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Glossary entry

Spanish term or phrase:

como se ha querido hacer ver

English translation:

she wasn\'t the person she was made out to be

Added to glossary by Ion Zubizarreta
Jan 2, 2014 17:17
10 yrs ago
10 viewers *
Spanish term

como se ha querido hacer ver

Spanish to English Art/Literary Idioms / Maxims / Sayings
El texto se refiere a la cantante de un grupo de rock. He traducido la frase:
"She wasn't, as some wanted to make her look, a stripper or a man-eater or however you want to call it."
No estoy seguro de si "as some wanted to make her look" queda muy bien, ¿alguna otra opción?

¡Gracias!

"Ella no era como se ha querido hacer ver, una stripper o una devoradora de hombres o como lo queráis llamar".
Proposed translations (English)
2 +2 she wasn't the person she was supposed to be
4 +3 she wasn't the person she made herself out to be
4 +3 she wasn't the person she was/has been made out to be
4 +1 As she has been portrayed
4 as some have painted her

Discussion

snathdag Jan 2, 2014:
If "she" had been intended wouldn't the ambiguity have been removed by using "a sí misma"?

Ella no era como se ha querido hacer ver a sí misma
Simon Bruni Jan 2, 2014:
@Phoenix The problem of interpretation we have had is precisely because the original text is not worded clearly. Grammatically the verb can be attributed both to "She" or a hypothetical "they".
Phoenix III Jan 2, 2014:
@ Asker I don't agree with the assumption of "she made herself". Media and others can be judgmental and destroy or elevate someone at whim. The original text is worded clearly and we should not change the meaning to add or detract from it. I mean, there's a serious difference between "they" and "she". Thanks.
Ion Zubizarreta (asker) Jan 2, 2014:
Thank you all for your help. I think that Charles' explanation is spot on.
snathdag Jan 2, 2014:
Sorry, Wendy. I didn't see your suggested modification to Simon's answer ('she wasn't the person she was made out to be') and have posted it as a separate answer. I still favour the present perfect, though: "...she has been made out to be...".
Charles Davis Jan 2, 2014:
By the way, I agree that "make out to be" is the ideal expression to use, and I completely agree with Wendy's idea of simply tweaking Simon's answer to read "she has been made out to be" or "people have made her out to be".
Charles Davis Jan 2, 2014:
I think Simon's reading is theoretically possible, but I am almost certain that is not the intended meaning. "Como se ha querido hacer ver" or "como ha querido hacerse ver" (which are, in principle, synonymous, as Ion has said) is a standard expression and is naturally understood in an impersonal sense: as people have made out. Take this, for example (first result in Google):

"La guerra que se desenvuelve en la República española, sépalo el mundo entero, no es una guerra religiosa, como ha querido hacerse ver".
Clearly this is impersonal. It is not a question of the war making itself out to be religious; it is that people have made out that it is religious.

On first reading I did not understand this as ambiguous at all; I understood it to refer to how people have made her out to be. I still find Simon's reading forced, though I can't actually disprove it.
Simon Bruni Jan 2, 2014:
The way I see it, both interpretations are possible grammatically, it just seems much more logical to me that she is the one projecting a certain image of herself.
Ion Zubizarreta (asker) Jan 2, 2014:
Yes, "Ella no era como se ha querido hacer ver" and "Ella no era como ha querido hacerse ver" have the same meaning.
Simon Bruni Jan 2, 2014:
Perhaps I'm wrong but I assumed the verb is "hacerse ver", not "hacer ver", so another possibility for the sentence would be "Ella no era como ha querido hacerse ver".
Ion Zubizarreta (asker) Jan 2, 2014:
Thanks Wendy, that slight modification of Simon's answer sounds quite good.
Ion Zubizarreta (asker) Jan 2, 2014:
Nope, the correct way to express this is "se ha querido".
Ion Zubizarreta (asker) Jan 2, 2014:
The text does not say "como ella ha querido hacer ver" it says "como se ha querido hacer ver", it's others who have tried to spread a false view about her based on their interpreation.
Simon Bruni Jan 2, 2014:
But then it would "como le han querido...". Would it not?
Wendy Streitparth Jan 2, 2014:
@ Ion: If you're convinced of your interpretation, you could use Simon's answer with a slight modification: she wasn't the person she was made out to be.
Simon Bruni Jan 2, 2014:
Ion, in "como se ha querido hacer ver", it is "Ella" who is projecting this image of herself. The verbs "querido hacer" are being done by her, not by anyone else. It is not others who have imposed it on her. Or am I missing something?

