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Glossary entry

Spanish term or phrase:

Es como una maldición para bien

English translation:

It\'s kind of a good curse

Added to glossary by Ion Zubizarreta
Dec 4, 2013 17:22
10 yrs ago
4 viewers *
Spanish term

Es como una maldición para bien

Spanish to English Art/Literary Idioms / Maxims / Sayings
This is a conversation between the member of a rock band (first line) and the brother of a former member of the band (second one). I think that the brother's reply "Es como una maldición para bien" is quite poetic and I'm trying to find an English equivalent. As this is for subtitling, the shorter the better : )

Thanks!


"- Es que yo no sé que más me podía traer Miguel, me regaló tantos cosas, me dio tantas cosas.
- Es que tú no lo podrás olvidar en la vida. Es como una maldición para bien".
Proposed translations (English)
4 +3 It's kind of a good curse
4 +1 It's like a benevolent curse
3 +1 It's like a curse in reverse
4 It is a necessary evil
3 +1 It's kind of bittersweet

Discussion

lorenab23 Dec 5, 2013:
A shot in the dark I wonder if we could walk away from attempting to match the word "maldición" and say something like "it hurts so good" or "it is a good hurt" Just a silly thought..
Ion Zubizarreta (asker) Dec 5, 2013:
Thanks Charles, I totally agree with you.
Charles Davis Dec 4, 2013:
@ Ion For what it's worth, my immediate understanding of this was exactly as you say. It's clear enough from the context that the speaker remembers this person with enormous and unmixed affection and gratitude. The memory is a "curse" simply because it will always be with him; he could not rid himself of it even if he tried. But the "curse" is a blessing: "para bien", because, as you say, the memories are all happy ones, though it is tinged with sadness because he's no longer there. I don't think it's a matter of the good outweighing the bad, as Robert says. It's an inherently paradoxical expression and makes sense on an emotional rather than a strictly logical level.
Robert Forstag Dec 4, 2013:
@Ion Another possibility here, in light of your further explanation, might be something along the lines of the following: "It's really something of a mixed blessing"
Ion Zubizarreta (asker) Dec 4, 2013:
Thanks Robert. There's not much more context. A group of people reminisce about a dear dead friend. As I see it, the "maldición" is having that dead friend present every day in your life, remembering all the good things he did for you, "para bien", in my opinion, refers to the fact that remembering all these things is pleasant and satisfying. Of course, I could be wrong.
Robert Forstag Dec 4, 2013:
@Ion I'm not sure that your understanding is correct here--on logical grounds. At least to my (non-native) eye, "una maldición para bien" would imply that, whatever "negative" element might inhere in the memory of the person in question would be outweighed by the "good" (i.e., "bien") and therefore, on the balance, be "positive" (and therefore really more of a "blessing" than a "curse"). Of course, given the missing context and the possibility that the person in question may not have been speaking carefully (far from uncommon in spontaneous speech) your own understanding may indeed be accurate.
Ion Zubizarreta (asker) Dec 4, 2013:
I think that in this case "maldición para bien" is not being able to forget someone who has done so many good things.

Proposed translations

+3
34 mins
Selected

It's kind of a good curse

I think that's the sort of equivalent thing that kind of person would say. Short enough?

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Note added at 1 hr (2013-12-04 18:30:06 GMT)
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Film Review: Kaidan (2007) | Horrornews.net
horrornews.net/11502/film-review-kaidan-2007/‎
13 Sep 2010 - I know this must be part of the curse but it's kind of a good curse because Shinkichi keeps meeting up with all this fine tang! To the scumbuckets ...

