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#1
11-19-2006, 10:32 AM
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Alternate translations: Moi Lolita, L'Alizé, Gourmandises
As I said in my previous "Alternate Translations" thread...
In going through all the translations I've run across of various songs, I've discovered that I have various disagreements with many of them. They'll prove useful on one front, but seem completely wrong on another. It may be pretentious of me to think I can correct translations that have been accepted for years, especially given my own partial knowledge of the language, but I know at least a couple of my changes are accurate. As for the rest... well... if I turn out to be wrong, I'm sure someone will let me know, and I'll learn some new lessons that will help with translating our lovely lady's third album whenever we do see it. I have three translations I'm posting at the moment, each in its own post below. I've tried to keep the meanings as close as possible to the original, while taking the necessary minor steps to make the words flow in English. This means I may have dropped or added articles, reversed the order of nouns and their adjectives, or occasionally switched in a word that I believe captures the meaning of an idiomatic expression or phrase for which there is no possible translation that reads well. For each song I've put in a few line notes at the end of the translation, explaining my change to what is traditionally used, or else commenting on a problem I ran in to. Hopefully they're useful in understanding my process, and even more hopefully, these translations will prove useful to my fellow Alizée fans in appreciating the music we love so well! Regards, Cooney PS (I welcome feedback with open arms. If you disagree, have a question about a line, or know better than I do... by all means say something! It's how I learn, and will help us all). 
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#2
11-19-2006, 10:33 AM
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Moi... Lolita
Moi... Lolita
Me, my name is Lolita Lo, or Lola as well They're one and the same. Me, my name is Lolita When I dream about wolves It's Lola who bleeds. When I make a slip of the tongue, I have it: A giggling fit, as crazy (1) As a phenomenon. My name is Lolita, "Lo" of life, "Lo" for a diluvial love life. (2) It's not my fault, And when I give up (3) I see the others, All ready to pounce on me (4) It's not my fault, not mine, If I hear all around me, L O L I T A (5) Me, Lolita Me, my name is Lolita A school-girl, in stockings The color of methylene blue (6) Me, my name is Lolita, Quick-tempered, and not Half cotton, half wool. (7) Not a word, don't say To my mother that I Am a phenomenon. My name is Lolita "Lo" of life, "Lo" for a diluvial love life. It's not my fault, And when I give up I see the others, All ready to pounce on me It's not my fault, not mine, If I hear all around me, L O L I T A Me, Lolita It's not my fault, And when I give up I see the others, All ready to pounce on me It's not my fault, not mine, If I hear all around me, L O L I T A Me, Lolita Lo-li-ta (x8) It's not my fault, And when I give up I see the others, All ready to pounce on me It's not my fault, not mine, If I hear all around me, L O L I T A Me, Lolita It's not my fault, And when I give up I see the others, All ready to pounce on me It's not my fault, not mine, If I hear all around me, L O L I T A Me, Lolita It's not my fault, And when I give up I see the others, All ready to pounce on me It's not my fault, not mine, If I hear all around me, L O L I T A Me, Lolita 1: "Un fou rire aussi fou" – “Un fou rire” refers to an uncontrollable giggling fit - she's made a slip of the tongue and is embarrassed. "Aussi fou" could mean "as crazy" or possibly "also crazy" (though I think the word order is reversed for that). With the next line being what it is, I opted for "as crazy." 2: "Lo" is pronounced the same as "L'eau," which means water. The line is a play on words, and can be read as "Water of life, water for a diluvial love life" Diluvial is a biblical reference to Noah's flood, I believe. You'd better be ready for a lot of loving! This also helps justify the earlier lines “LO ou bien Lola, Du pareil au même,” whose value I know has been questioned. 3: "Je donne ma langue au chat" literally translates to "I give my tongue to the cat." It is an idiomatic expression used to mean "I give up" or "I have no answer" when dealing with riddles and similar things. 4: "Se jeter sur qqn" means to pounce upon or set upon somebody. Thank you aFrenchie for the clarification of "Prèts" in this context as meaning "ready." 5: I think this has been gone over a thousand times, but just to make sure I'm not skipping it. This is also written as "Hello helli t'es a" (Hello, helli, you are has) which is a nonsense expression pronounced the same as the French letters L O L I T A. The closest English equivalent I can come up with would be a British pronunciation of "Hello Hell, High Tea, Eh?" where all the leading H's are swallowed ('ello 'ell, 'igh tea, eh?) 6: The French use "blue" in the same way we use "green" to mean inexperienced or novice. To say she is a school-girl, deep methylene blue, is, I believe, the same as saying "Just an inexperienced school-girl." A very Lolita image. 7: Somewhere I think I saw an explanation of the "mi-coton mi-laine" line as being a phrase meaning "not wishy-washy," but I cannot locate the reference, so will not presume to use that meaning. It works literally as well, Last edited by Cooney; 11-19-2006 at 09:25 PM..
