Meaning of “sovereign peacefulness” in Emile Zola’s novel.
In Emile Zola’s novel La Bete Humaine the following sentence occurs
“And the vast black sky, the sovereign peacefulness of the night, ultimately calmed his fever”
I think it might mean that peacfulnnes of the night was totally under the control of night and no external thing can take it away, but you see any external shouting or whatever can take it away.
Please explain it.
Top answer
You are reading a translation from French. The French word souverain appears six times in the novel, every instance figurative. The word in French has different connotations than it does in English.
- You are reading a translation from French.
- The French word souverain appears six times in the novel, every instance figurative.
- The word in French has different connotations than it does in English.
- I don't know what year your translation is from, but in modern English, "sovereign" is rather different from Zola's 1890 souverain .
- ” Our "sovereign" has more to do with authority than quality.
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You are reading a translation from French. The French word souverain appears six times in the novel, every instance figurative. The word in French has different connotations than it does in English. I don't know what year your translation is from, but in modern English, "sovereign" is rather different from Zola's 1890 souverain. I might have translated it "supreme" or "overwhelmi
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