Review – Le Ton beau de Marot, by Hofstadter

Le Ton beau de Marot - Amazon affiliate link

Le Ton beau de Marot, by Douglas Hofstadter.

Hofstadter explores “What does it mean to translate?” with dozens of versions of the French poem “A une Damoyselle malady” by Marot. Some try to capture the meaning, others the poetry, others the essence. His writing still has the wit shown in his other books.

If you’re interested in artificial intelligence, foreign languages, or translation, you’ll find it interesting.

It’s not the sort of thing you (or at least I) could sit down and read in a sitting (pushing 600 pages as it does). But I found it suitable for reading in small chunks. And I enjoyed it in its totality.