Teffi - "Marquita" - данцингы

[Robert Chandler]

Dear Natalia and all,

Thanks to everyone who has written about these questions.  This Chekhov quote is particularly helpful, Natalia, as it confirms that "zheltaya" is not such a very unusual word in such contexts.  I shall therefore, as several of you have suggested, translate it as "sallow" rather than "yellow", which would be more startling.

And thank YOU, Francoise, for this point about "un dancing":
"En français, le mot dancing est un faux anglicisme synonyme de boîte de nuit (en anglais nightclub ou simplement club).In French, the word dancing is a false anglicism, and a synonym for nightclub."
I'm kicking myself for not having thought of "nightclub" myself.  It is infinitely better, in this context, than the rather more downmarket "dance hall".

All the best,

Robert


> Not trying to be a "devil's Englishwomen's advocate", but I couldn't resist a less stereotypical linkage of this adjective to a Pushkin's line from "Feast in Time of Plague":
> 
> "...nenavizhu / VolOs shotlandskih etu zheltiznu".
> 
> Feel free to assess as another funny/ irrelevant stereotype the yellowness of the Scottish women's hair, as well as generalization of all British women as "Englishwomen". And should you prefer Vadim's interpretation as the core one, blame Anton Pavlovitch Chekhov for promoting this (false) stereotype about Englishwomen in his "Doch Al'biona" ("...Po zheltomu licu eje probezhala nadmennaya, prezritel'naya ulybka"). BTW, Chekhov is obviously one of the closest Teffi's literary relatives, isn't he?
> 
> Regards,
> Natalia.
> ________________________________________
> From: SEELANGS: Slavic & East European Languages and Literatures list [SEELANGS at LISTSERV.UA.EDU] on behalf of Sibelan Forrester [sforres1 at SWARTHMORE.EDU]
> Sent: Friday, November 30, 2012 10:53 AM
> To: SEELANGS at LISTSERV.UA.EDU
> Subject: Re: [SEELANGS] Teffi - "Marquita" - данцингы
> 
> Perhaps here "sallow" would be better than "yellow"? Not having rosy
> cheeks. (Interestingly different from the English stereotypes about
> Englishwomen's skin!)
> 
> Sibelan
> 
> 
> On 11/30/12 9:47 AM, Sentinel76 Astrakhan wrote:
>> Yes, "дансинги" are just dance halls. "Yellow" has to do with a Russian
>> stereotype that English women have bad complexion because of the climate.
>> 
>> Hope this helps,
>> Vadim
>> 
>>> Date: Fri, 30 Nov 2012 14:27:00 +0000
>>> From: kcf19 at DIAL.PIPEX.COM
>>> Subject: [SEELANGS] Teffi - "Marquita" - данцингы
>>> To: SEELANGS at LISTSERV.UA.EDU
>>> 
>>> Dear all,
>>> 
>>> This is 1920s Paris. The heroine is remembering her husband, who has
>> abandoned her and their little son Kot'ka.
>>> 
>>> Вспоминала мужа, красивого, нехорошего: «Котьку не пожалел. Танцует
>> по дансингам. Видели в собственном автомобиле с желтой англичанкой».
>>> 
>>> Are these дансингы (данцингы in another edition) simply dance halls?
>> Does anyone have any ideas as to why the anglichanka might be yellow?
>>> 
>>> All the best,
>>> 
>>> Robert
>>> 
>>> 
>>> Robert Chandler, 42 Milson Road, London, W14 OLD
>>> 
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Robert Chandler, 42 Milson Road, London, W14 OLD

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