Alexandre Dumas, fils

La Dame aux Camélias by Alexandre Dumas, fils Vocabulary Keys to French Literature Volume If you have a solid, basic knowledge of French grammar and a moderately-developed range of vocabulary, you should find pleasure in reading this novel in the original French with the help of the Vocabulary Keys: lists of vocabulary words and phrases with their translations found on each page. Dumas published this novel in 1848. Within a few years, it was adapted as a stage play and as the famous Verdi opera, La Traviata. Subsequently, stage plays in various forms and several ballets have been performed around the world and about twenty films have been produced based on this novel. The power of this tome lies in more than the fact that it is a gripping love story. It is also an examination of the moral values of nineteenth century France and a psychological study of two young people from very different walks of life as they attempt a bond based on love. The story of the love affair is mostly narrated by Armand, a young man who is smitten by the beauty of a young courtesan, Marguerite, who always wears a camellia. Wealthy Parisian men, a duke, a count and others, shower her with money, jewels, carriages and other favors in return for her carnal pleasures. Armand is not wealthy enough to compete with these men, but he seems to think that the strength of his love for this kept woman could somehow redeem her and turn her away from the licentious life she has been living. Would it really be possible for a courtesan to give up her exciting, luxurious Parisian life to become a virtuous woman and genuinely love a not so wealthy young man? Could Armand trust her and cease being jealous of the other men Marguerite has known? Vocabulary Keys On the pages of this novel are words that are underlined and then listed and defined on the following page. In this way, you can use the French you already know to enjoy reading each page in the original French with the convenience of being able to find the meaning of difficult words and phrases quickly, easily and accurately. This approach assumes that you are familiar with the basics of French grammar, especially the passé simple, and already know a moderate range of vocabulary words. Vocabulary Keys saves you the time and effort of using a dictionary and makes sure that you are getting the best translation according to the context. Words and phrases which occur multiple times are highlighted in bold and are listed in the glossary at the end of the text. These are the words which you should try to memorize. You can easily guess the meaning of French words which are true cognates. However, some words are faux amis, false cognates. These are underlined and defined for you so that you do not mistake them. Be aware that many words have multiple meanings. The translations given in this book are the ones that are pertinent only to the context of the passages in which they are found. In other contexts, you may well find different meanings for these words. In some cases, a simple translation of a word may not suffice. In that case, an explanation is given along with the translation. In this way, you are provided with cultural and historical information which will help you understand the text better.