Inspired by Villon's Epitaph. The translation is loose, but sounds right to me. Be glad for comment, especially from la francophonie!


Préméditation


Puis çà , puis là ;
Puis çà , puis là .
On vient, on va;
On vient, on va.


To and fro,
To and fro;
We come, we go;
We come, we go.



Poetry by Rob Graber
Read 652 times
Written on 2010-10-18 at 16:47

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F.i.in.e Moods The PoetBay support member heart!
I like this 'cause I'm learning about my own language at the same time! 1400's French isn't too commonly used nowadays ;)

So I admit I had to look up on "çà ". I found that "Puis çà , puis là " is an old form for the expression (locution) "ça  et là " which I didn't know. It is also an adverb (adverbe de lieu). Personally, in my schooling, I've never seen it used and I have never used it.

With that new information in mind and then reading La ballade des pendus (Villon's Epitaph), I find your inspiration captures the essence of that poem very well.

So la francophonie at my home address doesn't have any suggestions. It's spot on, in my opinion - Thanks.
2010-10-19


NicholasG
I wonder if "Puis çà , puis là " could be "...this and that", or "And this, and that."
Nick
2010-10-18