19:01 Feb 16, 2015 |
French to English translations [PRO] Social Sciences - Philosophy | |||||||
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| Selected response from: Melissa McMahon Australia Local time: 00:34 | ||||||
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[as if] in a latent (potential) state Explanation: "En puissance" has the sense of "in a potential state" here, though there would be a few ways of wording it and working in the "comme" is tricky. Since the author already has "seems", maybe leave it out (as in suggestion below), or insert it earlier: "because it is as if his natural..." There is no doubt a reference here to Socrates' theory that all learning is remembering, so all of our knowledge in some ways exists inside us in a latent state. "The philosopher will become a politician as a matter of obligation and because his natural philosophical aptitude, developed and reinforced by years of learning away from human affairs, seems to contain, in a latent state, the science of government." -------------------------------------------------- Note added at 1 hr (2015-02-16 20:21:34 GMT) -------------------------------------------------- Since it's philosophy, maybe even the Latin "in potentia" would be suitable. |
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virtually includes / encompasses as if in virtuality Explanation: "comprendre" is to encompass or include and the original meaning of "en puissance" is that of "in viruality". The strong, original meaning of "virtual" in English is "en puissance" : being such in power, force, or effect, though not actually or expressly such. There is a risk to give a literal translation of "en puissance" here that would lead to overtranslating. There is no in potentia in the French text and therefore no point in placing this latin scholarly sounding term here where it could well have been if such had been the intent in the ST, i.e. no need to overemphasise what is not meant to be in the original, IMHO. "en puissance" is a phrase in French with its own usage and meaning. Check for instance "un criminel en puissance", "un acteur en puissance" "les pédagogues,s'interrogent sur le sens et les formes de ce passage qui conduit un acteur en puissance à un artiste que l'on espère accompli." http://www.actes-sud.fr/catalogue/apprendre/apprendre-20-con... The ATILF quotes Bergson to illustrate "en puissance" and explains it as equivalent to "virtuellement" : Loc. En puissance Loc. adv. Virtuellement. Anton. effectivement, en acte. Cette multiplicité, cette distinction, cette hétérogénéité ne contiennent le nombre qu'en puissance, comme dirait Aristote (BERGSON, Essai donn. imm., 1889, p. 99). Un chêne porte en puissance, par tous ses glands, une forêt entière (PLANTEFOL, Bot. et biol. végét., t. 1, 1931, p. 550). Loc. adj. Synon. potentiel, virtuel. L'homme sain est donc un névrotique en puissance, mais le rêve semble le seul symptôme qu'il soit capable de former (FREUD, Introd. psychanal., trad. par S. Jankélévitch, 1959 [1922], p. 489). L'enfant n'est pas seulement un adulte en puissance, mais bien un enfant (Philos., Relig., 1957, p. 50-1). and gives "effectivement" and " en acte" as its antonyms. http://atilf.atilf.fr/dendien/scripts/tlfiv4/showps.exe?p=co... Note that grammatically there are two "en puissance" : 1. the "locution adverbiale", and that's what it is in this bit in question ("comme en puissance"), where the Dictionary gives "virtuellement" as equivalent; and 2. the "locution adjectivale" such as "névrotique en puissance", "adulte en puissance", etc. where the Dictionary gives for equivalent terms "virtuel" and "potentiel". So yes, you have some solid grounds for selecting "virtually/in virtuality" for your translation of "en puissance" here. |
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