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Discussion in 'Grammar & Pronunciation' started by scrimshaw, Nov 9, 2011.

  1. scrimshaw

    scrimshaw Well-Known Member

    I was just reviewing some old posts.

    scrimshaw wrote:
    If we do not all hang together, we will certainly all hang separately....Thomas Paine

    YOU WROTE.....Isn’t it attributed rather to Ben Franklin?

    Yes, you are correct, it is a quote attributed to Ben Franklin, not Thomas Paine. :oops: And that's from me, who likes to think he knows a little about american history.

    And I like your translation to continue the word play....
    Nebudeme-li táhnout za jeden provaz, dostaneme každý svůj provaz.

    scrimshaw wrote:
    Nedržíme-li spolu, určitě pověsíme samostatně

    We use future tense for this kind of condition:

    Nebudeme-li držet (po)spolu/pohromadě…

    The prefix “po-” has causative meaning:

    viset ~ to be hanging
    ×
    pověsit ~ to make something hanging

    Hence:

    …budeme viset každý zvlášť (~ we will all hang separately)
    or
    …pověsí nás každého zvlášť. (~ they will hang us separately)


    But as the wordplay is lost in this translation, we should try some loose translation, e.g.:

    Nebudeme-li táhnout za jeden provaz, dostaneme každý svůj provaz.

    (~ If we do not all pull at the same end of the rope, every of us will be granted his own rope.)
     

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