川上弘美著の『センセイの鞄』、"The Briefcase" をAllison Markin Powell氏による英語の翻訳版で読むことにしました。日本の小説を読むのは６年以上前に清水義範氏の一連の作品を読んで以来と思いましたが、村上春樹氏の "Pinball, 1973" を昨年の秋に読んでいました（やはり英語の翻訳版です）。作品の舞台が現代の日本なので非常に読みやすく、日本に特有の諸々が出てきて、それを英語でこんな風に表現するのかと、英語版ならではの読書の楽しみがあります。（これは日本文学の鑑賞からすると邪道？） 主人公の "Tsukiko"（多分「月子」でしょう）はお酒好きのようです。
Sensei took one of the rice crackers and tilted his teacup as he refilled it with sake. "My wife was the kind of person who didn't think things through." "I see." "She just loved the things she loved, and hated the things she hated." "Oh." "These kaki no tane are from Niigata. They're good and spicy." The piquant burn of the crackers really did go quite well with sake.
私も「柿の種」は好物で、家ではコーヒーを飲む時に「柿の種」を食べることがあります。ビールを飲む時はつまみに「かっぱえびせん」を食べ、ＴＶでラグビー観戦するのが楽しみです。 話が脱線しましたが、上記引用文に出てきた "piquant burn of" の "piquant" を今日は覚えたいと思います。 この単語はこの後にも次ぎの個所に出て来ました。
The "recipe" was konnyaku, which had been stewed with a stronger flavor than the way Satoru made it.This konnyaku was piquant with red pepper.
"piquant" は外来語の響きがしますね。 ここでの意味は辞書を引くまでもなく、「ピリリ/ピリッと辛い」と推測できますが、辞書で確認します。
・Collins Dictionary: .having an agreeably pungent or tart taste: The beef was rare and soft as butter, the bread still warm from the oven, the cheese ripe and piquant.
・Vocabulary.com: having an agreeably pungent taste: Coming to us from the French word piquer, which means "to prick," something that's piquant certainly piques your interest. Someone who's piquant engages you with charm and wit. A story that's filled with piquant details has plenty of juicy, provocative points. And grandma's homemade gravy? It's certainly zesty and piquant, even with all the lumps.
フランス語から来たのですね。 "prick" と親戚だというのは分かり易い。
Sensei took one of the rice crackers and tilted his teacup as he refilled it with sake. "My wife was the kind of person who didn't think things through." "I see." "She just loved the things she loved, and hated the things she hated." "Oh." "These kaki no tane are from Niigata. They're good and spicy." The piquant burn of the crackers really did go quite well with sake.
私も「柿の種」は好物で、家ではコーヒーを飲む時に「柿の種」を食べることがあります。ビールを飲む時はつまみに「かっぱえびせん」を食べ、ＴＶでラグビー観戦するのが楽しみです。 話が脱線しましたが、上記引用文に出てきた "piquant burn of" の "piquant" を今日は覚えたいと思います。 この単語はこの後にも次ぎの個所に出て来ました。
The "recipe" was konnyaku, which had been stewed with a stronger flavor than the way Satoru made it.This konnyaku was piquant with red pepper.
"piquant" は外来語の響きがしますね。 ここでの意味は辞書を引くまでもなく、「ピリリ/ピリッと辛い」と推測できますが、辞書で確認します。
・Collins Dictionary: .having an agreeably pungent or tart taste: The beef was rare and soft as butter, the bread still warm from the oven, the cheese ripe and piquant.
・Vocabulary.com: having an agreeably pungent taste: Coming to us from the French word piquer, which means "to prick," something that's piquant certainly piques your interest. Someone who's piquant engages you with charm and wit. A story that's filled with piquant details has plenty of juicy, provocative points. And grandma's homemade gravy? It's certainly zesty and piquant, even with all the lumps.
フランス語から来たのですね。 "prick" と親戚だというのは分かり易い。
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