Timimoun A French-to-English translation project
Abstract
Unlike most university work in the sphere of French literature, this project is not
about literary interpretation or criticism. It is about the joy of words. When critics speak
of Rachid Boudjedra, they emphasize first his political agenda and then his style of
narration, always focusing on meaning. By doing this, however, they miss out on the third
important element of his writing--the beauty of his language. Rachid Boudjedra is simply
an expert wordsmith. He understands and manipulates the French language in a way that
few others can, and when he is at his peak, language fractures and distorts. Sentences
break down into fragments or ramblings. Discordant juxtapositions of nouns and
adjectives make familiar objects seem alien. Lyric imagery makes prose poetic. All of this
does not create ugliness, however, but an enthralling beauty. This bizarre and terrible
beauty is what captures the attention of readers and keeps them reading long enough to
receive Boudjedra' s meaning, his message.
I will leave you to decipher what Rachid Boudjedra is trying to say with his novel,
Timimoun. I have merely tried to follow his words as closely as I could, to transfer their
beauty and the oddity into English. Language is a game. Sit back and watch the master
play. Enjoy.