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#3
11-19-2006, 10:33 AM
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L'Alizé
L'Alizé
All the winds, Sweep away the heartaches Me, I'm like the wind My understanding moving a thousand miles an hour (1) No doubt I make decisions too fast That's ok, so be it It's exactly that, I move about I'm growing, love is too. (2) It's at the mercy of the winds That I like to roam, Me, I'm like the wind I kiss everything, an army (3) Of dreams and of cornflowers Draws me inside I know what I know Even if I cry all the time, So say... Stop Telling me that the wind has changed (4) It's not true Please Stop Saying of adolescence: it's Only "What we don't yet know," because me, I've found my love It's a breath, it's gentle, a wind of love: It's light, it's the Alizé, (5) Me, I say that love Is drunk in full. (6) What she wants, Alizée always has. Like the wind Carries away the heartache In a hurricane A thousand mile per hour whirlwind, (7) I am, no doubt, like him It's ok, I am At the gateway to my life I'm growing, love is too. It's with the four winds that I like to be housed Me, I'm like the wind, I carry away my secrets In a Garden of Eden I stretch out inside I know that this marriage (8) Will last a long time So say Stop Telling me that the wind has changed It's not true Please Stop Saying of adolescence: it's Only "What we don't yet know," because me, I've found my love It's a breath, it's gentle, a wind of love: It's light, it's the Alizé, Me, I say that love Is drunk in full. What she wants, Alizée always has. It's ok It's ok It's ok It's ok Stop Telling me that the wind has changed It's not true Please Stop Saying of adolescence: it's Only "What we don't yet know," because me, I've found my love It's a breath, it's gentle, a wind of love: It's light, it's the Alizé, Me, I say that love Is drunk in full. What she wants, Alizée always has. 1: The line could be "A spirit moving 1000 mph," but as the next line talks about making decisions and judgements quickly, I prefer aFrenchie's suggested reading of her ability to understand and intellectualize the world 2: I think the sense of the line is that "I am growing, my love is too," but the lyrics lack a possessive as far as I can see. It might be implied (several words are dropped in the song, in order to make things fit), but the line as is simply refers to Love in general. 3: This set of lines caused me problems. I wasn't sure where exactly the D.O. fell, so had to make guesses based on the wording. I translated as "I kiss everything, an army / Of dreams and of cornflowers / Draws me inside," but it could well be "I kiss an entire army / of dreams and cornflowers. / I dive right in." I prefer the former, as it makes the phrasing more fluid, but it could go either way (or a third way I haven't thought of). 4: I'm not sure if "Arrêtez / De me dire" means "Stop / telling me..." or "Stop / to tell me..." Given the rest of the verse, "telling" makes much more sense in my opinion. I believe "to tell me" would use "pour" instead of "de" as well. 5: We are fortunate that we can still use the proper name "Alizé" in translation in order to maintain the play on words, without losing function. "Alizé" is the general French word for "tradewind," but it does also refer to a specific one, and the name is used in English. One can say "the Alizé" without changing the meaning. 6: Literally, "drunk down to the dregs." I use "drunk in full" as it is more widely understood - many people, sadly, wouldn't know what drinking to the dregs means. 7: "Tourbillon" is the noun, whirlwind. It's tempting to use it as a verb, to generate "a hurricane whirling 1000 mph," but that would require a conjugation of the verb "tourbillonner." 8: The word in the lyrics is "hymen" (hymen), not "hymne" (hymn). I only bring this up because I think this was consciously changed in at least one other translation, due to the translator being worried about the fact that "hymen" maintains its meaning in French for a part of the female anatomy. However, it also has the added literary meaning of "marriage," which is what it's used for here. Last edited by Cooney; 11-19-2006 at 09:36 PM..
