroyable où Stavro meurt en direct, où Zasa refait un autodafécal et où Stevaine tente de nous faire comprendre Nietzsche. N'hésitez pas à nous dire ce que vous en avez pensé !

I'm about half-way through Balzac's Illusions Perdues. I am enjoying this far more than Père Goriot (which I mostly hated) - I'm glad I gave Balzac a second look. Lost Illusions feels much more relevant, almost modern, and has a richer cast of characters than the other work.

And finally, I'm slowly working my way through Vocabulaire Progressif du Français (niveau avancé). Still. I wanted to finish this last summer. It's very useful, but I'm not very patient and don't always find time to sit down and do the exercises properly.


Spanish

I finished Travesuras de la niña mala by Mario Vargas Llosa. This is a big milestone for me - it's the first native-language Spanish novel that I've finished. It was a great read, and I've added some more Llosa novels to my reading list. In the short term, I picked Don Quijote back up and am aiming to finish Part 1 Book 3 this month. It would take me too long to read Don Quijote in one sitting, but I enjoy it a lot in smaller, 125 page chunks.

I tried a couple Spanish podcasts, but the only one I could follow along to was Nómadas, a weekly travel podcast. It's a good series, but I get major wanderlust partway through each episode.

I started season 2 of Club de Cuervos. Like the first season, it's a mix of good and average episodes, with occasional flashes of brilliance.

I have Assimil's Español perfeccionamiento sitting on my shelf, but I stalled out last year around chapter 35. I like Assimil a lot, but their advanced books kind of bore me. I still need a lot of practice and study, but it's real hard to study with boring texts when I can struggle through Cervantes. I wish Assimil would up their game on their advanced books & make the dialogues more interesting.


Italian

I started reading Elena Ferrante's Storia del nuevo cognome, the second book in her Naples Quartet. It was slightly challenging coming back to Italian after so long of a gap, but I'm getting back up to speed quickly. I like this series a lot, and I didn't want my Italian to fade too much before I got back to it ... even though reading three foreign-language books at once is kind of exhausting.

I tried a couple Italian podcasts, but I couldn't understand enough for them to be useful.

Dante's Purgatorio is still on my shelf. Once or twice a month I will struggle through another canto, using both parallel texts and audio recordings. It's an absolutely beautiful work, and far more powerful than the Inferno, but it's hard work. Maybe that's the point?


Latin

I started Latin this month, because why the hell not?

I downloaded an electronic copy of Hans Henning Ørberg's Lingua Latina Pars 1: Familia Romana, and got hooked. There is no English at all in this course; it's all pictures and the gradual accumulation of voacabulary. Every language teacher I've ever had started the class year by saying a version of: I won't be speaking English, this will be an immersive environment, we will only be speaking x in this class. And then this never happens.

Ørberg really does it. It's brilliant. Now, I took Latin in high school, so already understood the basic concepts. I'm not sure how well this course would work for someone who knows nothing.

Inspired, I also bought Assimil's Le Latin. Assimil recently the version by Clément Desessard, which was first published in 1966 and (according to their press) devenait rapidement un ouvrage culte pour tous les latinistes. I'm only a week in, but I like it so far.

Can Cicero be far behind?


German

I told myself I would start German again when Language Transfer released their full course, which was predicted to be last fall. They're still on Lesson 38 (out of 90), but I got tired of waiting.

I like what Language Transfer is doing, and was a Patreon sponsor for a bit ... but I'm honestly a bit frustrated by them too. The latest German episodes are lackluster; the guy is doing way too much talking in English and it's hard to concentrate on the actual German. I understand that he's putting his energy where the money is (Romance languages), and obviously we all need to get paid - but it was his focus on non-Romance languages like Turkish, Arabic, and Greek that made him stand out. I wish him well, but I'm not a sponsor this year.

I want to start German, but I think I'll put off making a real effort for a few months.


Arabic

Now I'm just being stupid. It was *cold and wet and windy two weekends in a row, and there was nothing on tv, so I re-downloaded some of my old Arabic courses for a refresher. But honestly, I don't have time for an Arabic refresher.

(*It got below 18 C / 65 F this month - we're delicate where I live and can't handle anything below 20 C)

[kanewai]

Feb 14 Update

French

Lucien, the beautiful poet in Illusions Perdues, is rising through the ranks of Paris society. He's also betraying every value he once held, and turning his back on the bohemians who initially befriended him. He is also too enamored of the high life to notice the dangerous and treacherous characters around him.


Spanish

Don Quijote and Sancho Panza have escaped from the enchanted castle, but don't have a moments rest before they are caught up in a great battle between two opposing armies. Don Quijote slays seven of the enemy before an enchanter transforms the rest of the army into sheep and goats. Sancho is starting to question why, in all their adventures, he seems to be the one who ends up with the most bruises.

Below, an enchantment is preventing Don Quijote from entering the castle to rescue Sancho. He would have helped if he could have, I'm sure. Woodcut from Gustave Doré.


