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desgarre psicológico

English translation: psychological distress/stress/strain

GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)
Spanish term or phrase:desgarre psicológico
English translation:psychological distress/stress/strain
Entered by: JaneTranslates

22:49 May 26, 2015
Spanish to English translations [PRO]
Social Sciences - History / Racism, Psychology, Puerto Rico
Spanish term or phrase: desgarre psicológico
I'm translating a scholarly article about racial identity. The author quotes another scholar, who is writing about Ramón Emeterio Betances. Here's the entire quotation:

Es Betances, probablemente, el primer puertorriqueño mixto, con clara conciencia de lo que es en términos raciales; el primero en aceptar su condición de mulato, sin que el hecho de llevar algún porcentaje de sangre negra en sus venas le cause **desgarres psicológicos**; es el primero, no hay duda, en tener conciencia de su negritud. Para él, su realidad racial está en igual categoría que la blancura de los blancos.


I'm highly tempted to translate this phrase as "(without) pulling a psychological muscle" but I'm not sure that the jocular note I'm reading into the passage is really there.

Psychological break/tear/rupture? Without tearing him up psychologically? Without upsetting his psychological balance? Nothing I can come up with sounds right. Help, please!

The author of the article is Puerto Rican; I believe that the author of the quotation above is also Puerto Rican. I'm translating into US English.

Thanks in advance.
JaneTranslates
Puerto Rico
Local time: 10:21
psychological distress
Explanation:
This seems to me to capture the spirit of the original.
Selected response from:

Stephen D. Moore
United States
Local time: 10:21
Grading comment
You've convinced me, Stephen--and the comment from James C. is right on target, don't you think? Anyway, after MUCH deliberation, I've decided that this option does, indeed, capture the spirit of the original. Thank you very much.
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



Summary of answers provided
4 +4psychological strain/stress/dislocation
philgoddard
4 +3psychological distress
Stephen D. Moore
4mental disorder
Kirsten Larsen (X)
4damage to his psyche
bigedsenior
3psychological destabilization
Barbara Cochran, MFA
3didn't give him a "complex"
Muriel Vasconcellos
2 +1tearing him apart psychologically
Andy Watkinson


Discussion entries: 4





  

Answers


17 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
mental disorder


Explanation:
Alternatively: personality disorder

Kirsten Larsen (X)
Spain
Native speaker of: Native in DanishDanish, Native in SpanishSpanish
Notes to answerer
Asker: Thanks for your contribution, KirstenL. I don't think it quite fits my context, but might be a good option in another.

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35 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5
psychological destabilization


Explanation:
Otra opción.



Barbara Cochran, MFA
United States
Local time: 10:21
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 16
Notes to answerer
Asker: An elegant solution, Barbara. Thank you. It may be a bit to clinical--and perhaps too modern?--for my context, though. I should have included the date (around 1900) in my question; I was remiss. Thanks for a good solution that will work well in other contexts.

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38 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +4
psychological strain/stress/dislocation


Explanation:
As you say, the idea is strain, in the sense of stretched muscles.


    Reference: http://www.google.com/search?ie=UTF-8&source=android-browser...
philgoddard
United States
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 38
Notes to answerer
Asker: And...I'm down to two. For a couple of days I've been leaning toward the "strain" option--still trying to evoke the literal sense of "desgarre," but I have to let it go. Thanks so much for your time and an excellent suggestion, Phil.


Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  franglish: I'd go for strain
8 hrs
agree  neilmac: Strain or stress work for me...
15 hrs
agree  Edward Tully
1 day 16 mins
agree  liberfo
1 day 21 hrs
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1 hr   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +3
psychological distress


Explanation:
This seems to me to capture the spirit of the original.

Stephen D. Moore
United States
Local time: 10:21
Works in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 12
Grading comment
You've convinced me, Stephen--and the comment from James C. is right on target, don't you think? Anyway, after MUCH deliberation, I've decided that this option does, indeed, capture the spirit of the original. Thank you very much.

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Jacob Z. (X): Out of the 7 answers I like this one. It seems like the term "un desgarro psicológico" is more common than "desgarres" as seen here -- maybe a difference between more of a psych. breakdown/trauma event in the former and ongoing distress in the latter?
17 hrs
  -> Thanks!
agree  MollyRose
21 hrs
  -> Thanks!
agree  Edward Tully
23 hrs
  -> Thanks!
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3 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
damage to his psyche


Explanation:
or trauma

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychological_trauma
Wikipedia
Psychological trauma is a type of damage to the psyche that occurs as a result of a severely distressing event. Trauma is often the result of an overwhelming ...
‎Symptoms - ‎Situational trauma - ‎Assessment - ‎Treatment
Severe Trauma May Damage The Brain as Well as the Psyche
www.nytimes.com/.../severe-trauma-may-damage-t...
The New York Times
Aug 1, 1995 - SEVERE emotional trauma may put its victims in double jeopardy, not only searing the psyche, but physically damaging the brain. New studies ...
Emotional First Aid: Self-Help for the Wounded Psyche ...
https://www.psychologytoday.com/.../emotional-first-...
Psychology Today
Sep 11, 2013 - For each typical emotional wound, Winch explains how your psyche can be damaged, what to do to begin the healing process, the signs that ...


bigedsenior
Local time: 07:21
Works in field
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 52
Notes to answerer
Asker: Excellent suggestion, Big Ed! I'd use it in an instant with a different author, in a different context. I hated to let this one go... Thanks very much.

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4 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5
didn't give him a "complex"


Explanation:
You might want to use quotation marks - or not. I think it would work either way, though the phrase might call for an expansion, as I have suggested.

Examples:

www.intermix.org.uk/forum/printer_friendly_posts.asp?TID=14... Name: Mixed-Race Individuals ... **Every black person I have met (from older generations especially) has a complex about being too dark or not having ...**

madamenoire.com/.../activist-slams-kendrick-lamar-over-light-skinned-fian...
Apr 6, 2015 - There are white,black, and mixed race latinos. ..... ***It's apparent, she has a complex and I'm sure at one point in her life she wished she was light-skinned ...**



Muriel Vasconcellos
United States
Local time: 07:21
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 50
Notes to answerer
Asker: I like this one, Muriel, but somehow it just didn't "sound right" with this particular author (who is quoted extensively in this section of the article). Thanks for a great suggestion, and for the links.

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17 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 2/5Answerer confidence 2/5 peer agreement (net): +1
tearing him apart psychologically


Explanation:
Done ;-)

Andy Watkinson
Spain
Local time: 16:21
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 20
Notes to answerer
Asker: After I egged you on to post this as an answer, I ended up choosing another. But I would have been quite satisfied with this one. As I said, changing my "tearing UP" to "tearing apart" improved the phrase drastically--but it was nice to be told that my own thoughts weren't so very far off! Thanks, Andy.


Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Cinnamon Nolan
1 hr
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