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  3. Idioms / Maxims / Sayings

So herum wird ein Schuh daraus.

English translation: Look at it from this angle/Don\'t look at the argument from the wrong end

GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)
German term or phrase:So herum wird ein Schuh daraus.
English translation:Look at it from this angle/Don\'t look at the argument from the wrong end
Entered by: Brian Browne

00:49 Mar 11, 2013
German to English translations [PRO]
Social Sciences - Idioms / Maxims / Sayings
German term or phrase: So herum wird ein Schuh daraus.
Taken from a book on happiness research.

I'm a bit at loss with this idiom. Any help would be appreciated.


Das bedeutet nicht, dass man dem affektiven Glück nicht auch Aufmerksamkeit schenken muss. Es ist durchaus möglich, dass auch unter relativ guten Bedingungen, das heißt in relativ reichen Gesellschaften, die Möglichkeiten, positive Emotionen zu erfahren, einge-
schränkt sind. ***So herum wird ein Schuh daraus.*** Wenn das affektive Glück
kleiner ist, als es sein könnte, besteht Handlungsbedarf. Für den Einzelnen,
die Familie oder die Gesellschaft. Sind Menschen aber in der Lage, affektives
Glück zu erleben, bedeutet das nicht, dass kein Handlungsbedarf besteht,
dass die Verhältnisse so sind, wie sie sein sollten.
Brian Browne
Local time: 18:31
Look at it from this angle/Don't look at the argument from the wrong end
Explanation:
This idiom is typically used to point out conflation of cause and effect but can also be adapted to address the flip side of an issue (anders herum wird AUCH ein Schuh draus). Others may use it to simply indicate that somebody "has it backwards" or that the opposite is true.

Unfortunately, I couldn't think of any other idiomatic equivalents to the shoe phrase. Without that, there are countless ways of expressing the concept, as others have noted, with the main difficulty being to decide what fits best in the context. In this case, the phrase has not only been changed to "so herum" but we have to tweak it even more just to fit into the flow of the passage. That's why I decided to do a working translation of the whole segment. Without that, I would have been unable to tell what would be a good fit.

"But that doesn't mean we can ignore affective happiness. After all, it is quite possible that even under relatively comfortable conditions , i.e. in fairly rich societies, the ability to experience positive emotions is quite limited. Look at it from this angle (Don't look at the argument from the wrong end): if affective happiness is more limited than it might be, individuals, families, or society at large need to take action. On the other hand, even if people are capable of experiencing affective happiness that doesn't mean there's no need to take any action and that things are the way they should be."

(pick up/ look at/come at/approach the matter/question/argument from the wrong end)
Selected response from:

Michael Martin, MA
United States
Local time: 12:31
Grading comment
Your answer is much appreciated. No amount of tweaking on my part seemed to help but your suggestion fits the context very well. Many thanks.
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



Summary of answers provided
3 +1And you can see it around the other way / And the opposite is true
Helen Shiner
3Look at it from this angle/Don't look at the argument from the wrong end
Michael Martin, MA


Discussion entries: 4





  

Answers


11 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): +1
And you can see it around the other way / And the opposite is true


Explanation:
This is my understanding of the phrase in general terms, though quite how it fits into your context, I am less sure. The passage seems a little opaque to me - although other people may not find it to be so, of course!

http://www.redensarten-index.de/suche.php?suchbegriff=~~Umge...

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 13 mins (2013-03-11 01:03:42 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

See lower down this page, after all the guff, for useful discussion: http://www.wer-weiss-was.de/theme143/article2482583.html

Helen Shiner
United Kingdom
Local time: 17:31
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 74

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Lancashireman: Yes, or maybe something about putting the cart before the horse? http://www.dict.cc/?s=Umgekehrt wird ein Schuh draus [Es ist...
5 mins
  -> I hope one of these suggestions helps! Thanks, Andrew.
Login to enter a peer comment (or grade)

1 day 4 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5
Look at it from this angle/Don't look at the argument from the wrong end


Explanation:
This idiom is typically used to point out conflation of cause and effect but can also be adapted to address the flip side of an issue (anders herum wird AUCH ein Schuh draus). Others may use it to simply indicate that somebody "has it backwards" or that the opposite is true.

Unfortunately, I couldn't think of any other idiomatic equivalents to the shoe phrase. Without that, there are countless ways of expressing the concept, as others have noted, with the main difficulty being to decide what fits best in the context. In this case, the phrase has not only been changed to "so herum" but we have to tweak it even more just to fit into the flow of the passage. That's why I decided to do a working translation of the whole segment. Without that, I would have been unable to tell what would be a good fit.

"But that doesn't mean we can ignore affective happiness. After all, it is quite possible that even under relatively comfortable conditions , i.e. in fairly rich societies, the ability to experience positive emotions is quite limited. Look at it from this angle (Don't look at the argument from the wrong end): if affective happiness is more limited than it might be, individuals, families, or society at large need to take action. On the other hand, even if people are capable of experiencing affective happiness that doesn't mean there's no need to take any action and that things are the way they should be."

(pick up/ look at/come at/approach the matter/question/argument from the wrong end)

Michael Martin, MA
United States
Local time: 12:31
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: Native in GermanGerman, Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 63
Grading comment
Your answer is much appreciated. No amount of tweaking on my part seemed to help but your suggestion fits the context very well. Many thanks.
Login to enter a peer comment (or grade)



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