Sep 9, 2022 06:19
1 yr ago
47 viewers *
French term
jouer à en gagner
FVA
French to English
Art/Literary
General / Conversation / Greetings / Letters
I am translating a book about photograher Jacques Henri Lartigue from French into Chinese. I am not sure about what this phrase « jouer à en gagner » means exactly in the following paragraphe from his diary. Hope someone can help me out. Thanks for your attention. I’m looking forward to your reply.
Août 1932
Mais parmi ces êtres humains maladivement épris d’eux-mêmes et de leur argent, j’ai bien le droit, moi, de ne pas oublier l’odeur du sable et le bruit du silence… Ce n’est pas qu’ils soient d’une intelligence transcendante, mais leur vie n’a qu’un objectif, qui concentre leurs forces, l’argent. Tandis que moi, je ne ferai jamais que « jouer à en gagner », mettant tous mes bonheurs ailleurs. Je ne gagne pas encore vraiment d’argent. Mais ce n’est pas au moment où l’on vient de semer des graines de pommier qu’il faut déjà vouloir faire du cidre.
Août 1932
Mais parmi ces êtres humains maladivement épris d’eux-mêmes et de leur argent, j’ai bien le droit, moi, de ne pas oublier l’odeur du sable et le bruit du silence… Ce n’est pas qu’ils soient d’une intelligence transcendante, mais leur vie n’a qu’un objectif, qui concentre leurs forces, l’argent. Tandis que moi, je ne ferai jamais que « jouer à en gagner », mettant tous mes bonheurs ailleurs. Je ne gagne pas encore vraiment d’argent. Mais ce n’est pas au moment où l’on vient de semer des graines de pommier qu’il faut déjà vouloir faire du cidre.
Proposed translations
(English)
| 4 +6 | dabble at making money |
Bourth
|
| 4 | Playing to win / to play to win. |
Sandrine Rutter
|
| 3 | for its own sake | its own reward |
Wolf Draeger
|
References
| to win |
José Patrício
|
Proposed translations
+6
1 hr
Selected
dabble at making money
While others go all-out to make money, he has other interests. Earning money for him is only of secondary importance, something he 'plays at'.
"dabble - [...] 2 to do something superficially, not seriously" [Webster's]
"dabble - [...] 2 to do something superficially, not seriously" [Webster's]
Note from asker:
| Thank you for your answer! It helps a lot. : ) |
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
Barbara Cochran, MFA
: Really like this option a lot. Esp. since it echoes the idea of dabbling in art, in general. No matter what kind.
16 mins
|
| agree |
José Patrício
48 mins
|
| agree |
Wolf Draeger
: Better late than never to agree!
1 hr
|
| agree |
Beatriz Ramírez de Haro
2 hrs
|
| agree |
Victoria Britten
: Yes, or simply “play at”, indeed
1 day 3 hrs
|
| agree |
AllegroTrans
1 day 16 hrs
|
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "First validated answer (validated by peer agreement)"
1 hr
for its own sake | its own reward
He's saying that unlike others obsessed with material reward he doesn't need money or other wordly concerns but finds fulfilment in what he does for a living.
He might be using jouer in order to play on the dual meanings of gagner ("win" and "earn"), but you don't have to stick with that wording in translation.
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Note added at 3 hrs (2022-09-09 09:24:27 GMT) Post-grading
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Ah, I see I misunderstood the meaning of jouer à here, and I didn't catch that en gagner relates back to argent at the end of the previous sentence. So Cadastre is quite right—"I'll never take money very seriously" or I'll never care much for money" is the correct meaning.
He might be using jouer in order to play on the dual meanings of gagner ("win" and "earn"), but you don't have to stick with that wording in translation.
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Note added at 3 hrs (2022-09-09 09:24:27 GMT) Post-grading
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Ah, I see I misunderstood the meaning of jouer à here, and I didn't catch that en gagner relates back to argent at the end of the previous sentence. So Cadastre is quite right—"I'll never take money very seriously" or I'll never care much for money" is the correct meaning.
Example sentence:
Whereas I will only ever do what I do for its own sake [...]
As for me, my work is its own reward [...]
Note from asker:
| Thank you! : ) |
2 hrs
Sandrine Rutter
United Kingdom
United Kingdom
Native in French
Specializes in field
United Kingdom
25 years in international marketing
Native in: French 
Works in: English to French, French to English
Playing to win / to play to win.
I think that in this context, it means that the people who 'jouent à en gagner' only want one thing: to always win, to always make more money.
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Note added at 1 day 7 hrs (2022-09-10 13:47:32 GMT) Post-grading
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No, I think that it means that 'I would not just only do'
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Note added at 1 day 7 hrs (2022-09-10 13:47:32 GMT) Post-grading
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No, I think that it means that 'I would not just only do'
Note from asker:
| Thank you for your answer! So do you think that "je ne ferai jamais que" means "I will never"? |
Reference comments
19 mins
Reference:
to win
jouer à en gagner », mettant tous mes bonheurs ailleurs - to win placing my pleasure elsewhere
Note from asker:
| Thanks! |
Discussion
Sounds an awful lot like being a translator...we had better love what we do, because making money ain't never gonna be very likely :-P
The others think only in earning money but for him the happiness doesn’t consist in win money but elsewhere.