07
MayMichel Garcia & La Poncella de Francia
Michel Garcia (ancien élève de l'ENS, Professeur à Paris III, Sorbonne Nouvelle, ex-Président de la Société des Amis du Vieux Chinon) dwells in a sort of a phalanstère nearby Rabelais' homeland, in the Touraine
He sometimes looks at the remnants of the castle of Chinon (quite impressive, though, to be remnants) and finds inspiration. In this milieu, he has become a writer. And also a translator, which is a particularly difficult way to become a writer. His French prose is precise, elegant, beautiful. He has given to the French presses works as important as the Libro de Buen Amor or El Conde Lucanor, among other Medieval and Early Modern texts
His new translation of Juan de Gamboa's account of the history of Joan of Arc has just been printed at the Librairie Arthème Fayard, one of the most prestigious publishers in France. Juan de Gamboa was the Capitán General of Guipuzcoa and Isabel I's Great Squire.
The fact that Michel Garcia's translations are exquisite is also balanced by this other important fact: each translation is accompanied by a thorough study, in which literary, historical, and theoretical issues are treated in depth. The introduction to Juan de Gamboa's text can interest those scholars working in French, Spanish, and other European literatures, in as much as Juan de Gamboa gives a narrative on Joan of Arc that is independent from any contemporary account,taking as a crucial point the murder of the Duke of Orléans (1407). But, at the same time, Gamboa shows a good knowledge of the French political life during Louis XI reign (+1483), for he establishes relationships between his historical narrative and the political circumstances of his present.
Juan de Gamboa, La Pucelle de France. Récit chevaleresque traduit du castillan et commenté par Michel Garcia. Éditions Mazarine, département de la librairie Arthème Fayard, 2007. 299 p. ISBN: 978-2863743515
Discussions are automatically filtered and moderated to prevent spam, and unsuitable or offensive messages. Code, html tags, or any form of malicious code will also be eliminated. Prior to commenting, users must enter a valid email address. If in doubt, please refer to the terms of our privacy policy.
Please, fill all the required fields in the form below, and send your comment. It will be queued pending moderation.