Lettres

Translation from one language to another is a complex art which will provoke strong opinions among many readers. Some search for an exact rendition of an author's work and others are content to see a pleasing reflection of the original. Is the original work always transformed in translation? Read some comments on this fascinating question.

The following texts are English translations of French classics. Browse through the selections below or search for your favorites by author.

Poetry
Flowers of Evil/Les Fleurs du mal by Charles Baudelaire, 1857
Illuminations and A Season in Hell/Illuminations et Une Saison en Enfer by Arthur Rimbaud

Prose
Gargantua et Pantagruel by François Rabelais
Emile by Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Les Miserables by Victor Hugo, 1862

Theatre
Phaedra by Jean Racine

Related Resources
A Handbook on Literary Translation


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Translation from one language to another is a complex art which will provoke strong opinions among many readers. Some search for an exact rendition of an author's work and others are content to see a pleasing reflection of the original. Is the original work always transformed in translation? Read some comments on this fascinating question. The following texts are English translations of French classics. Browse through the selections below or search for your favorites by author. Poetry Flowers of Evil/Les Fleurs du mal by Charles Baudelaire, 1857 Illuminations and A Season in Hell/Illuminations et Une Saison en Enfer by Arthur Rimbaud Prose Gargantua et Pantagruel by François Rabelais Emile by Jean-Jacques Rousseau Les Miserables by Victor Hugo, 1862 Theatre Phaedra by Jean Racine Related Resources A Handbook on Literary Translation