Novel
An Iceland Fisherman
Pêcheur d'Islande
Pierre Loti · 1886
Opening lines
Ils étaient cinq, aux carrures terribles, accoudés à boire, dans une sorte de logis sombre qui sentait la saumure et la mer.
There were five of them, terribly broad-shouldered, leaning on their elbows drinking, in a sort of dark dwelling that smelled of brine and the sea.
Translation by Erostrate
Text quoted from gutenberg.org
Synopsis
At Paimpol, the fishermen leave each season for the cod banks off Iceland, and the women wait for their return. Gaud, the daughter of a wealthy merchant, falls in love with Yann, a poor fisherman, taciturn and proud. The difference in their station separates them, and Yann holds back. The narrative follows their successive seasons, between the fishing campaigns out at sea and the life of the Breton country, its religious festivals and its maritime traditions.
Context
The novel appeared in 1886. Its carefully balanced construction follows several fishing campaigns in Iceland and makes the sea a character in its own right. It combines the realist manner with an impressionistic style of writing, attentive to landscapes and light, and carefully depicts the customs of the Paimpol region. The success was considerable, and the book remains its author's most famous.
Who it is for
A simple and highly visual language; the lyricism is emphatic and the rhythm slow, like the waiting it describes.
Prizes and reception
Edmund Gosse saw in it the most popular and the most beautiful of Loti's books; Jules Cambon translated it under the title An Iceland Fisherman.
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