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  3. Art, Arts & Crafts, Painting

j'ai vu les portes se fermer

English translation: the doors were closed to me

13:04 Nov 10, 2009
French to English translations [Non-PRO]
Art/Literary - Art, Arts & Crafts, Painting
French term or phrase: j'ai vu les portes se fermer
"Malheureusement pour moi qui faisais partie de la génération suivante, j'ai vu ##toutes les portes se fermer.##"

meaning: no one wanted me
I need some native input, because I found "the doors closing before me", as well as "the doors closing in front of me". I feel like the first one sounds better. I welcome any totally different suggestion as well.
Sandrine Guyennet
France
Local time: 15:41
English translation:the doors were closed to me
Explanation:
"Closed to", not "closed on".

"I felt the doors were closed to me.” Leticia's memories of being undocumented are painful. She recalled, with tears in her eyes, that her life in the eight ..."
www.drclas.harvard.edu/revista/articles/view/309 -

"I knocked on every door of the formal markets trying to sell them the line of sneakers, but all of the doors were closed to me. They said, 'You are offering ..."
higheredbcs.wiley.com/legacy/college/bygrave/.../galindo_case.doc -

"30 May 1996 ... Liable to do what, Musser did not say, but nonetheless, it was clear the doors were closed to me, and with nowhere else to turn, ..."
www.houstonpress.com/1996-05-30/news/space-case/ -

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 40 mins (2009-11-10 13:45:30 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

I realise that the source text implies that the doors might have seemed open, but closed as the writer approached. However, unless that is really important to the context, I think this suggestion is more idiomatic in English. But another variation would be the active version: "the doors closed to me".

"racial epithets hurled at me, the racial violence directed against me, and the doors closed to me because of my racial heritage ..."
moritzlaw.osu.edu/lawjournal/issues/volume62/.../williams.pdf -

""I have had all the doors closed to me," said Sharon Shea, who lives in a San Rafael trailer park on $750 a month after losing her two children. ..."
www.johnnypumphandle.com/cc/marin01.htm -

"... before the duchess, and one morning when I tried to get away to Marly, she had the doors closed to me ; and there were others in the same predicament. ..."
www.archive.org/.../memoirsofducdesa01sainuoft_djvu.txt -



Selected response from:

B D Finch
France
Local time: 15:41
Grading comment
thank you!
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



Summary of answers provided
5I saw nothing but doors closing in my face/in front of me
FrenchPhD
4 +1doors being slammed in my face
Colin Rowe
4 +1i found only a lack of opportunities
jmleger
4I've seen all the doors being closed on me/how all the doors have closed on me
Noni Gilbert Riley
4I have found only closed doors
Ysabel812
4the doors all closed on me
David Vaughn
4I saw the doors closing on me
Helen Shiner
4I felt (that I was being) shut out/excluded
Sarah Bessioud
4the doors were closed to me
B D Finch
3 +1all that was as good as over by the time I came along
polyglot45
3I witnessed the barriers going up
Emma Paulay


Discussion entries: 1





  

Answers


5 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
I've seen all the doors being closed on me/how all the doors have closed on me


Explanation:
Another option from this native!

Noni Gilbert Riley
Spain
Local time: 15:41
Works in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 4
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5 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
I have found only closed doors


Explanation:
I think this is an idiomatic way to put it.
Good luck!

Ysabel812
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
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5 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 5/5
I saw nothing but doors closing in my face/in front of me


Explanation:
:)

FrenchPhD
Canada
Local time: 09:41
Works in field
Native speaker of: English
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6 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
the doors all closed on me


Explanation:
OR

I saw the doors all close on me

Other possibilities - I'm not sure the progressive is a good idea here. It sounds like the doors were completely closed.

David Vaughn
Local time: 15:41
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 289
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10 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
I saw the doors closing on me


Explanation:
I have seen the doors closing on me
I have watched as doors have closed on me

Helen Shiner
United Kingdom
Local time: 14:41
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 348
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14 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +1
doors being slammed in my face


Explanation:
Whichever way I turned, all I saw was doors being slammed in my face.

