Nov 4, 2007 15:08
16 yrs ago
Russian term
бесцеремонное поведение
Russian to English
Art/Literary
Slang
An old man pulls on the sleeve of his young interlocutor, who is also given to bursts of irritation. So even though the pulling on the sleeve is done in a friendly manner, the young man calls it бесцеремонным поведением and sends the old man to hell.
So far I have 'careless gesture' which is too soft, or 'careless behaviour' which is too abstract, 'rude movements... or whatever' is also too harsh, but better. I can put in in quotes, but that is not pretty in English.
Any ideas?
So far I have 'careless gesture' which is too soft, or 'careless behaviour' which is too abstract, 'rude movements... or whatever' is also too harsh, but better. I can put in in quotes, but that is not pretty in English.
Any ideas?
Proposed translations
(English)
4 +1 | undue familiarity | GaryG |
4 +3 | inappropriate behaviour | Jack Doughty |
4 | out of line | Tevah_Trans |
4 | some more ideas | Mark Berelekhis |
3 | informal | Henry Schroeder |
Proposed translations
+1
7 mins
Selected
undue familiarity
Since this is physical and we all like our "space" and many don't like being touched inappropriately, I think this grasps the idea.
Peer comment(s):
agree |
Dorene Cornwell
: I agree. Get at the meaning, not just literal translation. Excessive intimacy or just affront because in the US just grabbing other people, even relatives, is often inappropriate.
16 hrs
|
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "Thanks, I shall probably keep what I have so far, but this answer is quite appropriate for the text too."
+3
6 mins
inappropriate behaviour
Literally, of course, it is unceremonious behaviour, but "inappropriate behaviour" is often used, e.g. as between a teacher and a pupil.
(Our US friends please read "behavior")
(Our US friends please read "behavior")
Peer comment(s):
agree |
Tevah_Trans
: this could work...
1 hr
|
Thank you.
|
|
agree |
Mark Berelekhis
: Probably the most popular way to express this.
1 hr
|
Thank you.
|
|
agree |
James McVay
6 hrs
|
Thank you.
|
32 mins
informal
I would jettison the "behavior" part, Russian is always more pedantic than English. It's obvious they are talking about "behavior".
If it takes place in Jane Austen's time, you could use "unceremonious", but that's a little oldfashioned for contemporary english.
If it takes place in Jane Austen's time, you could use "unceremonious", but that's a little oldfashioned for contemporary english.
1 hr
out of line
Typically, you would just say "this is out of line", or "what you did just now is out of line", so skip the word "behavior" imho.
1 hr
some more ideas
I also agree with Henry and Tevah that the word behavior could easily be omitted, but that all depends on the tone of the material and your feel of it. For instance, something like: "The young man calls it inappropriate and sends the old man to hell." However, after thinking about it, "inappropriate" just sounds a bit too official for me, so here are some other options for "бесцеремонное" that, IMHO, give the text a bit more flavor:
Unbecoming, brusque, tactless. Also, if you don't want to omit "поведение", consider using "conduct." Something along the lines of "unbecoming conduct" sounds a bit more vibrant.
Unbecoming, brusque, tactless. Also, if you don't want to omit "поведение", consider using "conduct." Something along the lines of "unbecoming conduct" sounds a bit more vibrant.
Discussion
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