Jean de La Fontaine: Das Grosse Fabel-Buch

Title

en_US Jean de La Fontaine: Das Grosse Fabel-Buch

Description

Jean de La Fontaine: Übersetzung von Ernst Dohm

Creator

en_US La Fontaine, Jean de See all items with this value

Contributor

en_US Tripp, Jan Peter

Date

2022-11-07T16:11:41Z

2021-03

en_US 2021

Date Available

2022-11-07T16:11:41Z

Date Issued

en_US 2021

Abstract

en_US I find this a strange book. It takes itself seriously: boxed and beautifully executed, complete with a place-marking ribbon. I tried the first four or five translations and found them good. Perhaps that is the strength of the book; I cannot say that I know German translations of La Fontaine well. The surprising and -- to me -- disappointing feature of the book lies in its illustrations. There is a gorgeous humanized fox on both front and back of the lovely box, and there is a strange and fascinating human in a dead forest on the cover of the book. Good so far! Inside the text however, there is a strange array of art. Each book gets a two-page title-page, with an object, perhaps a brush, a leaf, or a feather, before a Jackson Pollack like background. I, poor soul, seek a narrative connection and find none, and I am not too sure where to turn. Each book has from zero to three or four illustrations along the way, facing a blank page. Many of these are like Grandville's animal-head-with-human-body caricatures in "La Vie privée et publique des animaux." Good examples are the book's first two illustrations, one a black-and-white rendition of the fox from the cover of the box (15) and the other a dog in a party dress (25). These are for me the most engaging art of the book, and among the best are the old bird pouring champagne (99) and the human toucan (115). The placement of these has its own mystique, since the characters seem at least not to be connected to nearby fables. Then there are paintings, one of a tapir at rest (65), another of a strange beach scene (134-35), and one of a giant lobster near a human (164-65). Perhaps the most engaging illustration of the book is a scene of intimacy between a human male and a Sphinx (217). I will keep watching for the insight that unlocks the mystique of this book!

Identifier

en_US 12561 (Access ID)

uri

http://hdl.handle.net/10504/138780

Language

en_US eng

Publisher

en_US Faber & Faber

en_US Leipzig, Germany

Subject

Jean de La Fontaine See all items with this value