Whichever way I turned, doors were always slammed in my face.

Colin Rowe
Germany
Local time: 15:41
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 12

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Verginia Ophof
1 hr
  -> Thanks!
agree  Ingeborg Gowans (X): that would have been my input as well; depends on the overall tone of the text, of course
1 hr
  -> Indeed, thanks!
disagree  Anne Bohy: This would be the translation for "me claquer la porte au nez" which is quite different. "Voir les portes se fermer" means simply that interesting opportunities are over. There is no violence here, just bad luck.
4 hrs
  -> I disagree. This is simply a more emphatic way of saying that opportunities were not forthcoming. (Figurative) doors were being slammed by people not willing to provide opportunities / turning down approaches.
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20 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
I felt (that I was being) shut out/excluded


Explanation:
This is a way of putting it without having to mention doors, but one that conveys the message here. Doors closing = shutting someone out, leaving someone outside, excluding someone. I would also contemplate inserting the word 'totally', because all the doors were closing.

In this context :
(....), I felt that I was being shut out
(...), I felt (totally) left out/excluded

Sarah Bessioud
Germany
Local time: 15:41
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 8
Login to enter a peer comment (or grade)

35 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
the doors were closed to me


Explanation:
"Closed to", not "closed on".

"I felt the doors were closed to me.” Leticia's memories of being undocumented are painful. She recalled, with tears in her eyes, that her life in the eight ..."
www.drclas.harvard.edu/revista/articles/view/309 -

"I knocked on every door of the formal markets trying to sell them the line of sneakers, but all of the doors were closed to me. They said, 'You are offering ..."
higheredbcs.wiley.com/legacy/college/bygrave/.../galindo_case.doc -

"30 May 1996 ... Liable to do what, Musser did not say, but nonetheless, it was clear the doors were closed to me, and with nowhere else to turn, ..."
www.houstonpress.com/1996-05-30/news/space-case/ -

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 40 mins (2009-11-10 13:45:30 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

I realise that the source text implies that the doors might have seemed open, but closed as the writer approached. However, unless that is really important to the context, I think this suggestion is more idiomatic in English. But another variation would be the active version: "the doors closed to me".

"racial epithets hurled at me, the racial violence directed against me, and the doors closed to me because of my racial heritage ..."
moritzlaw.osu.edu/lawjournal/issues/volume62/.../williams.pdf -

""I have had all the doors closed to me," said Sharon Shea, who lives in a San Rafael trailer park on $750 a month after losing her two children. ..."
www.johnnypumphandle.com/cc/marin01.htm -

"... before the duchess, and one morning when I tried to get away to Marly, she had the doors closed to me ; and there were others in the same predicament. ..."
www.archive.org/.../memoirsofducdesa01sainuoft_djvu.txt -





B D Finch
France
Local time: 15:41
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 123
Grading comment
thank you!
Login to enter a peer comment (or grade)

9 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +1
i found only a lack of opportunities


Explanation:
the doors here are not literal doors. They mean possibilities to do such things as finding work, etc.

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 44 mins (2009-11-10 13:49:19 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

I met only with rejection

jmleger
Local time: 08:41
Native speaker of: Native in FrenchFrench
PRO pts in category: 15

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Anne Bohy: Yes, it means mostly that the opportunities are gone (that somebody has the job already), there is not necessarily any rejection.
4 hrs
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54 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): +1
all that was as good as over by the time I came along


Explanation:
don't think the "doors" image is very common in English or at least less so than in France

polyglot45
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish, Native in FrenchFrench
PRO pts in category: 11

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Anne Bohy
4 hrs
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1 hr   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5
I witnessed the barriers going up


Explanation:
We don't have enough context to know whether the "closed door" idea is essential or not.

I saw I was up against a brick wall
I saw I was going to be shut out
I saw all the avenues were blocked...

Emma Paulay
France
Local time: 15:41
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 27
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