Glossary entry (derived from question below)
French term or phrase:
manichéen
English translation:
sees things in black and white
French term
manichéennes
I am a little worried about using "manichean", mostly because it is a word that I have never heard, and since the audience is a very large one I was wondering if it would be understood by most people, and if the meaning is explicitly religious in English.
Otherwise I am considering "see things in black and white", but once again, I am concerned about any racial connotations, especially as the next sentence talks about people... Or am I being paranoid?
Thanks for you light bulbs!
Jan 25, 2012 14:57: Jennifer White changed "Level" from "Non-PRO" to "PRO"
PRO (3): Colin Rowe, Ingeborg Gowans (X), Jennifer White
When entering new questions, KudoZ askers are given an opportunity* to classify the difficulty of their questions as 'easy' or 'pro'. If you feel a question marked 'easy' should actually be marked 'pro', and if you have earned more than 20 KudoZ points, you can click the "Vote PRO" button to recommend that change.
How to tell the difference between "easy" and "pro" questions:
An easy question is one that any bilingual person would be able to answer correctly. (Or in the case of monolingual questions, an easy question is one that any native speaker of the language would be able to answer correctly.)
A pro question is anything else... in other words, any question that requires knowledge or skills that are specialized (even slightly).
Another way to think of the difficulty levels is this: an easy question is one that deals with everyday conversation. A pro question is anything else.
When deciding between easy and pro, err on the side of pro. Most questions will be pro.
* Note: non-member askers are not given the option of entering 'pro' questions; the only way for their questions to be classified as 'pro' is for a ProZ.com member or members to re-classify it.
Proposed translations
black and white
| It's what first popped into my head - has anyone else ever heard the word manichean by the way? |
| agree |
Helen Shiner
: Yes, I have heard of the word but unless specifically required, your suggestion seems more appropriate from what we have seen of the context.
1 hr
|
|
Thank you. And I agree completely with you, Helen.
|
simplistic
Native in: English 
, French
Works in: English to French, French to English, German to French, and 4 more.
uncompromising/cut-and-dried/categorical
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 22 mins (2012-01-25 14:20:40 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
Add ABSOLUTE
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 23 mins (2012-01-25 14:21:15 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
Add "absolute"
France
Tempus fugit sic carpe diem
Native in: French
Works in: French to English, English to French
dualistic
| agree |
Jennifer White
2 mins
|
|
thank you
|
|
| agree |
Ingeborg Gowans (X)
19 mins
|
|
thank you
|
|
| agree |
Just Opera
: seperating people into "good and bad". Manichéen = "Qui analyse les rapports sociaux ou politiques selon un schéma « Le Bien contre Le Mal » @ wiktionnaire.
3 hrs
|
|
thank you
|
Germany
Par Excellence Translations
Native in: English (Variant: British)
Works in: German to English, French to English, Italian to English, and 3 more.
dualistic
| agree |
Jennifer White
: was just about to post this. Yes, would work fine.
1 min
|
|
Thanks!
|
|
| agree |
Letredenoblesse
4 mins
|
|
Thanks!
|
|
| agree |
Ingeborg Gowans (X)
: I wouold agree that black and white would work here as well
20 mins
|
|
Thanks!
|
Manichean
You must not read the Guardian or the New York Times. Their opinion columnists love the word. (Don't take my word for it. Google it with site:guardian.co.uk or site:nytimes.com)
And they ain't talking about religion when they use it.
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 5 hrs (2012-01-25 19:48:10 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
No other heresy comes so close to being a household word.
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 9 hrs (2012-01-25 23:45:48 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
Simon Jenkins, guardian.co.uk, Thursday 1 December 2011 :
"[Dickens'] novella A Christmas Carol depicted a Manichean triumph of good over evil, warmth over coldness, generosity of spirit over meanness."
| agree |
Jennifer White
: agree that this is the translation but I've read the Guardian for 30 years and have never come across it. Maybe you're referring to the on-line version?/Must have missed the one you quote......
3 hrs
|
|
Simon Jenkins doesn't appear in the dead-tree edition?
|
United Kingdom
Sensible solutions
Native in: English (Variant: Wessexois) 
Works in: French to English, English, English to French
Discussion
1) That depends on the context.
2) What will clients expect us to do next?
3) One, but he'll have to charge by the hour and he can't give a firm quote until he's seen it, because goodness only knows how it was changed before. (The last time he took a job like this, someone had wedged a "glow pear" in the socket.)