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Note added at 1 hr (2013-12-04 18:32:56 GMT)
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Here's another one, about an album:

The Devil and God Are Raging Inside Me by Brand New : Reviews ...
rateyourmusic.com/release/album/brand_new/the_devil_and.../7
[Rating39101428], This album is kind of a "good curse" to me, it's attached to my life in so many ways it's hard to describe what it means to me, it packs a
Note from asker:
Thank you all for the suggestions, specially David and Charles!
Peer comment(s):
neutral AllegroTrans : May work in Spanish but not in English
7 mins
I don't understand your comment. I think it's perfectly consistent with the way people in rock bands and their entourage might speak. I've posted a film review in English that uses the phrase.
agree Charles Davis : I think "good curse" could probably work. I wonder about "a happy curse". I'd really prefer something like "a curse, but in a good way", but it's probably too long.
3 hrs
Thanks, Charles. Good suggestions as ever. I think once we can agree on the meaning here, the trick is to nail the register.
agree JH Trads
4 hrs
Thanks, Hugo
agree Rosa Paredes
11 hrs
Thanks, Rosa
Something went wrong...
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
+1
24 mins

It's like a benevolent curse

Plenty of refs to benevolent curses in Google, and this seems to be the idea: something that sticks like a curse, but is well intentioned and/or has positive consequences
Peer comment(s):
agree Charles Davis : I agree entirely with your reading, though I have some doubts about whether "benevolent" is the right register.
3 hrs
thanks Charles :) I don't really have a problem with the register here, although I'm not sure that some other synonym (kindly, beneficial, good, well-meaning, congenial, etc.) wouldn't also work. Or "fairy godmother" for the "magic"/gifts connotations?
Something went wrong...
+1
2 hrs
Spanish term (edited): Es como una maldición para bien

It's like a curse in reverse

Just a thought.
Peer comment(s):
agree Tom Bell
2 hrs
Thanks, Tom.
Something went wrong...
9 hrs

It is a necessary evil

I think this might be the right register
Peer comment(s):
neutral Lisa McCarthy : What is it a necessary evil?
6 hrs
For example, people complain about household staff and they say it is a necessary evil, can't do without it.
Something went wrong...
+1
15 hrs

It's kind of bittersweet

The memory is sweet but tinged with sadness because of the loss.

Bittersweet | Define Bittersweet at Dictionary.com
dictionary.reference.com/browse/bittersweet‎
both pleasant and painful or regretful: a bittersweet memory. noun.


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Note added at 15 horas (2013-12-05 09:01:02 GMT)
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OTHER OPTIONS:

"IT'S (A KIND OF) BITTERSWEET FEELING / MEMORY / CURSE"


Reviews for The Thrill Of Flying | FanFiction
www.fanfiction.net/r/4574622/
This was a good look into George's life after Fred's death. It is short, but ... This is really lovely :) It had a kind of bittersweet feeling to it, but it sure was beautiful.

A knack for copy editing is a bittersweet curse I... - casetheplace
casetheplace.blogspot.com/.../knack-for-copy-editing-is-bittersweet.html‎
6 Feb 2007 - A knack for copy editing is ***a bittersweet curse***. I have spent my entire literate life, from five onwards, mentally correcting every written work I see.

Gather the Fleet! (Discussion of All Things Shipping Here) - Page ...
na.leagueoflegends.com/board/showthread.php?t=3526323&page=3‎
8 Jun 2013 - 10 posts - ‎9 authors
DO YOU KNOW THAT? It's always in your mind and everthing reminds you of them... It's like a curse... A bittersweet curse. >w< Other pairings:

Fextralife • View topic - I Should Be Asleep Now!
www.fextralife.com/forums/t9907/i-should-be-asleep.../&view...‎
16 Aug 2012 - It's like a bittersweet curse! I've fallen in love with my Dark Souls again, but I love sleep too! I'm getting there, though, I guess leave some late ...
I Love You, But Get The F*ck Out | Make Every Song
makeeverysong.wordpress.com/2011/09/.../i-love-you-but-get-the-fck-o...‎
19 Sep 2011 - ... they're more often than not fantastic ones. **It is a bittersweet curse**, but there's no way I'll stop listening to a great song because it follows…
Peer comment(s):
agree Sophie Cherel
1 hr
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