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/lit/ - Literature

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15213379 No.15213379 [Reply] [Original]

all 6 volumes of Proust's ISoLT is only $50 as opposed $100 on Amazon right now. It's the modern library edition (pictured). Is it worth the investment?

>> No.15213383

No

>> No.15213400

>>15213383
Why?

>> No.15213408

I can't still fathom how people can spend so much money on hardcover books which are freely available through public domain when an e-reader comes way cheaper and doesn't even take half the space of physical books.

>> No.15213420

>>15213408
they look nice on a shelf
some people prefer to read a physical book rather than a pdf

>> No.15213427

>>15213379
Yeah that's a steal

>> No.15213433

>>15213379
Has anyone ever read it?

>> No.15213445

>>15213408
Sure, but not everyone is bothered about space. And plus this book was originally written in french. Those free domain version are usually in translations that are somewhat outdated or written in an aged vernacular of English.

>> No.15213459

>>15213427
Why is that? Not trying to arbitrarily question everyone on the thread. Just want to know if it would be smart purchase.

>> No.15213461

>>15213433
Pretty sure plenty of people have read it.

>> No.15213466

>>15213379
Found the first half of Swann's Way in a second hand bookshop earlier this month (some old pocket edition). Now torn between buying the full paperback set, or waiting it out for one of the nice textile-bound hardback editions that pop up on auction sites now and then. The work sadly isn't in print in my language.

>> No.15213478

>>15213459
Well the complete proust is usually more expensive than 50 bucks, and these are all from the same publisher so they look pretty together.
I dunno though man you might not want to read through all of proust, maybe you get through SW and can't get up the motivation. Then you could have just bough SW on an ereader for 2 bucks or whatever.
Personally I'm buying them one at a time as I get the time to read them, physical copies so I can annotate etc.
But for a boxed set of all recherche in decent quality that's pretty cheap

>> No.15213482

>paperback
nah. why is it so expensive?

>> No.15213499

>>15213482
That's less than $10 per book, anon. It's not that crazy.

>> No.15213521

>>15213478
I'm really not bothered by long reads. I've read all of that rubbish song of ice and fire and that's not half as well written.

>> No.15213550

>>15213499
i buy my used books for like 1-2 max. but if i weren't a cheap miser, i'd buy it for sure.

>> No.15213556

>>15213379
What translation is this and does anyone have a good comparison between translations?

>> No.15213559

>>15213445
tee bee heech the vernacular english you're talking about flows smoother than the botched english written by modern self-proclaimed writers. Reading a contemporary english novel is far more challenging than a 18th century work because the authors fills their works with ridiculous regional slangs and jargons which are hardly present in dictionaries, while as far as I can tell in the olden days writers used to share with the other authors a less demanding and more concise diction. So once you'll get the hang of one or two books written in that age, i hardly think the language will be an issue unless you're looking into works which were written in a specific english dialect.

>> No.15213572

>>15213550
It's a highly sought-after item, I suppose, especially if it's complete. At least where I'm from; I imagine it's in print in english.

>> No.15213573

>>15213556
Revised Moncrief

>> No.15213574

>>15213408
do you have a chart for what I should spend money on?

>> No.15213598

>>15213556
Multiple translators. I think this may even be the standard translation that has been around for a while but in a new edition. Some of the translators are native french speakers or Proust scholars. Admittedly, I am not worried about the translation as long as it isn't some antiquated 19th century or 1930-50s dry English with no sense of rhythm or tone. I really just want a complete edition since if I am going to read 5000 pages worth of prose, I want physical proof to show that I did it.

>> No.15213611

>>15213574
Virtually every book that /lit/ considers a masterpiece is either free to download or was written by a deceased author.

>> No.15213620

>>15213611
not what I asked midwit. What else should I spend money on?

>> No.15213622

>>15213573
>>15213598
I'll investigate further into this tomorrow but I might actually buy this, thanks OP

>> No.15213631

>>15213379
I like to imagine that for every individual book that gets shilled on here, it's actually only one guy doing it. Everyone has their book, mine is Pale Fire.
The Infinite Jest guy is easily the most autistic.

>> No.15213633

>>15213620
EA approved charities

>> No.15213644

>>15213620
This but Ubisoft's
>>15213633

>> No.15213656

>>15213631
I have been known to shill the 1908 swedish translation of the Iliad to fellow swedes and scandis. But also Eyvind Johnson's Return to Ithaca.

>> No.15213674

>>15213633
>>15213644
philanthropy goes against my personal values. What else?

>> No.15213722

>>15213674
are you autistic? then buy something that aligns with your personal values

>> No.15213751

>>15213622
Couldn't hold the excitement, booted up my PC, went to Amazon and... they won't ship this to my country even though I've ordered multiple things from them explicitly (selected Amazon as the retailer). Oh well, no Proust for me yet. Good night and good luck to someone else

>> No.15213853

>>15213722
give me a chart for spending money right now or ill bash your head in

>> No.15213872

>>15213751
want me to get it for you, foreigner anon lad?

>> No.15214048
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15214048

liar ; ;

>> No.15214052

>>15213379
You should visit ABE or call Discover and give them the ISBN's of the 3 volume Moncrieff/Kilmartin Vintage edition (Remembrance of Things Past) instead and get them for probably c. $20..

>> No.15214056

>>15213751
Just fucking pirate it for fucks sake.

>> No.15214110

>>15213408
i absolutely can not stand stand e readers. physical copy or nothing for me.

>> No.15214201
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15214201

>>15213379
They're nice if your into that sort of thing. I got them as a gift a few years ago. Still haven't finished it, always get bored by the end of book 2. But since I own them, I'm sure I'll read them eventually. High quality, very aesthetic.

