BS: Over-literal so meaningless translations

Subject: BS: Over-literal so meaningless translations
From: MGM·Lion
Date: 06 Nov 09 - 05:57 AM

The example which comes most readily to mind is the title of Truffaut's great film "Les Quatre Cents Coups", which film distributors, film guides, &c, will entitle "The Four Hundred Blows" — a phrase which has no meaning whatsoever in English. Surely some among them should know that "faire les quatre cents coups" [the number of hundreds can vary, but 'quatre' is a common one] is an idiomatic French expression meaning "to kick up a ruckus" or "to paint the town red".

Any other examples of foreign phrases being deprived of all meaning by over-literalness in their standard translations?

Subject: RE: BS: Over-literal so meaningless translations
From: Tug the Cox
Date: 06 Nov 09 - 07:54 AM

Your postillion has been struck by lightning.....erqually meaningless in any language.

Subject: RE: BS: Over-literal so meaningless translations
From: MartinRyan
Date: 06 Nov 09 - 07:59 AM

Tug-the-cox

My late father would have recognised that one, I suspect. He drove a truck for Guinness's brewery all his life. For most of that time, he would have had a workmate in the cab with him whose official title was 'stillionman!

I don't remember him having a lightning strike - but I do recall his comment on how he reacted once when his 'stillionman had an epileptic fit. " I got out of the cab and closed the door..."

Regards

Subject: RE: BS: Over-literal so meaningless translations
From: Tug the Cox
Date: 06 Nov 09 - 12:19 PM

Nice tale, Martin. Looking forward to a new ballad....'The Stillionman'!

Subject: RE: BS: Over-literal so meaningless translations
From: Bill D
Date: 06 Nov 09 - 12:40 PM

Wolfgang & I once had an exchange about the German phrase "quatsch mit sauce"... which sort of literally means "nonsense with gravy", but seems to be used to indicate 'total disdain for an opinion or situation...with an aura of foolishness added'. Highly colloquial..

Subject: RE: BS: Over-literal so meaningless translations
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 06 Nov 09 - 05:46 PM

Truffaut film-
The film for region 2 (North America is region 1) is titled "Les 400 Coups." Seemingly all editions are out-of-print at this time, but used copies of the region 2 film are not expensive.
Anyone who collects European films will have a region-free DVD player, so can select among the issues that are available.
A region 1 and 4 edition is available, "Los 400 Golpes", but subtitles only in Spanish.

Subject: RE: BS: Over-literal so meaningless translations
From: VirginiaTam
Date: 06 Nov 09 - 06:10 PM

Don't know if this applies

But I never understood why the French renamed the film "Home Alone",
Maman, j'ai raté l'avion, which translated means "Mother, I missed the plane" (I think).

weird.

Subject: RE: BS: Over-literal so meaningless translations
From: Tug the Cox
Date: 07 Nov 09 - 08:13 AM

A brirish soldier I knew of was serving in Germany, and was picking up bits of the language. WEhen given an order, he would often reply 'Blond Enug' don't know what bystanding germans may have thought.

Subject: RE: BS: Over-literal so meaningless translations
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 07 Nov 09 - 03:35 PM

Blond enug- Germans or anyone else-

Subject: RE: BS: Over-literal so meaningless translations
From: Genie
Date: 08 Nov 09 - 03:01 PM

I imagine many coloquial terms of endearment, such as "mon petit(e) chou" ("my little cabbage), would sound pretty silly and maybe taken the wrong way if translated literally into other languages.

Subject: RE: BS: Over-literal so meaningless translations
From: Don(Wyziwyg)T
Date: 08 Nov 09 - 06:43 PM

Blond enug eh?

Well if he'd said blond genug, I suppose it might have been fair enough.

Don T.

Subject: RE: BS: Over-literal so meaningless translations
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 08 Nov 09 - 08:07 PM

blonde more better! Ugh!

Subject: RE: BS: Over-literal so meaningless translations
From: Bill D
Date: 08 Nov 09 - 09:25 PM

better? If she's a 'jolie blond', perhaps

Subject: RE: BS: Over-literal so meaningless translations
From: Genie
Date: 09 Nov 09 - 02:01 AM

Would "That takes the cake" make sense in any other language but English (or perhaps even just American English)?

Subject: RE: BS: Over-literal so meaningless translations
From: MGM·Lion
Date: 09 Nov 09 - 02:21 AM

Quite so — and the point of my OP was that the film distributors who translated 'Les 400 Coups' as 'The 400 Blows' were performing an act equivalent to saying that something "prends le gateau". It should have been called something like "Kicking Up A Storm", or some such, to render the original title idiomatically: but "The 400 Blows" just has no meaning, and makes no sort of idiomatic impact, in English.