‘Luxuriante Jungle’: French translation of John Still’s ‘Jungle Tide’ by Mahendra Pathirathne

Luxuriante Jungle

Reviewed by Alfred Fernando

‘Jungle Tide’ is a book written by John Still, an Englishman who served in the colonial Ceylon as a planter then as an archaeological surveyor under H.C.P. Bell for nearly half a decade. 

He undertook the massive task of travelling all over Ceylon before he commenced writing this book which is now considered a landmark in the field of literature not only domestically but also in the world at large. Among the English educated elderly, there is hardly anyone who has not read it. Any English educated person in Sri Lanka would find it embarrassing to have to admit that he is not familiar with ‘Jungle Tide’.

Why all this harangue, you would ask. Well the exciting news is that Sri Lanka’s veteran French scholar Mahendra Pathirathne, has just published the French translation of John Still’s ‘Jungle Tide’.

Well, a French book? Who’ll read it? Some people might wonder. Well, so did I at the beginning. It is true that the readership is limited. But it is not dauntingly low at all. At the University of Peradeniya Professor Ravily, a Frenchman, was already teaching French as a subject to undergraduates in the ’50s. 

The Universities of Kelaniya and Sri Jayewardenepura followed suit. Since then Sri Lankan system of education and of course the Alliance Française network must have produced thousands of graduates and students conversant in French. Hence, Luxuriante Jungle will be received delightfully by many local readers. At the same time any French speaker who would like to know what sort of country Sri Lanka is, I’m sure is going to benefit enormously from reading it.

In at least some of our universities; francophone literature is a domain being exploited. In addition, in some of our universities, a subject by the name ‘translation methods’ is taught. I’m sure this wonderful Luxuriante Jungle will be immensely useful in those two fields.

A word about the translator himself, Pathirathne is a man of a rare breed. Instead of undertaking a task which would have been financially more rewarding, he decided to attend to this formidable task of translating Jungle Tide into French as French is a language after his own heart. Right from the beginning he had realised how hard this task would be. 

He has spent six long years to translate the entire book while attending to his day-to-day work. The specialised task of going through the translation to correct it if necessary was entrusted to two native French speakers Gilles Gaveau and Chantal Martyre who in their turn worked for three more years to perfect the translation that it is.

This excellent book among, other things, fills up a gap that has constantly perturbed G.C.E. Advanced level teachers and students who are involved in learning and teaching French. This gap created by the lack of reading materials in French. This book, will fill up the whole of his two year learning career with the result of giving him or/her a sound knowledge of the language. It will not be a crutch but a ladder!

I have known Pathirathne for over 15 years. But it was only recently that I came to know he has done his Masters at the Sorbonne, Paris where he studied applied linguistics under the guidance of eminent professor Danielle-Laroche Bouvy in the late ’80s. 

He also owes a debt of gratitude to late Professor Ashley Halpe, former Dean of the faculty of Arts/Professor of English, University of Peradeniya with whom he had discussed the translation. So, it is no wonder that he has completed this massive task in a manner that will satisfy the most fastidious critic.

However, this is not the first time that Pathirathne has contributed to enhancement of learning and teaching French language in Sri Lanka. As a teacher of French he is excellent and his lessons are often spiced with subtle humour which not only renders them interesting but also helps students remember key points. 

He has written a book of model answers ‘Les annales du bac’ – 17 years of G.C.E. Advanced level question papers from 1990 to 2016. In addition, he has to his credit a book entitled ‘Pratique de la compréhension écrite’ which helps students with reading comprehension. This is a book containing 40 sample texts accompanied by 720 exercises followed by solutions at the end of the book. 

He has translated a few children’s stories into French (Asian Publications Distribution Agency) and compiled a book of literary extracts from great French authors for G.C.E. A.L. students – edited by late professor of English, Ashley Halpe (N.I.E publication). ‘Exercices pour l’apprentissage du français’ for G.C.E. A/L students (N.I.E. publication). Very recently he translated into French the script of Sudath Mahadivulvewa’s film ‘Red Milk’. So, as you can see, Pathirathne is a man to reckon with.

As I went through ‘Luxuriante Jungle,’ there were many of its features that struck me. To begin with, I did not come across any expressions or words which would be identified as Franglais, which is often the characteristic of French written by the English-educated Sri Lankans. 

Secondly, the smooth flow of the language gives you the impression that it has been written by a native speaker of French. Thirdly, as I was already familiar with ‘Jungle Tide’, when I was asked to read this translation, I should have noticed any oddities in the text. The curious fact was that I never even once had the impression that I was already familiar with either the background or the incidents.  

When I read Pathirathne’s translation ‘Luxuriante Jungle’ it was very pleasant to read such quality, style and strength of the language the translator has adopted. They make the reader step into a world that he has never before heard of. If not for my limitations of French vocabulary, I would have read it from cover to cover in one go!