At various points in either film, Mesrine tries to correct someone pronouncing his name with the 's', wanting them to annunciate 'May-reen'.
Is there some significance to this which perhaps only a French person recognises? For example, is 'MeZrine' a working class pronunciation and 'May-reen' a bourgeois affectation? It's not something I'm familiar with.
I'm french, and ive never heard of such significance behind the way you pronounce his name.
All the french known him by the name MeSrine (where you pronounce the S) but since the movie came out, everyone call him "May-Reen"...
I've put this question up on the 'Public Enemy No.1' boards and it has been suggested that voicing the 's' in the middle of Mesrine is an Arabic pronounciation.
shareIn fact, he only wants to have the correct pronunciation . It seems this detail is important for him, you can both say Me(s)rine and MeSrine. Conclusion : this guy was obstinate and very dangerous !
shareI think that you are on the mark when you mention that it might be a bourgeois affectation. It is obviously an easy mistake to make regarding pronunciation.
On a less class-oriented level, in my own line of work, if I am able to pronounce a client's name correctly, I think that it is perceived as being respectful, conscientious, intelligent, and sensitive to other cultures.
Not taking the care to pronounce someone's name correctly implies much of the opposite.
But ultimately, it varies, depending on the individuals in question.
So back to Jacques. He came from an upper middle class upbringing, and it shows in many ways.
It's not really a mistake, it's how to read the name in French (nothing "Arabic" about it, whatever that's supposed to mean). Without the "s" it has a better "flow" so maybe his family decided on an alternate pronunciation at some point, possibly when they climbed up the social ladder. Or maybe he chose this himself, after being taunted at school or something.
shareDefinitively and confirmed silent "s" (mayrine).
---
Dr. Pierson's recommended CATINFO.ORG on how to properly feed your cat(s)
The correct pronunciation is mez-REEN (i.e. the "s" is not silent). Please note the French poster's comment above.
share