Recent conversation:
Him: [standing in a doorway]
Me: Isselaam ‘aley-kum.
Him: [mumbles]
Me: Shinhu?
Him: [steps from doorway to street, leans against car]
Me: [pauses]
Him: Si tu veux…
Me: Si je veux quoi?
Him : Si tu veux… [leans in] discuter…
Me : Discuter quoi ?
Him : Si tu veux discuter [leans in closer] quelque chose…
Me : [walks away]
Translation:
Him: [leers from a doorway]
Me: Peace be with you (i.e. hello).
Him: [mumbles]
Me: What?
Him: [prowls from doorway to street, leans against car]
Me: [pauses, waits for conversationally significant sentence]
Him: If you want…
Me: If I want what?
Him : If you want… [leans in] to discuss…
Me : Discuss what ?
Him : If you want to discuss [leans in closer, sneers] something…
Me : [shakes head disapprovingly, walks away]
Cultural translation:
Him: [salivates from a doorway]
Me: Hi. What are you looking at?
Him: [mumbles]
Me: I don’t really want to know, but what did you just say?
Him: [slithers closer to prey, strikes a menacing pose]
Me: [knows better than to stop, pauses regardless]
Him: I’d like to proposition you vaguely…
Me: Not interested but here’s a chance to backpedal into a civilized conversation.
Him : No thanks, I prefer the… [oozes closer] lecherous come on of ambiguity…
Me : Are you serious ?
Him : I couldn’t be any creepier if [closer, reeking of perversion] I groped at you…
Me : [unable to hide revulsion, walks away disappointed]
Sunday, January 13, 2008
Layers of innuendo, humanity lost in translation
Posted by
Ellen
at
5:56 PM
1 constant readers
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