From the book
The Gods Are Athirst
Anatole France · Diotimos Editions · 2026
Browse this book’s lexicon →Meaning
Related words and phrases.
Acte d’accusation is the formal indictment; pièces are documentary items in a case; dossier is the assembled file. Their existence does not guarantee evidential substance. Maubel’s retrieved papers disappoint the prosecutor, yet the file proceeds to what the narrator calls an unprecedentedly hollow indictment. The distinction between paperwork and proof is an indispensable local meaning.
Places to read
- Chapter XVI, paragraph 43FrenchIl n’y a rien là-dedans: there is nothing in them. The deputy dismisses the evidential value of the retrieved documents.
- Chapter XVI, paragraph 45Frenchl’acte d’accusation: the indictment. The narrator calls this formal document strikingly empty.