Fullmetal Alchemist Script Book
 

Hi guys,

I'm trying to make a detailed translation of Fullmetal Alchemist scripts, something you can learn from, I opened a blog here --> Japanese Alchemy Blog but for now I'm translating alone and I'm stuck with this sentence:

N： 等価交換の原則は、なにかを得るためには、それと同等 の代価が必要であることを示している。それは教訓なの だろうか

I would be glad if you could help me here or leave a comment at the blog, I'm planning to make some mnemosyne files with the translation so please explain every grammar point, thanks :)

its talking about the alchemist's law of equivalently exchange. Didnt nagoyankee already translate this to someone yesterday for someone? (thats how I know :P )

yep, that's the easy part :)

I asked nagoyankee about いちのもの it was from a previous sentence and he told me it was some kind of hypotetical unit used in physics.

等価交換の原則 is the alchemist law of equivalent exchange, but now one of the new problems is それと

There is a pretty big part of the sentence I've translated in previous comments in the blog and the narrator part is almost done, I'm sure it will get easier when the dialog begins.

I was hoping someone joins the translation, any suggestion is welcomed

それ is referring to なにか, that "something" that is going to be "obtained (得る)" .
と is a particle used as a connector, in this case linking the two terms which are compared (that have the same value). In this case, the first term is the thing that is going to be obtained, the second one is the thing with the same price (同等 の代価のもの).

I'd translate that sentence
"The general rule of fair exchange explains that, in order to obtain something, is necessary something else with the same price"

Thanks Cyclamen great translation, this would be mine:

[That is] The principle of fair exchange, for the sake of obtaining something, something of equal value is necessary ことを示している。That is 教訓なのだろうか

What about that second part, can you fill the gaps with explanations?

I guess the と in それと doesn't have a direct translation here so "something of equal value" or "something else with the same price" seems appropiate

--> ことを示している
こと is used to nominalize a proposition (here, ......必要である)
を indicates the verb's object (in this case, the nominalized proposition)
示す　means "to point out", "to show", "to explain". It's used here in -ている (continuative form)
That's why I translated this sentence as
"the general rule of fair exchange explains that ......"

--> 教訓なのだろうか
教訓 means "precept", "moral instruction"
なの emphasizes the noun (教訓)
だろう expresses a conjecture
か is a particle used to mark questions

A literal translation of それは教訓なの だろうか would be then "Would that be a lesson?". The subtle meaning of japanese だろう can be translated in many ways, depending on wheter the speaker knows the subject he's talking about ("that would be a precept") , he's making suppositions ("would that be a moral instruction?" / "could that be a precept?"), or is waiting for a listener's response ("that's a moral instruction, right?")

So, literally, translated, your sentence would sound like
"The principle of fair exchange points out that for the sake of obtaining something, something of equal value is necessary. Would that be a lesson?"

Wonderful! it was a hard one, maybe the hardest in this first bit of the script. I'll try to explain the full translation with a comment in the blog and I'll come back with the next sentence.

As I said it would be great if someone else posts in the blog, but anyway I'll bring the translation to this thread, thanks again Cyclamen