Title: Great play, awful translation
Product review: Well, I can't fault the quality of "Tartuffe" itself. It's a charming, well-written play that still holds up after the passings of time. Also, the inclusion of the French and English absolutely corresponding to each other does make this a decent French teaching aid.However, the translation is sorely lacking. There is no attempt to make any sort of verse translation, resulting in a flat, uninspired prose work. Beyond that, however, much of the phrasing is awkward and stilted. It seems to be faithful to the French original, but a great deal is lost when the only aim is to provide a literal rendering.In short, this book is more useful for stimulating the appetite for the much better Richard Wilbur translation. This edition may serve its purpose as a teaching tool, but it is a less than impressive read on its own.
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