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#4
11-19-2006, 10:34 AM
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Gourmandises
Gourmandises
When you think of me, You, the wolf of the Steppes, (1) Down deep inside of you Do you feel ecstasy? (2) "I'm yearning so much for you" (3) You say it without cease, "And take care of me" Tell me if that hurts. Oh wolf, are you there for me? You made the promise, And if I offer myself to you, It's as thousands of tender kisses. There are the kisses The first Taste like sea spray (4) Taste like melancholy, There are the kisses stolen In the trains of Tsarinas. (5) The kisses of a summer Where the hand is led forward But the kisses of Alizée Are the true delicacies When I think of you, You, the wolf of the Steppes I am not afraid of you, Does that worry you? (6) "Take that path there," You say it without cease "Oh! Bed down near to me And devour me with your eyes, my princess!" For the kisses The first Taste like sea spray Taste like melancholy For the kisses stolen In the trains of Tsarinas. The kisses of a summer Where the hand is led forward But the kisses of Alizée Are the true delicacies. Oh wolf, are you there... (7) Oh wolf, are you there... Oh wolf, are you there... Oh wolf, are you there... Oh wolf, are you there... Oh wolf, are you there... Oh wolf, are you there... There are the kisses The first Taste like sea spray Taste like melancholy, There are the kisses stolen In the trains of Tsarinas. The kisses of a summer Where the hand is led forward But the kisses of Alizée Are the true delicacies There are the kisses The first Taste like sea spray Taste like melancholy, There are the kisses stolen In the trains of Tsarinas. The kisses of a summer Where the hand is led forward But the kisses of Alizée Are the true delicacies 1: "Steppenwulf" is not an English word, therefore I shan't translate it that way. I actually feel like it loses some of its force that way, without having the word "wolf" independantly. Wolf imagery is used repeatedly in Alizée's songs, and I don't wish to change that by importing words we don't need. Also worth noting is the fact that "my wolf" is an affectionate in French, equivalent to the American "My chickadee" or "My darling." 2: "Ivresse" is a great word, combining intoxication, drunkenness, excitement, and ecstasy. We use "intoxicated" as a good thing in the same way, but I didn't want to risk misunderstanding it as "do you feel drunk” (on alcohol)? 3: Literally, "I'm so hungry for you." Depending on my mood, I'd translate this as the grammatically poor "I want you so bad..." 4: "Embruns" is the word for spume, or sea spray. We might sometimes call it "salt spray" instead, which definitely suggests the perhaps off-putting nature of those first kisses. 5: I have no idea what this means. I toyed with putting in another word for "Trains," but I just couldn't find a noun that wasn’t just me inventing something. Is this a cultural reference for a book or rhyme? Anybody? 6: Literally, "does that oppress you?" I don't think I've strayed in suggesting it refers to oppressing in the form of causing worry. 7: I use the interrogative here. It's possible it is "Oh wolf, there you are," but I don't believe so at this point.
