[ahi]

Originally Posted by Jellby

No, there should be no guillemot, a guillemet is needed, though.

Damn you, spellcheck!!! You have crossed me for the last time!

Originally Posted by Jellby

It's not exactly a mix, the thing is: A piece of dialogue starts with a guillemet and ends with a guillemet. Character lines inside are marked with an em-dash. The words of the narrator are not separated by anything other than normal punctuation (usually commas), but the closing guillemet comes before the final narrator's words, if any.

Like this:

« Tomorrow, you'll take the case blah blah blah.

-- We will do it, captain, replied Cyrus Smith.

-- Fine. You will blah blah blah. Blah blah blah at the bottom of the sea », said he.

This does not strike Francophones as unaesthetic? Unbalanced guillemets, that is?

The Hungarian and Russian and et cetera approach would be:

-- Tomorrow, you'll take the case blah blah blah.

-- We will do it, captain -- replied Cyrus Smith.

-- Fine. You will blah blah blah. Blah blah blah at the bottom of the sea -- said he.

... and there is even stuff like:

-- Consider, Sir, -- argued the peasant -- that even our Lord Jesus Christ was betrayed by one quite close to him!

- Ahi