Bonhomme by Georges Brassens

In this pessimistic song Brassens again ponders on the inadequacy of human love because of human frailty and the passage of time and its inevitable ultimate tragedy because of our mortality. What Brassens is describing is life with its natural causes!



BONHOMME - HER GOOD MAN LIES DYING
Malgré la bise ( 1) qui mord,
In spite of the biting wind
La pauvre vieille de somme(2)
The poor old woman of burden
Va ramasser du bois mort
Goes to gather up dead wood
Pour chauffer Bonhomme,
To warm up her fella
Bonhomme qui va mourir
Her fella who’s goin’ t’ die
De mort naturelle
From natural causes

Mélancolique, elle va
Melancholic, on she goes
À travers la forêt blême(3)
Treading through the dimlit forest
Où jadis elle rêva
Where once long ago she dreamt
De celui qu'elle aime,
Of the one whom she loves
Qu'elle aime et qui va mourir
Whom she loves, and who’s goin’ t’ die
De mort naturelle.
From natural causesl


Rien n'arrêtera le cours
Nothing will now stop the progress
De la vieille qui moissonne(3)
Of the old woman who’s pulling out
Le bois mort de ses doigts gourds,
The dead wood with her numb fingers
Ni rien ni personne,
No no thing and no person
Car Bonhomme va mourir
For her fella’s goin’ t’ die
De mort naturelle.
From natural causes



Non, rien ne l'arrêtera
No there’s nothing 'll stop her
Ni cette voix de malheur
Not that inner voice of woe
Qui dit : "Quand tu rentreras
Which says “When you do get back
Chez toi, tout à l'heure
Home, in a little while
Bonhomm' sera déjà mort
Y'r Good Man'll be dead by then
De mort naturelle."
From natural causes

Ni cette autre et sombre voix,
Nor this other, a sombre voice
Montant du plus profond d'elle
Rising from most deep within her
Lui rappeler qu'autrefois
To remind her that in times past
Il fut infidèle,
He had been unfaithful
Car Bonhomme, il va mourir
For her Good Man's goin’ t’ die
De mort naturelle.
From natural causes.

Georges Brassens
1958 - Le pornographe

TRANSLATION NOTES

1)La bise – the cold winter wind
2) Une bête de somme – a beast of burden
3 blême = pale , pallid
4) moissonner= to harvest

PERSONAL COMMENT
I am still undecided about how to translate "bonhomme". The word means"guy- bloke - fella" and in a marital relationship, it is an informal word for "husband" and the informal equivalent in English is "her old man". As the poem is about old age and dying, I did not find it a suitable translation. The word "bonhomme" does not make any stipulation about age but it can still be heard as "Good Man" and there is continuing love and concern in the marriage. "Good man", if used in this sense in the last verse, would add a sad irony. Any informal term should not exclude respect and my use of "fella" might seem dismissive. At present, I am including both terms, which shows indecision if nothing else.
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