Glossary entry (derived from question below)
Spanish term or phrase:
la culpa
English translation:
the curse
Added to glossary by
Yvette Neisser Moreno
Dec 15, 2006 17:57
17 yrs ago
1 viewer *
Spanish term
United States
English wordsmith
Native in: English
Works in: Spanish to English, Arabic to English, Hebrew to English, and 1 more.
la culpa
Spanish to English
Art/Literary
Poetry & Literature
From the culminating stanza of a poem titled, "Turno con el critico":
Ese yo, temible y frágil como un ángel,
tuvo la audacia, la culpa y la suerte de escribir poemas.
The "yo" refers to "el yo poético", which is the subject of the poem. This line needs to have a punch in English, and, offhand, I can't come up with a word for "culpa" that would keep the current sentence structure and convey the meaning that he "was guilty of writing poems". In other words:
That I, fearsome and fragile like an angel,
had the audacity, the [culpa] and the luck to write poems.
The word "fault" doesn't quite make sense here, and "guilt" or "blame" don't work in the construction "had the [blank] to..."
The only other thing I can think of is to reconstruct the sentence along these lines:
"That I...was audacious, guilty and lucky to write poems."
But that doesn't sound quite right. Your thoughts/suggestions?
Thanks,
Yvette
Ese yo, temible y frágil como un ángel,
tuvo la audacia, la culpa y la suerte de escribir poemas.
The "yo" refers to "el yo poético", which is the subject of the poem. This line needs to have a punch in English, and, offhand, I can't come up with a word for "culpa" that would keep the current sentence structure and convey the meaning that he "was guilty of writing poems". In other words:
That I, fearsome and fragile like an angel,
had the audacity, the [culpa] and the luck to write poems.
The word "fault" doesn't quite make sense here, and "guilt" or "blame" don't work in the construction "had the [blank] to..."
The only other thing I can think of is to reconstruct the sentence along these lines:
"That I...was audacious, guilty and lucky to write poems."
But that doesn't sound quite right. Your thoughts/suggestions?
Thanks,
Yvette
Proposed translations
(English)
Proposed translations
+4
6 mins
Selected
the curse?
We sometimes speak of being "cursed" with important duties or talents. Just a wild thought, since you have "poetic license".
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Note added at 5 days (2006-12-20 20:29:19 GMT) Post-grading
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Thank you, Yvette! Glad you liked it.
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Note added at 5 days (2006-12-20 20:29:19 GMT) Post-grading
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Thank you, Yvette! Glad you liked it.
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
George Rabel
: I like "curse" here. I think it fits the bill
4 mins
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Thanks, George
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| agree |
Helen Filippou
: good fit
10 mins
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Thank you, Helen
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| agree |
Kaiser_Soze
6 hrs
|
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Gracias
|
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| agree |
DDM
11 hrs
|
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Gracias, Daniel.
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| neutral |
Refugio
: However, it really changes the meaning a lot. A curse is something that happens to you, and culpa is something you take responsibility for.
5 days
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Precisely. One is "cursed" (ironic for "blessed") with a gift of poetry.
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4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "I chose this option, and the poet was happy with it. It has the one-syllable punch I was looking for, captures the intended sense of "culpa", and fits the facetious tone of the line. Thank you!"
14 mins
sinfulness
the audacity, the sinfulness and the good fortune to write poems
Could this work?
Could this work?
+1
20 mins
Edward Tully
Native in English
Because your words matter
Native in: English (Variants: UK, US) 
Works in: Spanish to English
Related KudoZ points
:
152
the shame
I had the audacity, the shame and the luck to write poems...
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
B Sweeney (X)
: on reflection, i think shame is the best translation here. but i would substitute the luck with good fortune.
16 hrs
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thank you!
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27 mins
Patricia Rosas
United States
United States
Native in English
Specializes in field
United States
servicios para autores académicos
Native in: English
Works in: Spanish to English, English
Related KudoZ points
:
47
the nerve, the duty, and the luck to write ...
It's a stretch, but culpa can have the menaing of "responsible for something," (culpability) and from there, I got to "duty" ...
You might try rewriting it along these lines, too:
That I, fearsome and fragile like an angel,
was also guilty of having the audacity and luck to write poems.
You might try rewriting it along these lines, too:
That I, fearsome and fragile like an angel,
was also guilty of having the audacity and luck to write poems.
27 mins
Nedra Rivera Huntington
United States
United States
Native in English
Specializes in field
United States
Reliability, conscientiousness and style
Native in: English (Variants: UK, US)
Works in: Spanish to English, English
Related KudoZ points
:
12
onus
I would also say "fortune" instead of "luck".
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Note added at 30 mins (2006-12-15 18:28:00 GMT)
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# A difficult or disagreeable responsibility or necessity; a burden or obligation.
#
1. A stigma.
2. Blame.
http://a9.com/onus#gurunet_Dictionary
I was originally unsure of the grammar of the sentence, as I would instinctively say "onus of + gerund", but it appears as "onus to" enough in Google for me to feel reasonably confident in suggesting it.
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Note added at 30 mins (2006-12-15 18:28:00 GMT)
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# A difficult or disagreeable responsibility or necessity; a burden or obligation.
#
1. A stigma.
2. Blame.
http://a9.com/onus#gurunet_Dictionary
I was originally unsure of the grammar of the sentence, as I would instinctively say "onus of + gerund", but it appears as "onus to" enough in Google for me to feel reasonably confident in suggesting it.