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#5
11-19-2006, 04:15 PM
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One at a time : "Moi.. Lolita"
 4: "prêt" may mean a lend when it's a noun. "prêter" is the verb (=to lend) Here, it's an adjective and it means "ready" (sometimes "willing"). So "Tout prêts à" = "all ready to" "A school-girl, deep": You used "deep" for "bas"... In other translations, I've also seen "below". And they're both wrong. Here "bas" is a noun and means "stockings", and "aux" means "whose" or "with". I'd say "A school-girl, whose (or with) stockings" (.....) "that are blue like methylene(??) (see EDIT)" (I've added "that are", or you would have to invert words positions and put blue before stockings in English) 6: I doubt that "bleu" has the "green" sense here. Only the color for me (and surely not "jeans" like I've seen in other translations  )"C'est pas ma faute à moi": "à moi" is a way to accentuate that it's her fault and not someone else's. I'd say in English, to insist on this: "it's not my fault, (it's) not mine!" EDIT: in fact, it's a wordplay between the color and the chemical compound: http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bleu_de...A9thyl%C3%A8ne English: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methyl_blue EDIT2: WOW, read the whole page of the French wiki link above: there is a note about Alizée's "Moi.. Lolita"!  Last edited by aFrenchie; 11-19-2006 at 08:13 PM..
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#6
11-19-2006, 06:23 PM
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L'Alizé
1: "L'esprit à mille à l'heure": Esprit means mind indeed, but also "intellect", "mental capacity", "understanding". Here, it'd rather be one of these. "so be it" is good for "tant pis". However I'm used to translate it "too bad" myself. 3: "embrasser" means "to kiss" 95% of the times, but in the 5% left, it may be "to embrace", "to hug". Maybe that here. 4: I'm not sure if "Arrêtez / De me dire" means "Stop / telling me..." or "Stop / to tell me..." What's the difference? For me they're both the same but it must be my poor English. Anyway in French, she does ask people to stop telling her (etc...) "Saying of adolescence "it's What they don't know," Literally, the original version says in a very weird way (even in French) something like: "saying that adolescence is (or "means") only "that we don't know"...". Try to make better than the original! (less "childish") 6: "boire jusqu'à la lie" is a common expression in French. To be precise, "la lie" is the deposits of yeast you find in the bottom of a bottle of wine: http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lie English wiki calls that the "lees" (??): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lees_%28fermentation%29 (see French references though) Here the expression literally means to drink (your wine) until only the "lie" (lees?) is left in your glass (or in the bottle  . And the metaphor is "to drink in full" indeed, or "to consume something entirely"."I am, no doubt, like her" It's "like him" Last edited by aFrenchie; 11-19-2006 at 08:06 PM..
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#7
11-19-2006, 07:46 PM
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Gourmandises
1. Also worth noting is the fact that "my wolf" is an affectionate in French, equivalent to the American "My chickadee" or "My darling." Quite rare and old though, and only a woman would call her man like this, not the other way around I think (at least I wouldn't! 2. perfect understanding  5. Probably an allusion to something (in literature, movie,...). But I don't know.
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#8
11-19-2006, 09:10 PM
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"Stop/to tell me" would indicate that you want the person to stop what they're doing and tell you something. So, they're pretty much complete opposites in English. Great work/information again guys, very informative and a good diversion with the lack of news. ;/
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#9
11-19-2006, 09:16 PM
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aFrenchie, I am very much in your debt. Thank you so much for all the time you take helping me with these! Your ability to explain stuff, even in English, is remarkable.
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To say "Stop to tell me" means that somebody has not yet told you something, and you want them to stop what they are doing and start telling it to you. Quote:
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Thanks again aFrenchie for all your time and help, I very much appreciate it. Once I get these fully fleshed out and relatively clean in style, I may send them the way of the Alizée fanpage "official translations" to see if they're interested. It seems a lot of their stuff still is computer-translated.
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#10
11-19-2006, 09:45 PM
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thanks for your contributions, Cooney and aFrenchie
and yup, mareek is right about stop/telling me and stop/to tell me
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!Alimaniac!
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