I am getting a bit irritated with Club de Cuervos. I'm four episodes in, and only one has been enjoyable. I've been having trouble finding Spanish series that I enjoy. I've been getting my super challenge hours in with audio books and podcasts.


Italian

In the opening chapters of Storia del nuevo cognome Lenù learns the truth about Lila's honeymoon, and why her friend has been avoiding her. The rest of the women in the rione pretend they don't see the bruises on her face, but Lenù can't hide her anger. Meanwhile, the young men in the neighborhood are torn between those who accept aid from the corrupt Solara family, and those who resist.

Elene Ferrante is hitting hard right out of the gate in this novel.

Dante dreamt of a siren Purgatorio, and she was the most beautiful creature he ever had seen, but then Beatrice (??? - I have no idea who this Beatrice is) came and ripped off the siren's clothes and revealed the stench beneath.

Below: The Siren of the dream, Salvador Dali



Latin

I am really enjoying Latin. Some people love that new car smell. I think I love that new-language feel. It helps that my target languages are all Romantic these days, so it's easier to flirt with Latin than it would be with other languages.

Ørberg + Assimil is a great combination.


German

The German books are back on the shelf. Sigh.


Arabic

I ordered the Living Language app for the ipad, thinking I'd use it as a review. It's more challenging than I thought, partly because half the games are fill-in-the-blank, and I never really focused on writing Arabic words from memory. I'll need to make a decision soon on whether I really have time to put in the effort - Arabic is not an easy language to casually brush-up on.

[dampingwire]

Dante dreamt of a siren Purgatorio, and she was the most beautiful creature he ever had seen, but then Beatrice (??? - I have no idea who this Beatrice is) came and ripped off the siren's clothes and revealed the stench beneath.

Dante fell in love with a Beatrice but she married someone else (and died, iirc). I've no idea what Dante's wife thought of the whole thing!

I thought Virgil (the guide) did the ripping of clothes, but I'm nowhere near my father's copy right now, so I may be misremembering ...

[reineke]

Dante had Beatrice as his muse and Petrarch had Laura:

Erano i capei d’oro a l’aura sparsi
che ’n mille dolci nodi gli avolgea,
e ’l vago lume oltra misura ardea
di quei begli occhi, ch’or ne son sì scarsi...

Chiare, fresche et dolci acque,
ove le belle membra
pose colei che sola a me par donna;
gentil ramo ove piacque
(con sospir' mi rimembra)
a lei di fare al bel fianco colonna;
erba e fior' che la gonna
leggiadra ricoverse
co l'angelico seno;
aere sacro, sereno,
ove Amor co' begli occhi il cor m'aperse:
date udïenza insieme
a le dolenti mie parole estreme.

[kanewai]

I thought Virgil (the guide) did the ripping of clothes, but I'm nowhere near my father's copy right now, so I may be misremembering ...

We have an ancient mystery to solve here!

Here's Dante, Canto XIX (excerpt):

mi venne in dogno una feminina balba,
ne li occhi guercia, e sovra i pie distorta,
con le man monche, e di colore scialba.

Io la mirava; e come 'l sol conforta
le fredde membra che la notte aggrava,
cosi lo sguardo mio le facea scorta

la lingua, e poscia tutta la drizzava
in poco d'oro, e lo smarritto volto,
com' amor vuol, cosi le colorava.

Poi ch'ell' avea 'l parlar cosi disciolto,
cominciava a cantar si, che non pena
da lei avrei mio intento rivolto.

"Io son," cantava, "io son dolce serena,
che' marinari in mezzo mar dismago;
tanto son di piacere a sentir piena!

Io volsi Ulisse del suo cammin vago
al canto mio: e qual meco s'ausa,
rado sen parte; si tutto l'appago!"

Anchor non ere sua bocca richiusa,
quand' una donna apparve santa e presta
lunghesso me per far colei confusa.

"O Virgilio, Virgilio chi e questa?"
fiermamente dicea; ed el venia
con li occhi fitti pur in quella onesta.

L'altra prendea, e dinanzi l'apria
fendendo i drappi, e mostravami 'l ventre;
quel me sveglio col puzzo che n'uscia.



I've been relying on Longfellow to help me with the text. Here, Beatrice (la donna) does the rending:

There came to me in dreams a stammering woman,
Squint in her eyes, and in her feet distorted,
With hands dissevered and of sallow hue.

I looked at her; and as the sun restores
The frigid members which the night benumbs,
Even thus my gaze did render voluble

Her tongue, and made her all erect thereafter
In little while, and the lost countenance
As love desires it so in her did colour.

When in this wise she had her speech unloosed,
She 'gan to sing so, that with difficulty
Could I have turned my thoughts away from her.

"I am," she sang, "I am the Siren sweet
Who mariners amid the main unman,
So full am I of pleasantness to hear.

I drew Ulysses from his wandering way
Unto my song, and he who dwells with me
Seldom departs so wholly I content him."

Her mouth was not yet closed again, before
Appeared a Lady saintly and alert
Close at my side to put her to confusion.

