Germaine

Edmond AboutProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.4

Word count: 395K words
Chapters: 40

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Germaine by Edmond AboutAuthor: About, Edmond, 1828-1885,Language: French, Class: PQ: Language and Literatures: Romance literatures: French, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Release Date: Apr 1, 2006

Editor's review

Germaine is a novel by the French writer Edmond About, originally published in French; Project Gutenberg offers the original French text. About is known for tight plotting and close observation, and this work, through the fate of the heroine Germaine, sketches marriage, property, and class relations, with the irony and psychological portraiture common to nineteenth-century French social fiction. The French original preserves period vocabulary and narrative tone, making it suitable for readers who want to approach a full-length French novel through public-domain resources, and for lovers of French literature seeking to fill in a writer often overlooked by Chinese readers. Because it is the French original, the barrier lies in language rather than length; readers with intermediate French or above are advised to take it slowly with a dictionary and notes.

Who it's for

A good fit for

French learners with intermediate reading proficiency or above
Literary readers studying nineteenth-century French social fiction
Enthusiasts seeking to expand their reading of French public-domain novels
Readers interested in French themes of marriage and class

Not a good fit for

Readers with no French or only simple French
Readers who prefer fast-paced contemporary narratives
Readers who need a Chinese translation to grasp the plot quickly

Reading tips

First skim chapter titles and opening sentences to follow the plot, then read closely.
Keep a French-Chinese dictionary and look up recurring period vocabulary in batches.
After each chapter, summarize the plot in Chinese to check comprehension and reinforce memory.
Consult background on nineteenth-century French society to understand characters' circumstances and motives.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is there a Chinese translation of this book?

The given information only shows the original French text provided by Project Gutenberg and mentions no other translations, so the availability of a Chinese translation cannot be confirmed. Readers who need Chinese can look up reputable published editions themselves.

What level of French is needed to read this book?

It is a nineteenth-century French novel whose vocabulary and syntax carry period features. Intermediate reading proficiency or above is recommended, with a dictionary to understand narration and dialogue, proceeding gradually.

Is this book suitable as intensive reading material for French majors?

Yes. It is moderate in length, complete in narrative, and in the public domain, making the original easy to obtain; intensive reading allows both linguistic analysis and discussion of the narrative techniques and themes of nineteenth-century French social fiction.

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About the author

Edmond About Author · French · 1828–1885

Edmond About (1828–1885) was a French novelist, journalist and critic, born in Dieuze, Lorraine. He graduated from the École Normale Supérieure in Paris and later attended the French School in Rome, after which he wrote for newspapers such as Le Figaro. About was known for his satirical and humorous style, and his works range across science fiction, social manners and religious and political themes. His representative works include The King of the Mountains, The Man with the Broken Ear and The Roman Question; The Man with the Broken Ear is notable for its fantastical imagination and witty narrative. In 1884 he was elected to the Académie française and died the following year. Nine of his works are held in this collection.