translation help
Sep 19th, 2015, 01:52 PM
#3
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I'm not sure that this is such an easy translation as idiomatic expressions don't always translate easily, and I suspect that this is beyond me, but I doubt very much that an Italian would express this [or any] sentiment in a sentence ending in "per" which means "for" i.e. you don't end a sentence with a preposition.
Perhaps something like:
Se si vuol averlo, si vuol combattere perlo. [if you want it, you will want to fight for it]. or perhaps better:
Se sia vale la pena di averlo, è vale la pena di combattere perlo. [if it's worth having, it's worth fighting for] but I don't like the "perlo" at the end.
perhaps a native speaker or someone who knows what they are talking about will assist.
Perhaps something like:
Se si vuol averlo, si vuol combattere perlo. [if you want it, you will want to fight for it]. or perhaps better:
Se sia vale la pena di averlo, è vale la pena di combattere perlo. [if it's worth having, it's worth fighting for] but I don't like the "perlo" at the end.
perhaps a native speaker or someone who knows what they are talking about will assist.
Sep 19th, 2015, 02:40 PM
#5
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It isn't even exactly good grammar in English, I think that's the problem. The first part would more properly be "anything that is worth having". I don't know Italian, but in French I believe that could be: tout ce qui vaut la peine d'avoir, vaut la lutte. I wouldn't translate literally, as you can't, just translate to something that means "anything that is worth having is worth the fight" .
I believe niete is supposed to be niente but negatives can be tricky (anything vs. nothing) and I haven't studied Italian very much but don't think that would be the way to start that sentence, more like tutto ciò che vale la pena...
I'm sure there are Italians around who will weigh
I believe niete is supposed to be niente but negatives can be tricky (anything vs. nothing) and I haven't studied Italian very much but don't think that would be the way to start that sentence, more like tutto ciò che vale la pena...
I'm sure there are Italians around who will weigh
Sep 19th, 2015, 06:02 PM
#10
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Insomnia is a latin word.
But a real Italian should weigh in. I'm just guessing, and there may be a tradtional Italian expression that captures exactly the same idea that would be the standard translation used by a pro.
But a real Italian should weigh in. I'm just guessing, and there may be a tradtional Italian expression that captures exactly the same idea that would be the standard translation used by a pro.
Sep 20th, 2015, 04:24 AM
#12
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i am not a native speaker either, but i have heard this before and i think it is closest: Bisogna lottare per ciò che vale la pena avere. it puts the emphasis a bit differently than the original, this is literally saying "(you) have to fight for that which is worth having". To bring it closer to the original, i'd say "tutto ciò che vale la pena avere per qui vale la pena lottare" - but no guarantees!
Sep 20th, 2015, 05:00 AM
#14
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Interesting. I tend to think the equivalent Italian proverb is the one a pro translator might use, rather than trying to retain the English construction. But what's a bit tricky about this one, I think, is the unstated but implied "if-then" conditional clause construction of the English, which makes the Italian proverb feel not quite in tune to the spirit of the original. The English language proverb leaves open the possibility that one could walk away from the fight. It's up to you to. It's even possible one might have a valuable thing without fighting for it. The Italian proverb suggests things of value can only be obtained by fighting for them.