"Virgilius, O Virgilius! who is this?"
Sternly she said; and he was drawing near
With eyes still fixed upon that modest one.

She seized the other and in front laid open,
Rending her garments, and her belly showed me;
This waked me with the stench that issued from it.

Robert and Jean Hollander(2004) have Virgil exposing the siren's belly:

there came to me a woman in a dream,
stammering, cross-eyed, splayfooted
with crippled hands and sickly pale complexion.

I looked at her, and as the sun revives
cold limbs benumbed by night,
so my gaze gave her a ready tongue

and then in very little time
straightened her crooked limbs
and tinged her sallow face as love desires.

And with her speech set free
she started singing in a way that would
have made it hard for me to turn aside

"I am," she sang, "I am the sweet siren
who beguile mariners on the distant seas,
so great is their delight in hearing me.

I drew Ulysses, eager for the journey,
with my song. And those who dwell with me
rarely depart, so much do I content them."

Her lips had not yet closed
when there appeared a lady at my side,
holy and alert, to confound her.

"O Virgil, Virgil, who is this?"
she asked, indignant. And he came forward
with his eyes fixed on that virtuous one.

The other he seized and, ripping her garments,
laid her front bare and exposed her belly.
The stench that came from there awoke me..

I don't know which is more accurate.

[reineke]

I don't know which is more accurate.

Dante's. I hope your Dante is heavily annotated. You should be able to find these verses paraphrased into modern Italian.

"onesta = nobile nell’aspetto esteriore e del portamento"


XIX Canto - Divina Commedia
Nell'ora (l'ultima della notte) in cui il calore solare non può più mitigare il gelo dei raggi lunari, perché ormai è vinto dal freddo naturale della terra, e talvolta da quello del pianeta Saturno. somigliante a quella che essi chiamano Fortuna Maggiore, in una parte dell'orizzonte che per poco tempo rimane ancora oscura...

...mi apparve in sogno una donna balbuziente, con gli occhi guerci, e sciancata, con le mani rattrappite, e pallida in volto. lo la osservavo fissamente; e come il sole rinfranca le membra intirizzite che il freddo della notte intorpidisce, così il mio sguardo le rendeva sciolta la lingua, quindi in breve tempo le raddrizzava tutta la persona, e donava al volto sbiancato quel colore roseo che è suscitato dall'amore. Dopo che ebbe così sciolta la lingua, la donna cominciava a cantare con tanta dolcezza che a fatica avrei potuto distogliere da lei la mia attenzione. « Io sono » cantava, « io sono la dolce sirena, che distolgo dalla loro via i marinai in mezzo al mare, a tal punto sono piena di piacere per chi mi ascolta! Io attrassi col mio canto anche Ulisse, sebbene desideroso di proseguire il suo cammino; e chiunque si abitua alla mia compagnia, raramente se ne allontana, a tal punto riesco ad appagarlo totalmente)! » La sua bocca non si era ancora chiusa, quando accanto, a me apparve una donna santa e sollecita per svergognarla. « O Virgilio, Virgilio, chi è costei? » diceva con accento sdegnato; e Virgilio s'accostava tenendo gli occhi sempre fissi su quella donna onesta. Quindi afferrava l'altra, e la scopriva davanti squarciandole le vesti, e me ne faceva vedere il ventre: questo mi svegliò col fetore che emanava. lo mossi gli occhi, mentre il mio valente maestro nei diceva: « Almeno tre volte ti ho chiamato! Alzati e vieni: vediamo di trovare l'apertura nella roccia attraverso la quale tu possa entrare ». Mi alzai in piedi, e già tutti i gironi del sacro monte erano pieni della luce mattutina ormai alta suIl'orizzonte, e camminavamo avendo alle spalle il sole del nuovo giorno.

https://parafrasidivinacommedia.jimdo.com/

[kanewai]

I hope your Dante is heavily annotated. You should be able to find these verses paraphrased into modern Italian.

https://parafrasidivinacommedia.jimdo.com/

I wish. I saw a dual language version using Dante's and modern Italian last time I was in Italy, with lots of footnotes. I wish I had picked it up! I thought it would be easy to find online, but I haven't been able to.

[reineke]

How to Read Dante in the 21st Century

"Since the poem appeared, and especially in modern times, those readers intrepid enough to take on Dante have tended to focus on the first leg of his journey, through the burning fires of Inferno. As Victor Hugo wrote about The Divine Comedy’s blessed realms, “The human eye was not made to look upon so much light, and when the poem becomes happy, it becomes boring.”

In truth, some of the most sublime moments in The Divine Comedy, indeed in all of literature, occur after Dante makes his way out of the Inferno’s desolation. But Hugo’s attack suggests the particular challenge in reading Dante, whose writing can seem remote and impenetrable to modern tastes."

https://theamericanscholar.org/how-to-r ... Khs0XQo7qA

I enjoyed Inferno in audiobook form.

Princeton Dante Project
http://etcweb.princeton.edu/dante/index.html