The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #104611 Message #4175859
Posted By: GerryM
30-Jun-23 - 09:18 AM
Thread Name: Origins: Un Canadien Errant
Subject: ADD Version: Un Canadien Errant
Seven verse version – I neglected to make a note of where (on the web) I found it:
UN CANADIEN ERRANT
Un Canadien errant, Banni de ses foyers, Parcourait en pleurant Des pays étrangers.
Un jour, triste et pensif, Assis au bord des flots, Au courant fugitif Il adressa ces mots:
"Si tu vois mon pays, Mon pays malheureux, Va, dis à mes amis Que je me souviens d'eux.
"Ô jours si pleins d'appas Vous êtes disparus, Et ma patrie, hélas! Je ne la verrai plus!
Plongé dans les malheurs, Loin de mes chers parents,... Je passe dans les pleurs, D'infortunés moments....
Pour jamais séparé Des amis de mon coeur,... Hélas! oui, je mourrai, Je mourrai de douleur....
"Non, mais en expirant, Ô mon cher Canada! Mon regard languissant Vers toi se portera..."
Third line of third stanza, some versions have "Va, dis" while others have "Va dire". The first, I think, is "Va", imperative of "aller", meaning, Go!, followed by "dis", imperative of "dire", meaning say!, so it's "Go! Say to my friends...." The other version, "Va dire" is the future imperative. Just as English has "I'm going to do (whatever)" as a future tense, roughly equivalent to "I will do (whatever)", French has "Je vais faire", and "va faire" is the imperative form. So I think either one is correct French (but I will yield to anyone who actually speaks the language).