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  • Pedro Infante

    La que se fue → English translation

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She who has gone away

I have money in the world,
accurséd money that is worthless.
Although they see me smiling,
the pain I bear, even God doesn't know it.
 
I have known poverty,
and there amongst the poor I never wept.
For what purpose should I desire riches
if my soul is lost and I have no faith.
Me, what I want is for her to come back,
for her to come back to me, she who went away
 
And he who says that money is all of happiness,
falsehood falsehood.
 
If I must weep
I will weep all my life for her.
What use to me is money
if I suffer a pain, if I am so alone.
 
I can buy a thousand women,
and give myself a life of great pleasure,
but bought affection,
it can neither love us nor be faithful.
Me, what I want is for her to come back,
for her to come back to me, she who went away.
 
Original lyrics

La que se fue

Click to see the original lyrics (Spanish)

Collections with "La que se fue"
Pedro Infante : Top 3
Comments
roster 31roster 31
   Wed, 21/10/2015 - 15:04

Hi Tom. Good job!

Considering that you are the British one, I will ask, not tell:
1. Seems to me that the refrain in this song, can't be expressed in English the way it is in Spanish. I mean:
"yo lo que quero es que vuelva" (we don't know who)
"que vuelva conmigo" (we still don't know)
"la que se fue" (denouement).
In English, you have to mention 'her' from the beginning. (?)

2. I was considering to translate this song, and I thought of the 'finale' as simple as,
"la que se fue"
"the one who left". (?)

3. And that 'should', to me it was "would'. (?)

michealtmichealt
   Fri, 23/10/2015 - 19:23

1. Yes, English is a bit less forgiving of verbs with deferred subject than Spanish is, so it can't be done as cleanly as in Spanish. But it can be one better that I did, instead of "that she who has gone away should come back to me" the last line would be better written "that she should come back to me, she who has gone away". But your number 3 makes me think it should be simplified a bit more, see below.

2. I don't like "left" here, it feels like the wrong verb. "went away", "has gone away", "is gone" all feel more natural. Using "come back" and "go away" as opposites. But that's just my personal feeling, perhaps some people would find "left" perfectly ok here. And "left" wouldn't seem such a misfit if "return" was used instead of "come back", but I prefer "come back" in this song.

3. Originally English would have had a subjunctive here, "that she come back" would have been the most recent form of that but that now sounds rather archaic. Instead of the subjunctive people use all sorts of constructions with auxiliaries (should, would, could depending on context and personal preference) or be with infinitive ("were to come", "was to come", "be to come") not usable in the context of these lines, but very common in some contexts. Another possibility is to avoid the subjunctive by finding some means of avoiding a finite verb altogether, and that may be the best way to translate these two lines, because it is far more common usage to express desires than using a clause introduced by "that" is: instead of
"Me, what I want is that she should come back,
that she who has gone away should come back to me."
it could be
"Me, what I want is for her to come back,
for her to come back to me, she who went away."

roster 31roster 31
   Sat, 24/10/2015 - 18:50

Subjunctive or not, I always thought that "should" was almost an imposition, while "would" was, rather, a wish.
Why do you say "accursed" and not "damn/ed". I don't think this "charro mexicano" is up to your stamdards in euphemisms.

michealtmichealt
   Fri, 06/11/2015 - 12:23

"shall" and "should" are a bit of a mess in English. The OED entry for the verb is 18177 words long, they are used in so many different ways. It's too complicated to describe simply except by restricting to a particular context.
A couple of simple examples:
"Should he leave?" - "¿Debería partir?" but "Should he leave I shall cry." - "Si parta lloraré".
"I should have liked to be there" - "Estar alli me hubiera gustado".
"I should get it back as soon as you can" - "Te aconsejo que lo recuperes en cuanto pueda".

Anyway, I'm glad you led me way from using it in this translation.

I don't think accursed is an euphemism; it's what the Spanish says. The Spanish doesn't say "condenado por Dios" so "damned" is inappropriate.

roster 31roster 31
   Sat, 24/10/2015 - 18:31
5

Thank you, Tom, for your explanations

"Me, what I want is for her to come back,
for her to come back to me, she who went away."
I like the way you have it now.

roster 31roster 31
   Fri, 06/11/2015 - 13:29

Gacias, Tom.

En tus notas:
"Si parte lloraré"
"Te aconsejo que lo recuperes en cuanto puedas".

You should have a good day!