Proposed translations

+2
30 mins
Selected

she wasn't the person she was supposed to be

That would cover "what she made herself out to be" or "what others made her out to be".
Peer comment(s):
agree Álvaro Espantaleón Moreno : Better. "Como se ha querido hacer ver" se refiere a el retrato que otros han hecho de esta persona, no tiene nada que ver con la imagen que proyectase de sí misma.
6 mins
Gracias, Alvaro y feliz ano nuevo!
agree Tom Bell
1 day 5 hrs
Thanks, Tom
Something went wrong...
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer. Comment: "Thank you all. I think it's only fair to give the points to Wendy as she was the one that proposed, in my opinion, the most appropiate option: "She wasn't the person she was made out to be""
+3
6 mins
Spanish term (edited): Ella no era como se ha querido hacer ver

she wasn't the person she made herself out to be

Your interpretation would be "como le han querido..."

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 18 mins (2014-01-02 17:36:08 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

You've misinterpreted the sentence, Ion. I'm pretty sure my interpretation is correct. Literally, "como se ha querido hacer ver" would be "how she has wanted to make herself seen", but I have offered a more idiomatic way of saying it.
Note from asker:
Thanks Simon, I'm looking for the translation of "como se ha querido hacer ver", i.e. the opinion people some people had about her.
Thanks Simon, I think that your translation is very idiomatic, but the text refers to the (false) opinion other people had about her, not to what her intention was while she was onstage.
Peer comment(s):
agree Jenni Lukac (X)
4 mins
Thanks, Jenni
agree Thayenga : Yes. Happy New Year, Simon. :)
7 mins
Thanks, Thayenga, and a happy New Year to you too
agree Jean Shearer
21 hrs
Something went wrong...
+1
1 hr

As she has been portrayed

She wasn't (the sort of woman) she has been portrayed to be ...
She wasn't the type/kind of person we have been led to believe. ..
Peer comment(s):
agree Carol Gullidge
10 mins
Thanks and happy 2014!
Something went wrong...
+3
1 hr
Spanish term (edited): Ella no era como se ha querido hacer ver

she wasn't the person she was/has been made out to be

I think this is more apt as it clearly indicates that it was other people and not the singer herself who made her out to be something.

The only doubt I have is over the tense: "...se ha querido..." would indicate to me that the "making out" has been done subsequent to the period in which the singer was active.

Thanks to Simon as I don't know if I'd have correctly translated "made out".
Peer comment(s):
agree Rachel Fell : agree, partly to the indications from Charles and Simon: She wasn't, despite what/as she was made out to be,...; or "how people liked to portray her"
2 hrs
Thanks, Rachel (I have to say that Wendy was first to suggest this in the discussion)
agree Stephen D
4 hrs
Thanks, Steve (again, it was Wendy who first suggested this)
agree Tiffany Hardy : I also read the sentence like this, as if it were projected by others and not her.
15 hrs
Thanks, Tiffany (credit is to Wendy)
Something went wrong...
11 hrs

as some have painted her

Source is somewhat ambiguous; its possibly flawed grammar favors the notion of self-presentation, but I think even the limited context provided, combined with common-sense inference, favors that of depiction by others. Why do I say this? Because it would be most unusual (though certainly not impossible) for an inaccurate or highly exaggerated depiction of a woman as a stripper, promiscuous, etc., to come from the woman herself. I have little doubt that the article in its entirety would resolve the issue for certain.

books.google.com/books?isbn=0826263054 : Marlin Shipman - 2002 "...“She is not hideous as some have painted her in appearance. Still she is by no means attractive.”..."

www.trekbbs.com › Lounges & General Chat › Miscellaneous‎ : "... Frankly, if [Casey] Anthony is indeed as bad as some have painted her then she's probably so lacking in empathy and..."

www.newssun.com/.../col-0907-ware-POLITICAL-CONVENTIONS-2‎ : "Governor Palin is not as inexperienced as some have painted her - it's no small thing being a governor..."

goldbergblog.com/2008/.../election-2008-why-hillarys-time-is-almost-up...‎ : Hillary Clinton. "...I find her distasteful and crass at times, but I don't think she's a bad person or The Great Emasculator as some have painted her."

Extremely widespread usage: 'as some have painted her' 76,000 results (Google).

"Ella no era como se ha querido hacer ver, una stripper o una devoradora de hombres o como lo queráis llamar".
Example sentence:

She was not as some have painted her, a stripper or a devourer of men or whatever you want to call her..."

Something went wrong...
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