[masaegu]

Originally Posted by languagehacker

Thank you. Actually it's not that strange, as I have been thinking about this as well. In my translations I have to add things like subjects and objects of sentences. I need to make things sufficiently clear to non-Japanese speakers so that they can understand the story. They're already experiencing some sense of confusion by hearing a language they do not understand. Metaphors like 赤い糸 that they will never be able to figure out have to be clarified, so for me this is a normal part of translation. The reader has less options to consider so it is easier for them to use their brain to connect the dots and make sense of the story instead of wondering what every line is really talking about. When I remove some of the mystery behind the lyrics, it allows you to notice new things. I think this is what happened to you.

You're the first Japanese person to actually say this though, and I'm glad you did. From English speakers sometimes I get things like, "Wow, I really liked this song before, but now that I understand it, I absolutely love it!" (I had another Youtube channel with about 15 translated videos before, but it was taken down by Sony.) Seeing these kinds of reactions is part of what makes doing these translations rewarding for me.

This is a thought-provoking point that I feel is one of the reasons why studying foreign languages can make one a better and more insightful person. It almost gives you a sixth sense, or a third eye, so to speak. I think that native speakers of any language would tend to think they know more about their language than those who are studying it as a foreign language. While this may be true in some areas of language, I think that there is an area where advanced non-native speakers may have an advantage for being able to analyze in a more objective manner.

So you think that by writing かわいい人 she meant "cute girls?" Why would she have used 人 and not 女?

I'm starting to think that 短い嘘を繋げ 赤いものに替えて means something like "Little lies were replacing our connection to each other." What do you think?

かわいい人 would definitely mean "cute girls" there. "Pretty girls" would be closer in nuance. In novels and song lyrics, many writers use 女 or 男 and let you read them as ひと by proving furigana. おんな has the connotation of "broads", so it is not very often used in real life or creative writing.

I am stunned by the line "Little lies were replacing our connection to each other." How do you do it!?

What you say about the airport seems to kind of agree with this paragraph I found from the analysis here:
殆ど必然的のような訪れる破局。都会に出た主人公に徐 々にわかってくるのは、「都会では冬の匂いも正しくな い」という、理念よりももっともっと根源的で生理的で 動物的で素朴な感覚のズレ。でも、それが分かってもも う今更どうしようもない。イキオイがついたまま更に突 っ走って海外にでもいくのでしょう。本当は今でも好き な、そして確かに愛してくれているだろう彼に、せめて 最後だけでも空港で会いたい。だけど、どの面さげてそ んなこと言えるかという。そのせめぎあい。この曲のリ アルタイムは日本の最後の夜。明日になれば大きな崖か ら飛び降り、さらに取り返しのつかない遠くにいってし まうという夜。ある意味では死刑執行前夜のような崖っ ぷちでの反芻と煩悶。（これ、「空港」というのが国内 線かもしれないけど、文脈上それは無いでしょう）。

I don't get those last lines of the paragraph. It says something about the last night and jumping off a cliff. What's that about? It seems important but I don't quite understand it.

Another person translated 明日の空港に 最後でも来てなんてとても云えない as "I know I can’t tell you to take me to the airport tomorrow even for the last time." Does this sound right to you? It seems to be if the airport is all the way in Tokyo. It doesn't make sense that they should go all the way to Tokyo separately.

It says that she wants to see him on her last day in Japan. She is flying to a place far away enough to give her an image of jumping off the cliff (so to speak) for her irrevocable mistake (of leaving the country and her love). It is like the rumination and anguish the night before execution. It also says "From the context, it is difficult to imagine this would be a domestic flight."

No. That "another person's" translation is horrible. You know that, dontcha? Shiina is in Tokyo and the guy in Fukuoka. 来てなんてとても云えない means "I am in position to ask him to come."