AtD translation: though to what pleasures given posed a question far too dangerous

[Monte Davis]

Odalisques were imagined as "given to" (accustomed to, fond of, trained
for) pleasures. The inversion "to what pleasures given" is poetic diction
common in English poetry (or ornate prose) of the 16th-19th centuries,
faintly archaic in this context. "Far too dangerous": in parallel with the
other descriptions -- we're not even sure if that's a face, or human --
what awful activities might give it pleasure?

On Thu, Feb 15, 2018 at 7:56 AM, Mike Jing <gravitys.rainbow.cn at gmail.com>
wrote:

> P141.24-32   “More like due diligence,” replied Dr. Counterfly, “and a
> respect for probabilities.” He gestured toward the image transmitted by the
> prisms of the instrument, which had been growing steadily clearer, like a
> fateful dawn none await with any eagerness. Too soon we discovered that we
> could not look away. Though details were still difficult to make out, the
> Figure appeared to recline on its side, an odalisque of the snows—though to
> what pleasures given posed a question far too dangerous—with as little
> agreement among us as to its “facial” features, some describing them as
> “Mongoloid,” others as “serpent-like.”
>
> What does "to what pleasures given" mean?
>
>
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