conne comme un pâté de campagne

[Belgium learner]

I know that pâté de campagne is as food but does it also have another meaning as an idiom?
I read it in a book and could not understand the meaning. It comes from a book i am reading to help my french . it is called "Oscar et la dame rose."

Mamie Rose is an older woman talking to a boy with cancer. She is telling about a wrestler (catcheuse) named Plum Pudding who won fights because she was so fat. But she got worried about dying and lost weight and died.

Oscar says "Elle était conne, Mamie Rose. et Mamie Rose replies "Comme un paté de campagne. Mais c'est très répandu, le paté de campagne. Très courant: She then speaks of people being afraid of death. Les gens craignent de mourir parce qu'ils redoutent l'inconnu.

 

[Kajeetah]

It's not idiomatic. It's a made up expression to stress how stupid that woman was.
Idiomatic expressions include con(ne) comme une table / une chaise / une bite, all quite offensive.
But you can make up your own, as the author with "pâté de campagne"

 

[Belgium learner]

Merci Kajeetah!! So she was just emphasizing what the boy said--that the lady was stupid. But what did she mean when she said Mais c'est très répandu, le paté de campagne. Très courant. That the stupidity about death is pretty common?

 

[moustic]

I think she's just saying that stupidity is rather common, not particularly as regards death.
- Mamie Rose was daft.
- As a brush! And brushes are pretty common ...

 

[Locape]

- Mamie Rose was daft.

Just to say : - She was daft, Mamie Rose (she = the Plum Pudding female wrestler)
I see daft as a brush is a common expression in English, while con.ne comme un pâté de campagne isn’t in French. Could daft as a banana (or some other food ) convey the same effect (odd but funny) in English as in French?

daft as a brush adj	UK, regional, informal (person: silly, unintelligent) (vulgaire)	con comme un balai adj
	Take no notice of him, he's daft as a brush.
	(familier)	bête comme ses pieds adj
	Ne fais pas attention à lui, il est bête comme ses pieds.

 

[wildan1]

I see daft as a brush is a common expression in English, while con.ne comme un pâté de campagne isn’t in French

As the dictionary entry above notes, it is a regional expression in the UK. I've never heard it nor would I necessarily understand its meaning correctly. I'm not sure how "common" it is in BE.

In AE possibly She's as crazy as a loon. And over here that is a well known expression.

All that being said, in AE daft means crazy (not stupid) not a real translation for conne, which means stupid, dumb.

I can't think of any AE expression comparing a stupid person to any foods.

Perhaps She's as dumb as dirt.

So careful of what version of English you are using!

 

[Louis XI]

In rural France (e.g. in Berry) you hear: Il est con comme une herse.

 

[Louis XI]

As the dictionary entry above notes, it is a regional expression in the UK. I've never heard it nor would I necessarily understand its meaning correctly. I'm not sure how "common" it is in BE.

In AE possibly She's as crazy as a loon. And over here that is a well known expression.

All that being said, in AE daft means crazy (not stupid) not a real translation for conne, which means stupid, dumb.

I can't think of any AE expression comparing a stupid person to any foods.

Perhaps She's as dumb as dirt.

So careful of what version of English you are using!

You can make some up😉:
. Dumb as a potato
. Dumb as a bag of popcorn
. Dumb as a box of cereal
etc.

There are many expressions using the "dumb as a..." pattern:
. Dumb as a (fence)post
. Dumb as a rock
. Dumb as a bag of hammers
. Dumb as a stump
. Dumb as a pile of bricks
. Dumb as a pile of rocks
etc.

 

[Keith Bradford]

As daft as a barmpot, perhaps. (A pot for storing yeast, therefore foamy on top, airhead.)

 

[moustic]

Could daft as a banana (or some other food ) convey the same effect (odd but funny) in English as in French?

You're right that we would need to invent an expression to translate "con comme un pâté de campagne" rather than using an existing expression.

Sorry, as daft as a banana doesn't work for me I'm afraid and apparently "daft" (= silly, stupid) would only work in a BE context anyway.
By the way, the expression daft as a brush, though it may have started off as a regionalism, is widely known and used in the UK. (Lots of theories on line as to its etymology / origin).

Maybe the use of alliteration could help coin a funny sounding phrase? -> dumb as a pack of pretzels ?

 

[moustic]

As daft as a barmpot, perhaps. (A pot for storing yeast, therefore foamy on top, airhead.)

It's a long time since I last heard that (one of my mother's favourite insults).

Barmpot
(Northern England, informal, derogatory) An idiot, an objectionable and foolish person.

 

[mehoul]

You're right that we would need to invent an expression to translate "con comme un pâté de campagne" rather than using an existing expression.

Dumb as a can of corned beef (lacking its key)

 

[wildan1]

There are many expressions using the "dumb as a..." pattern:
. Dumb as a (fence)post
. Dumb as a rock
. Dumb as a bag of hammers
. Dumb as a stump
. Dumb as a pile of bricks
. Dumb as a pile of rocks
etc.

Yes, and if you want some alliteration: dumb as dirt.

 

[ain'ttranslationfun?]

And if we're being alliterative, she'd add "And dirt is pretty common."* Otherwise, "And rocks/hammers are pretty common." But "common as dirt" is a derogative (BE more than AM perhaps?) expression referring to someone's background/upbringing/social class.
*The alliteration in FR is with "campagne", not pâté.