37 mins
Miguel Fuentes
Mexico
Mexico
Native in Spanish
&
English
Mexico
Native in: Spanish 
, English
Works in: English to Spanish, Spanish to English, French to Spanish, and 3 more.
Related KudoZ points
:
8
liable
Another option, in active voice. It would read as follows:
was audacious, liable, and lucky enough to write poems
I think active voice beefs-up energy and directness.
was audacious, liable, and lucky enough to write poems
I think active voice beefs-up energy and directness.
+1
10 mins
George Rabel
Native in Spanish
TRANSLATIONS THAT READ LIKE ORIGINALS
Native in: Spanish
Works in: English to Spanish, Spanish, Spanish to English, and 1 more.
Related KudoZ points
:
83
folly
That part of me, terrible and fragile as an angel,
had the audacity, the misfortune, and the joy to write poems.
tampoco se me ocurre nada que no sea guilty or blame.. así que hay que ser creativo
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Note added at 41 mins (2006-12-15 18:38:52 GMT)
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Según lo entiendo, en este caso la "culpa" es una manera de expresar falsa modestia. Que el autor (o su alter ego) se siente "culpable" por haber escrito cosas que no tienen valor-.
had the audacity, the misfortune, and the joy to write poems.
tampoco se me ocurre nada que no sea guilty or blame.. así que hay que ser creativo
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Note added at 41 mins (2006-12-15 18:38:52 GMT)
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Según lo entiendo, en este caso la "culpa" es una manera de expresar falsa modestia. Que el autor (o su alter ego) se siente "culpable" por haber escrito cosas que no tienen valor-.
34 mins
the angst
I may be off base here, but could it be that he's referring to the fact that his own personal experience, and his feelings of guilt over things he wished he had not done or said, were fertile ground to have the audicity to be able to write poems. They said that the best writers are the ones who write things based on their own suffering, in music, we have the blues, all based in human angst.
I don't think it "was his fault" that he wrote poems, I think he was burdened with guilt, which allowed him to express those feelings with poems.
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Note added at 48 mins (2006-12-15 18:46:35 GMT)
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Ese yo, temible y frágil como un ángel,
tuvo la audacia, la culpa y la suerte de escribir poemas.
That part of me, fearful and fragile like an angel,
had the audacity, the angst and the fortuity to write poems.
I don't think it "was his fault" that he wrote poems, I think he was burdened with guilt, which allowed him to express those feelings with poems.
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Note added at 48 mins (2006-12-15 18:46:35 GMT)
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Ese yo, temible y frágil como un ángel,
tuvo la audacia, la culpa y la suerte de escribir poemas.
That part of me, fearful and fragile like an angel,
had the audacity, the angst and the fortuity to write poems.
1 hr
the guilt
I think guilt sounds perfectly fine here.
I think the author is referring to the sense of guilt which influences his work, and so in this context, it seems to fit the bill.
and i cant see the problem with saying "i had the guilt", with poetry there is more free licence with a language and poets often say things other people wouldnt normally say.
i think the other suggestions (apart from shame, which doesn´t seem right here) do not convey the true sense of the word "culpa" so yeah i would go with guilt.
I think the author is referring to the sense of guilt which influences his work, and so in this context, it seems to fit the bill.
and i cant see the problem with saying "i had the guilt", with poetry there is more free licence with a language and poets often say things other people wouldnt normally say.
i think the other suggestions (apart from shame, which doesn´t seem right here) do not convey the true sense of the word "culpa" so yeah i would go with guilt.
4 hrs
the flaw
or "defect" or even "malpractice" (he's being facetious!)
5 hrs
Carol Gullidge
United Kingdom
United Kingdom
Native in English
Specializes in field
United Kingdom
poetically precise prose with... panache
Native in: English
Works in: French to English, Spanish to English, English
Related KudoZ points
:
315
the conscience/awareness [or use grammatical transposition, see Explanation]
ie, the sense of guilt.
"Awareness" and "angst" (your suggestion) are only partial translations, but this is often acceptable in poetry, especially if it compensates in some other way. "Conscience" is closer, and I think you could also get away with just "guilt" but this would depend on the rest of the text - tonal and linguistic registers, etc
In this case, the poet would be driven to write poetry by his conscience, angst, or an acute awareness of ....
You could also change it around, using grammatical transposition, eg:
"I was sufficiently culpable, audacious and lucky to write poems."
Reversing "audacious" and "culpable" might help to produce the "punchiness" you need
"Awareness" and "angst" (your suggestion) are only partial translations, but this is often acceptable in poetry, especially if it compensates in some other way. "Conscience" is closer, and I think you could also get away with just "guilt" but this would depend on the rest of the text - tonal and linguistic registers, etc
In this case, the poet would be driven to write poetry by his conscience, angst, or an acute awareness of ....
You could also change it around, using grammatical transposition, eg:
"I was sufficiently culpable, audacious and lucky to write poems."
Reversing "audacious" and "culpable" might help to produce the "punchiness" you need
5 hrs
Lydia De Jorge
United States
United States
Native in Spanish
&
English
Specializes in field
United States
Don't just say it, say it right!
Native in: Spanish , English
Works in: English to Spanish, Spanish to English, English, and 1 more.
Related KudoZ points
:
133
the guts
.
9 hrs
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
:
103
Even though timid and fragile as an angel, I was bold, sinful, and lucky enough to write poetry.
"Bold" contrast well with "timid' and "fragile." And the idea of being angelic contrast weel with "sinfulness." A bit of the Luciferian angel here?
1 day 2 hrs
Spanish term (edited):
la audacia, la culpa y la suerte
the impudence, the culpability and the good fortune
other options
Discussion