>> No.15214208

>>15213400
Proust is trash

>> No.15214458

>>15213751
Go look at other sellers on Amazon. There's a few that are selling it for even a few dollars less now. I think I'm going to cop a set, I've seen occasional stray copies in used stores, but usually it's only old tattered copies of Swann's Way
>>15214201
Can I get a view of the other side of the box?

>> No.15214503
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15214503

>>15214458
Just text and stuff

>> No.15214516

Do any of you frequent used book sales? I've got a 12-volume set of Proust by Chatto & Windus (1966) which I only paid about $60 for when I found it at a university book sale.

>> No.15214530

>>15214503
Cool was just curious. Thanks

>> No.15214534

>>15213379
It’s always $50 dingus don’t believe that bullshit “sale” price

>> No.15214604

>>15214534
Nah I have looked it up in the past couple months and it was definitely in the $60-70 range at least. Not $100 but still

>> No.15214615

>>15214516
When I was 17 I got nearly 200 "classics" for about $40 at a public library sale, it was amazing. Only a dozen or so were in rough shape or were covered in old library stickers and I've replaced most of those over the years

>> No.15214648

>>15214534
>>15214604
Check camelcamelcamel (price tracker website). the were just $100 early this month.

>> No.15214662

>>15214052
More like $30-40 for a copy in old and grody condition.
Also, stinky, hamfisted English translation based off of unedited and mismanaged manuscripts

>> No.15214685

>>15214662
Is the revised Moncrieff translation well regarded?

>> No.15214722
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15214722

>>15213379
I bought those a few years ago from Amazon and the cassette came with a large tear. Eventually got refunded and they told me not bother sending it back.

>> No.15214730

>>15214685
As far as from what I have read and know, the editor (Andreas Mayor) noticed that there were textual errors, editorial issues, and an overuse of Edwardian English idioms and colloquialisms that Proust would not have intended. So, yeah, it is pretty good and a noticeable step up from the original in terms of readability and sound.

>> No.15214760

Is it worth reading in English? Seems like a work that might not translate well

>> No.15214764

Reading French translated is heresy

>> No.15214773

>>15214760
Neither does Ancient Greek or Ancient Egyptian, but we still read it nonetheless, textual and linguistic mishaps abound.

>> No.15214788

>>15214773
And it's not very good. I found the Iliad pretty bad in English, it lost too much of the poetry aspect, even in the poetic translation I read.

>> No.15214793

>>15214760
I read somewhere that the most well known translation is regarded as a great work of art in and of itself.

>> No.15214801

>>15214793
Then admit you're not reading Proust, nor French litterature

>> No.15214861

the le translation is bad plebs arrive

>> No.15214936

>>15214801
>words and sentences are translated almost 1 to 1
>characters are all the same
>setting is the same
>plot is the same
>every single paragraph has the same content
>It's not real Proust!
Imagine being this retarded. How does translation at all change the substance of the work?

>> No.15215692

>>15213408
those are softcover faggot
source? I own them and you're a gay tripfag

>> No.15216116

>>15213408
wow a tripfag spouting the absolute dumbest shit, imagine my surprise. seek help for your mental illness

>> No.15216998

>>15213379
>only $50
Used for 30 USD or under. Don't.

>> No.15217018

>>15213872
Wouldn't really feel comfortable sharing my address with someone I've never met. Thank you very much, but no.

>>15214056
I don't intend to read 4000 pages on a computer screen.

>>15214458
Will do but I'm kinda apprehensive about other sellers, Amazon has not let me down once. Thanks.

>> No.15217024

>>15213408
>e-reader
hi_reddit

>> No.15217028

>>15217018
Where do you live, anon? Surely your native language has a Proust translation, unless you're an expat anglo?

>> No.15217043

>>15213408
>$50
>so much money
>worrying about space

Have you tried not being poor? Owning nice things is nice sometimes.

>> No.15217054

>>15214793
It is. There is a fairly prestigious translation prize named after it.

>> No.15217074

>>15217028
We've had a translation since 1965, but none of the local or online bookstores seem to sell it. Even if they do have it in tbeir catalogues, no two places list the translation as having the same amount of pages - it freely ranges from 2900 to 4500. And to top it off, they're all more expensive than the most expensive version on Amazon.

>> No.15217083

>>15217074
It's roughly the same for me; our complete translation was done between the mid 60s and early 80s. It's certainly a great translation, but hasn't been in print since 2005. Thankfully it's relatively common on the second hand market, though very popular.

What language is this, by the way?

>> No.15217102

>>15213656
vem är översättaren min goda autist?

>> No.15217118
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15217118

>>15217102
Erland Lagerlöf

>> No.15217127 [DELETED] 

It's worth it if you want to read it. It's the Montcrieff translation, a text that's often upheld as one of the finest accomplishments in English translation. I still kick myself for not stealing one of these boxsets when I had the chance-- I told some bitch where our college was keeping it and by the time I got out of class to grab it, she'd already taken it.

>> No.15217146

>>15213445
>Moncrieff
>outdated
Go back.

>> No.15217159

Is this series worth my time? I’m very interested in it. Can I get a quick explanation of the plot? Is it like a Tolstoy novel?

>> No.15217372

>>15217159
>plot
Oh dear.

It's about a guy with inherited income who spends a bunch of time going to parties, gets sick, then writes a novel. Long sections are just accounts of things like holidays or being in bed or having conversations with other rich people. There are intermittent forays into storytelling. For instance, the second half of the first book is about a love affair across a class divide, most of the fourth book is about the downfall of a successfully closeted gay nobleman. It's substantially the watershed that marks the end of the 19th century novel you're talking about.

>> No.15217421

>>15213379
It's triggering me so hard that those volumes are placed in reverse order