|
06 Nov 09 - 05:57 AM (#2760676) Subject: BS: Over-literal so meaningless translations From: MGM·Lion 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? |
|
06 Nov 09 - 07:54 AM (#2760747) Subject: RE: BS: Over-literal so meaningless translations From: Tug the Cox Your postillion has been struck by lightning.....erqually meaningless in any language. |
|
06 Nov 09 - 07:59 AM (#2760754) Subject: RE: BS: Over-literal so meaningless translations From: MartinRyan 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 |
|
06 Nov 09 - 12:19 PM (#2760922) Subject: RE: BS: Over-literal so meaningless translations From: Tug the Cox Nice tale, Martin. Looking forward to a new ballad....'The Stillionman'! |
|
06 Nov 09 - 12:40 PM (#2760945) Subject: RE: BS: Over-literal so meaningless translations From: Bill D 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.. |
|
06 Nov 09 - 05:46 PM (#2761157) Subject: RE: BS: Over-literal so meaningless translations From: Q (Frank Staplin) 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. |
|
06 Nov 09 - 06:10 PM (#2761173) Subject: RE: BS: Over-literal so meaningless translations From: VirginiaTam 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. |
|
07 Nov 09 - 08:13 AM (#2761448) Subject: RE: BS: Over-literal so meaningless translations From: Tug the Cox 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. |
|
07 Nov 09 - 03:35 PM (#2761682) Subject: RE: BS: Over-literal so meaningless translations From: Q (Frank Staplin) Blond enug- Germans or anyone else- |
|
08 Nov 09 - 03:01 PM (#2762264) Subject: RE: BS: Over-literal so meaningless translations From: Genie 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. |
|
08 Nov 09 - 06:43 PM (#2762390) Subject: RE: BS: Over-literal so meaningless translations From: Don(Wyziwyg)T Blond enug eh? Well if he'd said blond genug, I suppose it might have been fair enough. Don T. |
|
08 Nov 09 - 08:07 PM (#2762442) Subject: RE: BS: Over-literal so meaningless translations From: Q (Frank Staplin) blonde more better! Ugh! |
|
08 Nov 09 - 09:25 PM (#2762487) Subject: RE: BS: Over-literal so meaningless translations From: Bill D better? If she's a 'jolie blond', perhaps |
|
09 Nov 09 - 02:01 AM (#2762560) Subject: RE: BS: Over-literal so meaningless translations From: Genie Would "That takes the cake" make sense in any other language but English (or perhaps even just American English)? |
|
09 Nov 09 - 02:21 AM (#2762562) Subject: RE: BS: Over-literal so meaningless translations From: MGM·Lion 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. |