Nov 24, 2018 21:52
5 yrs ago
1 viewer *
French term
manquer un bras et une jambe
Non-PRO
French to English
Art/Literary
Poetry & Literature
codes
Sans Anna, la vie n’avait plus de sens ni de goût. Dan sentait son corps mais il lui manquait un bras et une jambe, une partie du cœur aussi.
science fiction/fantasy Parisian French
is it literal or an expression? Must be idiomatic expression, I think
science fiction/fantasy Parisian French
is it literal or an expression? Must be idiomatic expression, I think
Proposed translations
(English)
Proposed translations
+2
7 mins
Barbara Cochran, MFA
United States
United States
Native in English
Specializes in field
United States
Laudable Lady Linguist
Native in: English 
Works in: Spanish to English, French to English, English to Spanish, and 3 more.
Related KudoZ points
:
16
Selected
he felt as if he were missing an arm and a leg
I think that the literal works quite well in this case, because he goes on to talk about how a piece of his heart was missing, too.
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Note added at 8 mins (2018-11-24 22:00:50 GMT)
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"take a little piece of my heart"-the late Janis Joplin
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Note added at 3 hrs (2018-11-25 01:14:02 GMT)
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Or "it seemed as if he were missing..." to avoid repetition (he could feel his body..."
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Note added at 8 mins (2018-11-24 22:00:50 GMT)
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"take a little piece of my heart"-the late Janis Joplin
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Note added at 3 hrs (2018-11-25 01:14:02 GMT)
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Or "it seemed as if he were missing..." to avoid repetition (he could feel his body..."
Peer comment(s):
| neutral |
Thomas T. Frost
: You could easily say 'part of him was missing without her'; this text just makes it a bit more concrete. Perhaps one could say 'a leg and an arm' to avoid evoking the unrelated idiom 'cost an arm and a leg'.//On second thought, Phil is right.
7 mins
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| agree |
David Hollywood
: don't see any reason not to go literal here
1 hr
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Thank you, David.
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| neutral |
philgoddard
: It doesn't say "he felt as if".
9 hrs
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| neutral |
katsy
: agree with Phil. Even if it is not literally true, the author states it as a metaphor not a simile.
12 hrs
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| neutral |
writeaway
: agree with phil and katsy. you are embellishing/over-translating. adding elements not present in or suggested by the French original /context is sci-fi
13 hrs
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He wasn't actually missing and arm and a leg, in the literal sense, which is what Maria's translation implies./The author is talking about human feelings, not an invasive operation, IMO, unless more context would prove me wrong.
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| agree |
ph-b (X)
: I agree that the 'feeling' bit is important - it's there at the beginning of the sentence (sentait) and you're definitely not embellishing or over-translating or suggesting something that is not there.
2 days 17 hrs
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Thank you very much, ph-b.
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4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
+5
11 mins
Maria Iglesia Ramos
Spain
Spain
Works in field
Spain
Also an interpreter (medical, court)
Native in: Spanish
Works in: English to Spanish, Spanish to English, French to Spanish, and 3 more.
he was missing an arm and a leg
This is first thing that came to mind. I hope it helps.
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
David Hollywood
: ok too but prefer the subjunctive "were" in this case... not such a big deal in English usually but here I would go with "were"
1 hr
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Thank you so much David.
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| agree |
philgoddard
: The subjunctive wouldn't make sense.
9 hrs
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Thank you philgoddar!
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| agree |
katsy
12 hrs
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Thank you Katsy!
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| agree |
writeaway
: oeuf corse. whatever else could it be?
13 hrs
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Thank you Writeaway!
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| neutral |
Barbara Cochran, MFA
: Without more context, it would seem that he wasn't actually missing and arm and a leg, in the literal sense.
15 hrs
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Thank you Barbara!
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| agree |
Elisabeth Gootjes
: absolutely!
2 days 18 hrs
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Thank you so much Elisabeth!
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21 hrs
he was missing an arm, a leg and ...
I think it's important to avoid "he was missing an arm and a leg" because the echo of the expression "it cost him an arm and a leg" could make this unintentionally comic.
Peer comment(s):
| neutral |
philgoddard
: I don't think there's any risk of confusion.
11 hrs
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No risk of confusion, just a risk of reaction to it as comic.
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+1
1 day 20 hrs
Eliza Hall
United States
United States
Native in English
Specializes in field
United States
Lawyer-Translator-Certified Interpreter
Native in: English (Variants: British, UK, US, Scottish, Canadian, Irish)
Works in: French to English, English to French
it was missing an arm and a leg
Copying from discussion entry, and adding another comment:
I don't agree that the author omitted the concept of Dan feeling like he was missing some limbs. There's nothing literal there; it's clearly a metaphor.
Dan sentait son corps -- there's the "feeling." IMHO, in colloquial English this would be best translated not by "felt" but by "could feel." Sometimes the French imparfait works better in English as could + verb. As we all know, English and French verb tenses are not the same; for instance, "j'ai vu" could be "I have seen" OR "I saw," and you have to choose the right one based on context and feel. The same is true of the imparfait -- it's not always best translated with the simple past.
il lui manquait -- il manquait AU CORPS (et non pas à Dan). So he could feel his body, but that feeling was of a body that was missing certain parts.
Possible translation: "He could feel his body but it was missing an arm and a leg, and part of the heart as well."
I think that translation stays closest to the original. This turn of phrase (it was missing, not he was missing) favors the interpretation that Dan's "feeling" applies to the whole sentence, so this sense of missing limbs is figurative or imaginary rather than literal. But also, by not saying "it felt like he was missing," it retains the presumably purposeful ambiguity of the original. It also avoids repeating "feels," which of course is not repeated in the original.
I don't agree that the author omitted the concept of Dan feeling like he was missing some limbs. There's nothing literal there; it's clearly a metaphor.
Dan sentait son corps -- there's the "feeling." IMHO, in colloquial English this would be best translated not by "felt" but by "could feel." Sometimes the French imparfait works better in English as could + verb. As we all know, English and French verb tenses are not the same; for instance, "j'ai vu" could be "I have seen" OR "I saw," and you have to choose the right one based on context and feel. The same is true of the imparfait -- it's not always best translated with the simple past.
il lui manquait -- il manquait AU CORPS (et non pas à Dan). So he could feel his body, but that feeling was of a body that was missing certain parts.
Possible translation: "He could feel his body but it was missing an arm and a leg, and part of the heart as well."
I think that translation stays closest to the original. This turn of phrase (it was missing, not he was missing) favors the interpretation that Dan's "feeling" applies to the whole sentence, so this sense of missing limbs is figurative or imaginary rather than literal. But also, by not saying "it felt like he was missing," it retains the presumably purposeful ambiguity of the original. It also avoids repeating "feels," which of course is not repeated in the original.
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
ph-b (X)
: Indeed - on seeing the q, I immediately thought of "D. could feel his body but it felt as if he was/were? missing..."
21 hrs
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Discussion
Dan sentait son corps -- there's the "feeling." IMHO, in colloquial English this would be best translated not by "felt" but by "could feel." Sometimes the French imparfait works better in English as could + verb. As we all know, English and French verb tenses are not the same; for instance, "j'ai vu" could be "I have seen" OR "I saw," and you have to choose the right one based on context and feel. The same is true of the imparfait -- it's not always best translated with the simple past.
il lui manquait -- il manquait AU CORPS (et non pas à Dan). So he could feel his body, but that feeling was of a body that was missing certain parts.
Possible translation: He could feel his body but it was missing an arm and a leg, and part of the heart as well