Translation of an English saying?

[trubikhina at AOL.COM]

IMHO, as nice as all these proverbs about jealousy are (see the Dahl collection of proverbs:), the actual expression "The grass is greener on the other side of the fence" translates "Tam luchshe, gde nas net" (Там лучше, где нас нет).







----------------------

Julia Trubikhina, Ph.D

New York University








-----Original Message-----
From: John Lyles <jhl9t at VIRGINIA.EDU>
To: SEELANGS at bama.ua.edu
Sent: Wed, 22 Apr 2009 2:53 pm
Subject: Re: [SEELANGS] Translation of an English saying?








In The Brothers Karamazov, the defense attorney, while talking about how the
1,500 rubles in Dmitri's hands could have seemed like 3,000 to others, says:
в чужой руке ломоть всегда больше кажется (v chuzhoj ruke lomot' vsegda
bol'she kazhetsja).  It's probably not the best alternative, but I happened
to read it today after your email, so I thought I'd offer it as another
possibility.

John Lyles
University of Virginia

On Wed, Apr 22, 2009 at 12:39 PM, Jane Knox-Voina <jknox at bowdoin.edu> wrote:

> Thank you John, I like these. I couldn't find my copy of Dal' -  I think it
> may have its way down to my husband's apartment in Boston. Jane
>
>
> John Dunn wrote:
>
>> Dal', whether in his dictionary or in the Poslovicy russkogo naroda can
>> usually be relied on to come up with several,=2
0mutually contradictory
>> proverbs, for every occasion.   I found:
>>
>> Чужой обед сладок, да не спор [Chuzhoj obed sladok, da ne spor]
>> Чужая изба засидчива [Chuzhaja izba zasidchiva]
>> На чужой лавке мягче сидится [Na chuzhoj lavke mjagche siditsja]
>> Свой хлеб приедчив.  Чужой ломоть лаком [Svoj xleb priedchiv.  Chuzhoj
>> lomot' lakom]  Хороша рыба на чужом блюде [Xorosha ryba na chuzhom bljude]
>>
>> But:
>> Чужой хлеб рот дерёт [Chuzhoj xleb rot derjot]
>> Чужой мёд горек [Chuzhoj mjod gorek]
>> Чужие хлебы приедчивы[Chuzhie xleby priedchivy]
>>
>> And though the sentiments are slightly different, I quite liked:
>> Краденое яичко школьнику слаще [Kradenoe jaichko shkol'niku slashche]
>>
>> Alternatively you might want to settle for something on the lines of:
>> Там 8
5орошо, где нас нет {Tam xorosho, gde nas net].
>>
>> John Dunn.
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Jane Knox-Voina <jknox at BOWDOIN.EDU>
>> To: SEELANGS at bama.ua.edu
>> Date: Wed, 22 Apr 2009 10:37:47 -0400
>> Subject: Re: [SEELANGS] Translation of an English saying?
>>
>> We are trying to come up with a good translation in Russian of the English
>> saying "The grass is greener on the other side of the fence."  Would
>> appreciate help. Jane Knox-Voina, Bowdoin College, Russian Department
>>
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>>
>> John Dunn
>> Honorary Research Fellow, SMLC (Slavonic Studies)
>> University of Glasgow, Scotland
>>
>> Address:
>> Via Carolina Coronedi Berti 6
>> 40137 Bologna
>> Italy
>> Tel.: +39 051/1889 8661
>> e-mail: J.Dunn at slavonic.arts.gla.ac.uk
>> johnanthony.dunn at fastwebnet.it
>>
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