That will-o’-the-wisp sense of security which had cheered him when first he had realized how much he owed to the protective wings of Mr. King had been rudely extinguished upon the very day of its birth; he had learnt that Mr. King was a sinister protector; and almost hourly he lived again through the events of that night when, all unwittingly, he had become a witness of strange happenings in the catacombs.
3
Ce sentiment de sécurité trompeur qui l'avait réconforté quand, pour la première fois, il avait compris ce qu'il devait à l'égide de Mr. King, s'était brutalement éteint le premier jour de sa naissance. Il avait appris que Mr. King était un sinistre protecteur et, presque toutes les heures, il revivait les événements de cette nuit quand, à son insu, il était devenu le témoin d'étranges phénomènes dans les catacombes.
Translated by
sitesurf 3116
1 day, 3 hours ago
Discussion
Dans les deux langues, c'est le sentiment de sécurité qui n'a même pas vécu un jour entier.
by sitesurf 3 hours agoJe ne comprends pas " qui s'était brutalement éteint le premier jour de sa naissance"
by Oplusse 14 hours agoMerci Sitesurf.
by francevw 1 day, 1 hour agoThe phrase “will-o’-the-wisp” emerges from early modern English vernacular, denoting a flickering, elusive light observed in marshy terrains. Its components trace to “Will,” a diminutive of William serving as a generic placeholder for a spectral figure, akin to “Jack” in other folk expressions, combined with “o'” as a contraction of “of the,” and “wisp,” referring to a small bundle of ignited material such as hay or straw. This construction evokes an image of a lantern-bearing entity, embodying deception and transience. Variant forms, including “will with the wisp,” underscore its evolution from dialectal speech to standardized idiom, reflecting a broader tradition of personifying natural anomalies as capricious agents.
Source: https://www.theidioms.com/will-o-the-wisp/
by sitesurf 1 day, 3 hours ago