"The Island of the Fay" by Edgar Allan Poe

2 years ago
55

Nullus enim locus sine genio est.
-Servius

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To follow along: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/25525/25525-h/25525-h.htm#chap2.13

I never learned a lick of French, so my pronunciation is an abomination. And of course, Poe had to go for several French phrases and sentences in this one. Bastard... I spent an absurd amount of time listening to google and bing translation tools to try to figure it out, but French is just beyond my ken. Finally I had to throw up my hands and move on, so you get some vaguely mumbled garbage instead.

Here are the full sentences in written form for you, the first one there at the beginning: "la musique est le seul des talents qui jouissent de lui-même; tous les autres veulent des témoins." And then the one in the middle of the text: "la solitude est une belle chose; mais il faut quelqu'un pour vous dire que la solitude est une belle chose?"

As to the picture used: This engraving appeared at the front of the issue containing Poe's tale "The Island of the Fay" (Graham’s Magazine, June 1841). The caption reads: "The Island of the Fay," with a subnote: "Engraved for Graham's Magazine from an Original by Martin." The mezzotint engraving was made by John Sartain. It is an adaptation of "Landscape with Pan and Syrinx," a painting by John Martin (1789-1854).

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