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72Translation - Brazilian Portuguese-English - Os Conselhos Gestores não constituem panacéia e...

Current statusTranslation
This text is available in the following languages: Brazilian PortugueseEnglish

Category Essay

Title
Os Conselhos Gestores não constituem panacéia e...
Text
Submitted by M. Fernanda
Source language: Brazilian Portuguese

Os Conselhos Gestores não constituem panacéia e podem, até mesmo, vir a frustrar expectativas de aprimoramento radical da democracia e de possibilidades de mudanças sociais. A capacidade de representar e responder por mudanças do Conselho Gestor está na adequação aos seus propósitos, na sua organização institucional, em virtude da sua potencialidade em maximizar os objetivos definidos pelas oportunidades oferecidas pela estrutura institucional das sociedades.

Title
Management Councils do not make up a panacea
Translation
English

Translated by goncin
Target language: English

Management Councils do not constitute a panacea and may even frustrate expectations of radical improvement of democracy as well as possibilities for social change. The Management Council’s capacity to represent and take charge of changes resides in accordance with its purposes, in its institutional organization, on the basis of its potentiality to maximize goals defined by opportunities presented by the institutional structure of societies.
Remarks about the translation
The original text has very long sentences, and often the syntactical elements are out of order.
Last validated or edited by kafetzou - 3 October 2007 05:31





Latest messages

Author
Message

28 September 2007 12:39

goncin
Number of messages: 3706
Ian, Kafetzou and Tantine,

I was a bit anxious to know if this translation is good, so I asked the poll myself. Did I do anything wrong?

CC: IanMegill2 kafetzou Tantine

28 September 2007 13:19

kafetzou
Number of messages: 7963
Yes, you did, goncinho. We usually don't ask for a poll until after we've edited the English for correctness.

I've removed the poll. Just hang on and let us do our "job", if you don't mind, but thanks for asking us!

CC: IanMegill2 Tantine

28 September 2007 13:20

goncin
Number of messages: 3706
Yep. Sorry.

28 September 2007 14:42

Tantine
Number of messages: 2747
Hi goncino

Some small suggestions before the poll.

Put a comma between "democracy" and "radical",

The apostrophy on "Council's" is badly placed, if "Council" is plural, the apostrophy goes after the "s".

I would put "capacity of representing and taking charge of changes resides in...

I don't understand what is meant by

"the conformity to its purposes,"

"potential" is probably better than "potentiality"

and I would put "the institutional structures" rather than just "institutional structures"

Bises
Tantine

28 September 2007 16:01

goncin
Number of messages: 3706
Hi, Tantine. Thanks again.

I'm afraid I can't put a comma between "democracy" and "radical" because "democracy radical improvement" form a whole expression. Maybe "radical improvement of democracy", but "frustrate expectations of radical improvement of democracy" wouldn't be even worse?

In the second sentence, "Management Council" is singular, so that apostrophe is already in the right place.

"Conformity to its purposes" is intended to mean "in agreement with its purposes".

"Capacity of representing and taking...": edited.

"Potential" also sounds better for me, but I'm not sure, as that the text is the kind of bureaucratic/technical one in which "potential" and "potentiality" may have different meanings.

I'll put "the" in the front of "intentional structures".

What do you think?

29 September 2007 00:13

IanMegill2
Number of messages: 1671
This is the sense I was able to make of it, just as a triangulation on what the meaning might be:

Management Councils are not (High-level English: "do not constitute" ) a panacea, and at their worst, they can even frustrate expectations for radical improvements in democratic systems, as well as possibilities for social change. The functions of a Management Council (i.e. of representing the people and initiating change) derive from its own conformity to its purposes and its institutional structure, in light of its ability to maximize clear goals within the context of the opportunities available in the institutional structures of society.

Quite a mouthful, huh?

29 September 2007 10:06

goncin
Number of messages: 3706
Yes, Ian. In Portuguese we would say that this text (the original one, or any translation from it) is "macarrônico" ('spaghettic') after its loooong and rolled up sentences.

I think you got the general meaning, but I also think this translation should be a bit more litteral. You started the second sentence with "The functions of a Management Council...", but I still guess that we can insist a little more on the word "capacity", as it is a legal term.

BTW, I dared to translate this complex text, although I'm not a native English speaker, after some days it was on the row. If I can't express myself properly in English, I hope at least to discuss this text with you, because it is complex even for a native Portuguese speaker.

Thank you, Ian.

29 September 2007 15:10

kafetzou
Number of messages: 7963
Obviously, this writer's goal was to obfuscate, not educate.

I have made a few edits, but there are still two areas that are unclear to me:

"the conformity to its purposes" - What does this mean?

"on the grounds of its potentiality" - What does "grounds" mean here? How about simply "because of its potential"?

1 October 2007 09:38

goncin
Number of messages: 3706
Kafetzou,

"Conformity to its purposes" is intended to mean "in agreement with its purposes".

"em virtude da sua potencialidade" -> "on the basis of its potentiality"? I was searching for a more ellaborate form than just "because".

Thanks.

1 October 2007 13:53

kafetzou
Number of messages: 7963
How about "in accordance with its purposes" and "on the basis of its potential"?

1 October 2007 14:50

goncin
Number of messages: 3706
Good solution, Kafetzou. Now I'm just not sure if "potencialidade" can be translated as "potential" instead of "potentiality".

2 October 2007 00:51

kafetzou
Number of messages: 7963
"potentiality" is not a word in English. What does "potencialidade" mean?

2 October 2007 09:54

goncin
Number of messages: 3706
Kafetzou,

potentiality (1)
potentiality (2)
potentiality (3)

3 October 2007 05:31

kafetzou
Number of messages: 7963
I stand corrected! I will change it back, although to be honest I don't understand why it shouldn't be "potential" here.

3 October 2007 09:48

goncin
Number of messages: 3706
Yes, it should be, but I'm not sure it can be.

BTW, this is my last translation into English; I won't translate into this language anymore.

3 October 2007 12:18

Tantine
Number of messages: 2747
Why don't you want to translate into English any more Goncin.

Your English is other than "good" it's really more than an average English speaker can master.

If you stop translating into English I will START translating into Br Portuguese!! hehe

Bises
Tantine

3 October 2007 12:28

goncin
Number of messages: 3706
Maybe after some time I would change my mind, Tantine; that's very kind of you . But for now, I'm too upset to insist on that. This translation worn me out quite much.

3 October 2007 13:12

guilon
Number of messages: 1549
Well, dear Goncy, you could change your mind right now and resume your translations into English because you are very good at it, more especially as you are an autodidact. People like you are an inspiration to others.

Não sejas teimoso, pá! Deixa lá essas birras!


3 October 2007 13:32

kafetzou
Number of messages: 7963
Also, it's a good way to learn!