[SOC] Once agn, let's speak abt (French) culture

[soc@mailman.qth.net]

Bonjour agn,
Bonsoir to Ian,

Well, I hope you remember my Cultural (not Gutural !) QRM last week-end about 
Alexandre Dumas (aka "Dumas P�re").
For those of you who still want to try hard reading some funny things in 
French, here is a good page to look at :
http://investi.virtualave.net/dumasalex.htm

Now, this one is really hilarous but will require some knowledge of the Froggy 
language for it is what we call "perles languistiques", real ones, taken from 
books or from famous sayings.

Eg :
(last but one in the list on the named web page)
D'une main il ouvrit la porte et de l'autre il cria : "Vive la R�publique !

-> With one hand he opened the door and with the other he shouted : "Vive la 
R�publique !"

An other super one : 
Il rentra chez lui il vit le lit vide, il le devint aussi.
-> He came back home, he saw the empty bed and so he became.
Here there is a wonderful "word game" with "lit vide" (empty bed) :"il le 
devint aussi" (he became so) can be read as "he became empty" but in fact you 
should read it as "il devint livide" (phonetically eq. to "lit vide")
-> he became livid

Sur le sein de l'�pouse, il �crasa l'�poux
Oh God ... !!
You should read it as "Sur le sein de l'�pouse, il �crasa les poux"

Elle entendit le bruit d'un cheval dans la cour. C'�tait son p�re qui rentrait.
-> She heard the noise of an horse in the farmyard. It was her father coming 
back.

L'amour a vaincu Loth
-> Love has defeated Loth
But phonetically, sounds like "L'amour � vingt culottes"
-> Love has twenty trousers/pant(ie)s

<KEEP CHILDREN AWAY>

A good one from Pierre Corneille (1606-1684) in Polyeucte,I,1

Et le d�sir s'accro�t lorsque l'effet se recule
-> And the desire increases when the effect moves back.

But in fact : "Et le d�sir s'accro�t lorsque les fesses reculent"
-> And the desire increases when the backside (buttock, or "ass" for those of 
you not aware of that) moves back.

More on the web page ... 

GL !

72!
Claude