Chapter published in:
The Expression of Tense, Aspect, Modality and Evidentiality in Albert Camus’s L'Étranger and Its Translations / L'Étranger de Camus et ses traductions : questions de temps, d'aspect, de modalité et d'évidentialité (TAME): An empirical study / Etude empiriqueEdited by Eric Corre, Danh Thành Do-Hurinville and Huy Linh Dao
[Lingvisticæ Investigationes Supplementa 35] 2020
► pp. 354–367
Traduire les discordances temporelles dans L’Étranger
Bruno Poncharal | Université Sorbonne Nouvelle – Paris 3
In L’Étranger, Camus not only
uses the passé composé instead of the passé
simple throughout his story, but he often unexpectedly
combines the different tenses of the French verbal system; for
example, by using a passé composé when one expects
an imparfait (or vice versa); or by using a
présent, when one expects an
imparfait. In this article, I will examine the
extent to which these temporal dissonances are reflected in the last
three translations of Camus’ novel into English. The retrospective
examination of L’Étranger through the prism of
these three translations (Laredo, 1982 ; Ward,
1988 ; Smith,
2012) will allow us to shed new light on the combinations
of verbal forms that make this novel so unique in terms of
style.
Keywords: contrastive linguistics, tense, aspect,
passé composé
,
imparfait
,
passé simple
, preterite, translation studies, style
Published online: 11 August 2020
https://doi.org/10.1075/lis.35.18pon
https://doi.org/10.1075/lis.35.18pon