Japanese Help Questions/Translations - Page 216

Harold · (#2151 (**permalink**))

I am having trouble translating a song title:

ずっと読みかけの夏

Is it "The summer of starting to read all the way?" Does anyone know if that is the closest English translation?

Thanks!

Nagoyankee · (#2152 (**permalink**))

Quote:

Originally Posted by Harold

I am having trouble translating a song title:

ずっと読みかけの夏

Is it "The summer of starting to read all the way?" Does anyone know if that is the closest English translation?

Thanks!

This one is a toughie. I know exactly what it says in Japanese but it's hard to put it into English.

One summer, you were in the process of reading something but never quite finished reading it.

ずっと～かけ = forever in the process of ~

So it should be something along the line of "The summer spent trying to read something (without ever finishing it)"

Nagoyankee · (#2153 (**permalink**))

I forgot to mention something.

That song title doesn't represent the best Japanese writing. I'm only referring to the title, not the lyrics which I don't know. Older, more careful writers would probably not aprove of the construction of the title.

Strictly speaking, a word like 夏, which is a season (a time frame) should not follow the phrase　読みかけの. What you would expect to follow 読みかけの would be something you read:

読みかけの本
読みかけの手紙

But this is the status quo of the Japanese language used in the present-day Japanese pop culture.

Harold · (#2154 (**permalink**))

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nagoyankee

This one is a toughie. I know exactly what it says in Japanese but it's hard to put it into English.

One summer, you were in the process of reading something but never quite finished reading it.

ずっと～かけ = forever in the process of ~

So it should be something along the line of "The summer spent trying to read something (without ever finishing it)"

Thanks! Songs are probably the hardest things for me to translate compared to everything else.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nagoyankee

I forgot to mention something.

That song title doesn't represent the best Japanese writing. I'm only referring to the title, not the lyrics which I don't know. Older, more careful writers would probably not aprove of the construction of the title.

Strictly speaking, a word like 夏, which is a season (a time frame) should not follow the phrase　読みかけの. What you would expect to follow 読みかけの would be something you read:

読みかけの本
読みかけの手紙

But this is the status quo of the Japanese language used in the present-day Japanese pop culture.

読みかけの本 is actually in the lyrics, and that makes sense. Thanks again!