English Translations: Anthea Bell & Derek Hockridge
Copyright © 1965 Goscinny & Uderzo
Abstract
When the Romans try to blockade the Gaulish village, Asterix & Obelix break out and go on a tour of Gaul to collect the local delicacies around the country. The Romans try and stop them every step of the way...
Table 5.1. Asterix and the Banquet - Annotations
| Page, Panel | Comment |
|---|---|
| Page 3, Panel 8 | Exegi monumentum aere perennius = I have built a monument more lasting than bronze (Horace, Odes III.xxx.i). |
| Page 4, Panel 8 | Caius Fatuous: from Asterix the Gladiator |
| Page 6, Panel 6 | People in Normandy are noted for the expression "Maybe, maybe not" (in French: "Pt'et'ben qu'oui, pt'et'ben qu'non..." with a heavy country accent). |
| Page 10, Panel 3 | Matron: old lady |
| Page 11, Panel 5 | Humbug: striped hard round mint candy |
| Page 13, Panel 9 | Magnum: bottle holding 2/5 gallon of wine, twice as much as a usual bottle |
| Page 14, Panel 4 | Brut: very dry; Sec: dry; Demi-sec: somewhat dry; Doux: (douce) sweet. Dry here means not sweet. |
| Page 14, Panel 5 | Mumms is a brand of Champagne (they are in Reims after all - the home of champagne). All the bottles carry the characteristic red stripe of Mumms. |
| Page 20, Panel 2 | That's the symbol of the French Post Offices (PTT Postes, Telegrammes et Telephones) |
| Page 23, Panel 4 | A reference to Hansel and Gretel. |
| Page 24, Panel 4 |
The logo is a play on BP (British Petroleum)
"If ifs and ands were cauldrons and amphoras...." = A play on the lines "If ifs and ands were pots and pans...." in the nursery rhyme that begins "If wishes were horses". |
| Page 25, Panel 3 | In the original French, this cart has a license plate that looks like the ones in use in France today, with a little "G" (for Gaul) sticker. |
| Page 26, Panel 8 | Mistral: cold, dry north wind that blows over the Mediterranean region of France. Vesuvius didn't erupt till 79 AD. |
| Page 27, Panel 2 | We see the French actor Raimu caricatured in this panel. This is also a take off on the card-playing scene in the French movie 'Marius'. Also see annotations for Page 28, Panel 6 below. |
| Page 27, Panel 7 | Pastis: A yellowish French cordial wine flavored with licorice and aniseed. Very popular in Southern France; associated by many to holidays and hot summer days. Like the Turkish 'raki', Lebanese 'arak' or the Greek 'ouzo'. |
| Page 28, Panel 6 | A take off on the Petanque game scene on the old French movie 'Fanny'. Both 'Marius' (see annotations for Page 27, Panel 2 above) and 'Fanny' were originally theatre plays (and leter films) by the French author Marcel Pagnol. Fanny, Marius and Cesar, together, make the Pagnol trilogy. There is most probably a caricature of the film Cesar here as well??? |
| Page 28, Panel 8 | The French Revolution, 1789 AD, and "La Marseillaise," the French national anthem. |
| Page 33, Panel 2 | Aginum = Roman name for Agen. |
| Page 40, Panel 9 | Victrix causa diis placuit sed victa catoni = The victorious cause pleases the gods, but the conquered one pleases Cato [the younger] (Lucan, Pharsalia I.128) |
Table 5.2. Asterix the Gaul - Names