Je suis plein was actually used (in this sense)
by my very French teacher at the Alliance
Francaise in Paris as an example of a common
amusing mistake that foreigners make. And I've
heard it in the sense of human pregnancy on more
than one occasion, although properly it only
applies to les betes. I have no idea how current
it is in its proper sense--I'd have to hang out
on a farm or at the vet's, I guess.
Mark
At 09:48 PM 3/27/2006, you wrote:
>From: Pierre Joris <[log in to unmask]>
>Date: March 27, 2006 9:40:09 PM EST
>To: Poetryetc provides a venue for a dialogue relating to poetry and
>poetics <[log in to unmask]>
>Subject: Re: plein/pregnant
>
>
>Mark — never saw a french person pull out a dictionary while talking.
>Worse: never heard in years of hanging with the French in France a
>pregnancy referred to that way. In the 9 months Nicole was pregnant
>wiht Miles, I never once heard her or anyone else refer to her
>pregnancy as "plein." I've heard human pregnancy called "avoir un
>polichinelle dans le tiroir" & about 200 other wierd/wild things,
>but not "plein". In the sense of pregnancy it is applied only to
>animals. But hey! who am I to say, am not even french — and us
>Luxemburgers got wierd speaking habits anyway...
>
>Pierre
>
>On Mar 27, 2006, at 5:52 PM, Mark Weiss wrote:
>
>>Dictionary has both meanings, Pierre. And a lot of us have been
>>corrected in exactly the terms Steve was. But context determines a
>>lot.
>>
>>Mark
>>
>>At 05:41 PM 3/27/2006, you wrote:
>>>nope, Steve — in French pregant wld have been "je suis enceinte."
>>>what you said "je suis plein" announced that you were loaded to the
>>>gills, drunk out of your skull, wasted. -- Pierre
>>>
>>>On Mar 27, 2006, at 5:07 PM, Stephen Vincent wrote:
>>>
>>>>>I just spoke to a friend who's newly pregnant, and I heard myself
>>>>>using the phrase "with child." Seems an interesting locution.
>>>>>Unknown
>>>>>in latin languages--the French are full when pregnant (and
>>>>>satisfied
>>>>>after a meal), for instance.
>>>>In my rather intimate experience in this matter, the French either
>>>>frown or
>>>>laugh at the expression, "Je suis plein", after a good meal. One
>>>>formally
>>>>says, "J'ai bien mange." (with an accent).
>>>>
>>>>I learned this first as an exchange student in Normandy - sitting
>>>>between my
>>>>16 and 18 year old 'sisters' (already infatuated, as it were) - at
>>>>the end
>>>>of my first lunch and announcing to one and all, "Je suis plein."
>>>>The girls
>>>>blushed and the parents looked confused at my whacky French.
>>>>Only later to learn from the sisters that I had announced that I was
>>>>pregnant. My turn to blush.
>>>>
>>>>Oh well - all artists - at least occasionally - on some level or
>>>>other "are
>>>>pregnant." I guess I was precocious!
>>>>
>>>>Stephen V
>>>
>>>==============================================
>>>"Blasphemy is a victimless crime." -- a t-shirt sent to Salman
>>>Rushdie in the days of the Satanic Verses fatwa.
>>>==============================================
>>>Pierre Joris
>>>244 Elm Street
>>>Albany NY 12202
>>>h: 518 426 0433
>>>c: 518 225 7123
>>>o: 518 442 40 85
>>>Euro cell: 011 33 6 79 368 446
>>>email: [log in to unmask]
>>>http://pierrejoris.com
>>>Nomadics blog: http://pjoris.blogspot.com
>>>=========================
>
>==============================================
>"Blasphemy is a victimless crime." -- a t-shirt sent to Salman
>Rushdie in the days of the Satanic Verses fatwa.
>==============================================
>Pierre Joris
>244 Elm Street
>Albany NY 12202
>h: 518 426 0433
>c: 518 225 7123
>o: 518 442 40 85
>Euro cell: 011 33 6 79 368 446
>email: [log in to unmask]
>http://pierrejoris.com
>Nomadics blog: http://pjoris.blogspot.com
>=========================
>
>
>
>==============================================
>"Blasphemy is a victimless crime." -- a t-shirt sent to Salman
>Rushdie in the days of the Satanic Verses fatwa.
>==============================================
>Pierre Joris
>244 Elm Street
>Albany NY 12202
>h: 518 426 0433
>c: 518 225 7123
>o: 518 442 40 85
>Euro cell: 011 33 6 79 368 446
>email: [log in to unmask]
>http://pierrejoris.com
>Nomadics blog: http://pjoris.blogspot.com
>=========================
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