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Rire de la mort

English translation: laugh at death

GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)
French term or phrase:Rire de la mort
English translation:laugh at death
Entered by: Estelle Demontrond-Box

00:25 Aug 21, 2013
French to English translations [PRO]
Art/Literary - Poetry & Literature / Quote/Citation
French term or phrase: Rire de la mort
J'essaie de traduire une citation de Guy Bedos:
"Il faut rire de la mort! Surtout quand c'est les autres."

J'ai traduit par "You have to laugh about death! Especially when it happens to others."
Mais je ne suis pas sûre que cette formule soit très naturelle.
Pourrais-je avoir l'avis de quelques anglophones?
Merci

Estelle
Estelle Demontrond-Box
Australia
Local time: 11:03
laugh at death
Explanation:
My suggestion

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 3 hrs (2013-08-21 04:03:48 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

It's a humorous quote, and I think it will work best if you keep it simple. "Laugh about death" is okay, too, but to me "laugh at death" sounds slightly more natural.
Selected response from:

Sheri P
United States
Local time: 21:03
Grading comment
Thanks to all!
Very useful input!
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



Summary of answers provided
4 +11lagh in the face of death, especially that of others
jmleger
4 +7laugh at death
Sheri P
4 +1Laugh at death ... especially other people's death.
Jean-Claude Gouin
4laugh about death
James Nixon
4You should always jest about death
Kévin Bernier
4mocking death
Sandra & Kenneth Grossman
4laugh at death
RachidAmrani
3Death is a laughing matter
polyglot45


Discussion entries: 2





  

Answers


14 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
laugh about death


Explanation:
It sounds like that would have been said by either Oscar Wilde or Groucho Marx.

James Nixon
New Zealand
Local time: 13:03
Native speaker of: English

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
neutral  Tony M: I don't really think 'about' is the best preposition to use in this particular instance
5 hrs
  -> To laugh at someone's death would be to mock them, to laugh about the death would be more to search for the funny side of it in my opinion.
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30 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
You should always jest about death


Explanation:
Another option.

Kévin Bernier
France
Local time: 03:03
Native speaker of: French

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
neutral  Tony M: I think 'jest', besides being pretty archaic by now, also suggests more 'make jokes about', rather than 'laugh at'
4 hrs
  -> well, this is Guy Bedos!
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37 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +11
lagh in the face of death, especially that of others


Explanation:
More idiomatic

jmleger
Local time: 20:03
Native speaker of: Native in FrenchFrench
PRO pts in category: 4

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Wendy Streitparth: The most natural-sounding to date.
4 hrs
  -> Thanks!
agree  Tony M: I agree, this sounds more natural
4 hrs
  -> Thanks!
neutral  Sandra & Kenneth Grossman: This actually means braving death, rather than laughing at/ mocking/ making fun of.
5 hrs
  -> I understand your comment.
agree  tkyrs: I agree it could mean braving death, but not exclusively. I think it sounds good
5 hrs
  -> Thanks!
agree  Evans (X): This was the first phrase that came to my mind too, and I think it matches the source.
5 hrs
  -> Thanks!
agree  T. Mark Humphries: I agree, but I would go with "especially other people's" or "especially other people's deaths", rather than "especially that of others".
7 hrs
  -> Thanks. I was mostly concentrating on rendering the beginning of the sentence, and I totally agree w/you.
neutral  Yvonne Gallagher: agree with Sangro. Maybe "laugh in Death's face"? Also with TMH's comment
7 hrs
  -> It just means having no fear of death, so whatever translates this idea is ok with me.
agree  Lucy Marie Vauclair (X)
7 hrs
  -> Thanks!
agree  Annie Sapucaia
11 hrs
  -> Thanks!
agree  Verginia Ophof
15 hrs
  -> Thanks!
agree  KMPrice
2 days 16 hrs
  -> Thanks.
agree  RachidAmrani
4 days
  -> Thanks!
agree  Garen Bell
54 days
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1 hr   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +7
laugh at death


Explanation:
My suggestion

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 3 hrs (2013-08-21 04:03:48 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

It's a humorous quote, and I think it will work best if you keep it simple. "Laugh about death" is okay, too, but to me "laugh at death" sounds slightly more natural.

Sheri P
United States
Local time: 21:03
Works in field
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 12
Grading comment
Thanks to all!
Very useful input!

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Tony M: I agree, 'at' is more natural to my ears too.
4 hrs
  -> Thank you, Tony
agree  ael
5 hrs
  -> Thank you, ael
agree  Yvonne Gallagher: ...Especially when others are involved
6 hrs
  -> Thanks, gallagy
agree  Alison MacG: especially someone else's
7 hrs
  -> Thank you, Alison; your "especially someone else's" works well here
agree  Marian Vieyra: An amalgam of your 'laugh at death, and Alison's 'especially someone else's' would be the best solution for the whole sentence.
7 hrs
  -> Thank you, Marian
agree  mill2: with Marian
9 hrs
  -> Thanks, mill2
agree  Yolanda Broad
18 hrs
  -> Thank you, Yolanda
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5 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
mocking death


Explanation:
... especially that of others.

Sandra & Kenneth Grossman
Israel
Local time: 04:03
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish, Native in RomanianRomanian
PRO pts in category: 8
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6 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5
Death is a laughing matter


Explanation:
especially other people's
G. Bedos has a warped and unfunny sense of humour

polyglot45
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish, Native in FrenchFrench
PRO pts in category: 52
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23 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +1
Laugh at death ... especially other people's death.


Explanation:
Thank you Tony for your previous comment. That's not what
I wanted to write ...

Jean-Claude Gouin
Canada
Local time: 21:03
Native speaker of: Native in FrenchFrench
PRO pts in category: 4

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Tony M: ...but the second 'death' is not needed, and arguably overloads the phrase.
6 hrs
  -> Merci Tony ...
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4 days   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
laugh at death


Explanation:
laugh at death, especially that of others

RachidAmrani
Morocco
Local time: 02:03
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: Native in ArabicArabic
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