But before they sat down to table, the doctor said in a voice of
But before they sat down to table, the doctor said in a voice of1) You don't start a sentence with words like "but" and "and".
2) It would be more appropriate to say, "But before they sat down
to eat," or just, "But before they sat down,", implying that
they were sitting down to dinner.
2) It would be more appropriate to say, "But before they sat
down to eat," or just, "But before they sat down,", implying
that they were sitting down to dinner.
In the translation of Jules Verne's "The Voyages and Adventures
of Captain Hatteras" (project Gutenberg) there are these "table"
sentences:
----- Beginning of the citation -----
Hatteras unfolded on the table one of the excellent charts
published in 1859 by the order of the Admiralty.
..."Here is the chart of the Polar Seas," resumed the doctor,
who had brought it to the table;
... Johnson and Bell had a good supper awaiting them.
But before they sat down to table, the doctor said in a voice
of triumph, as he pointed to his two companions,
----- The end of the citation -----
Can you say a formal excuse why "table" in the last sentence
is used without any article?
In the translation of Jules Verne's "The Voyages and Adventures of
Captain Hatteras" (project Gutenberg) there are these "table"
sentences:
----- Beginning of the citation -----
Hatteras unfolded on the table one of the excellent charts
published in 1859 by the order of the Admiralty.
..."Here is the chart of the Polar Seas," resumed the doctor, who
had brought it to the table;
... Johnson and Bell had a good supper awaiting them. But before----- The end of the citation -----
they sat down to table, the doctor said in a voice of triumph, as
he pointed to his two companions,
Can you say a formal excuse why "table" in the last sentence is
used without any article?
My OXFORD CANADIAN DICTIONARY lists "at table" but not "to table".
THE FREE DICTIONARY tells me how to translate "at table " &
to "table" into Spanish, but offers no explanation of the sort you apparently want.
But before they sat down to table, the doctor said
You don't start a sentence with words like "but" and "and".
It would be more appropriate to say, "But before they sat down
to eat," or just, "But before they sat down,", implying that they
were sitting down to dinner.
Indeed, after some thinking I feel that "sat down at table" sounds better.
Based on discussion with Grok: ;-)
Modern English is different from 19th-century English.
In your example, the archaic phrase was retained as it
was written by Jules Verne.
... Johnson and Bell had a good supper awaiting them. But before----- The end of the citation -----
they sat down to table, the doctor said in a voice of triumph,
as he pointed to his two companions,
Can you say a formal excuse why "table" in the last sentence is
used without any article?
My OXFORD CANADIAN DICTIONARY lists "at table" but not "to table".
THE FREE DICTIONARY tells me how to translate "at table " &
to "table" into Spanish, but offers no explanation of the sort you apparently want.
Indeed, after a bit of thinking I feel "sat down at table"
sounds better.
Probably most of books are translated into English by
people who are not Englishmen. They convey the contents
well, but sometimes use prepositions as at home. ;-)
Probably most of books are translated into English by people who
are not Englishmen. They convey the contents well, but sometimes
use prepositions as at home. ;-)
Does the Gutenberg edition you're using provide any information
about who the translator was or about when & where s/he lived?
According to the Vancouver Public Library's summary of this book,
the captain was British & the edition they offer was published by
Oxford University Press. While I know nothing about the translator,
apart from his name, I trust the Oxford University Press to know
how the English language is (or was) spoken in their own country at
the time of publication. VPL users are also invited to share their perception of the library's offerings, and I see that in one review
of another novel by Jules Verne the writer spoke highly of a
Penguin edition in which the translator was named & made a point of
saying he much preferred it to an alternative in which the
translator was not named.
Many people nowadays try to dummify or modernize or sanitize
various classics in English, but when they do the original flavour
is often lost. :-))
COPYRIGHT, 1874.
BY JAMES R. OSGOOD & CO.
UNIVERSITY PRESS: WELCH, BIGELOW, & CO., CAMBRIDGE.
The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Voyages and Adventures of Captain Hatteras, by Jules Verne
BOSTON: JAMES R. OSGOOD AND COMPANY,
LATE TICKNOR & FIELDS, AND FIELDS, OSGOOD, & CO.
1876.
The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Voyages and Adventures
of Captain Hatteras, by Jules Verne
I might just add that I'm somewhat irritated that all the
translations (except for the 2005 which I haven't checked)
seem to be "condensed" in some form.
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