Jean Laforgue
Encyclopedia
Jean Laforgue was a French
scholar living in Dresden
, mainly known for having edited and censored the first edition (known as Edition Laforgue) of Giacomo Casanova
s memoirs, Histoire de ma vie
.
, in the Gers
department in southwestern France
, on the 11 January 1782. From 1822 to 1827, he was a French language
teacher in Dresden
Ritter-Akademie (Dresden knight academy
).
In 1825, he was given the task of preparing the first French edition of Casanova's memoirs by the publisher Friedrich Arnold Brockhaus
.
His translation is heavily criticized today not only for having made a lot of changes to the original manuscript, but also for its dull literary style.
In approximately 1831, Laforgue gave back the manuscript to Brockhaus, without four chapters whose fate remains unknown as of today.
After 1831, he resumed giving French lessons at the Dresden
Ritter-Akademie.
of words and nouns, but also rewrote the most part of the original text in what he considered to be a better French. He also watered down passages he judged licentious, or to the contrary rewrote those he considered too elliptic. Furthermore, he added or cut entire passages from the text, depending on his own convictions. He judged Casanova
's original text too favorable to Christianity
and Ancien Régime, and too hostile to the French Revolution
and democracy.
For example:
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
scholar living in Dresden
Dresden
Dresden is the capital city of the Free State of Saxony in Germany. It is situated in a valley on the River Elbe, near the Czech border. The Dresden conurbation is part of the Saxon Triangle metropolitan area....
, mainly known for having edited and censored the first edition (known as Edition Laforgue) of Giacomo Casanova
Giacomo Casanova
Giacomo Girolamo Casanova de Seingalt was an Italian adventurer and author from the Republic of Venice. His autobiography, Histoire de ma vie , is regarded as one of the most authentic sources of the customs and norms of European social life during the 18th century...
s memoirs, Histoire de ma vie
Histoire de ma vie
Histoire de ma vie is both the memoir and autobiography of Giacomo Casanova, a famous 18th century Italian adventurer...
.
Biography
Jean Laforgue was born in MarciacMarciac
Marciac is a commune in the Gers department in southwestern France. It is known for its annual international jazz festival, which runs for a fortnight every summer.-Features:...
, in the Gers
Gers
The Gers is a department in the Midi-Pyrénées region in the southwest of France named after the Gers River.Inhabitants are called les Gersois or Gersoises.-History:...
department in southwestern France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, on the 11 January 1782. From 1822 to 1827, he was a French language
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
teacher in Dresden
Dresden
Dresden is the capital city of the Free State of Saxony in Germany. It is situated in a valley on the River Elbe, near the Czech border. The Dresden conurbation is part of the Saxon Triangle metropolitan area....
Ritter-Akademie (Dresden knight academy
Knight academy
Knight academies were developed by the German aristocracy in the late seventeenth century to facilitate the ascent of Prussia as a European power. They prepared aristocratic youth for state and military service. It added to the hitherto rudimentary education of the German aristocracy natural...
).
In 1825, he was given the task of preparing the first French edition of Casanova's memoirs by the publisher Friedrich Arnold Brockhaus
Friedrich Arnold Brockhaus
Friedrich Arnold Brockhaus was a German encyclopedia publisher and editor, famed for publishing the Conversations-Lexikon, which is now published as the Brockhaus encyclopedia.-Biography:...
.
His translation is heavily criticized today not only for having made a lot of changes to the original manuscript, but also for its dull literary style.
In approximately 1831, Laforgue gave back the manuscript to Brockhaus, without four chapters whose fate remains unknown as of today.
After 1831, he resumed giving French lessons at the Dresden
Dresden
Dresden is the capital city of the Free State of Saxony in Germany. It is situated in a valley on the River Elbe, near the Czech border. The Dresden conurbation is part of the Saxon Triangle metropolitan area....
Ritter-Akademie.
Laforgue rewritings of Casanova's manuscript
Laforgue not only modernized the orthographyOrthography
The orthography of a language specifies a standardized way of using a specific writing system to write the language. Where more than one writing system is used for a language, for example Kurdish, Uyghur, Serbian or Inuktitut, there can be more than one orthography...
of words and nouns, but also rewrote the most part of the original text in what he considered to be a better French. He also watered down passages he judged licentious, or to the contrary rewrote those he considered too elliptic. Furthermore, he added or cut entire passages from the text, depending on his own convictions. He judged Casanova
Giacomo Casanova
Giacomo Girolamo Casanova de Seingalt was an Italian adventurer and author from the Republic of Venice. His autobiography, Histoire de ma vie , is regarded as one of the most authentic sources of the customs and norms of European social life during the 18th century...
's original text too favorable to Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
and Ancien Régime, and too hostile to the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
and democracy.
For example:
- Je baise l’air, croyant que tu y es (I kiss the air, thinking you are there) becomes Je lance mille baisers qui se perdent dans l’air (I give a thousand kisses that get lost to the air)
- Sûr d’une pleine jouissance à la fin du jour, je me livrai à toute ma gaieté naturelle (certain to make love at the end of the day, I engaged in my natural cheerfulness) becomes Certain d'être heureux (Certain to be happy)