"Mientes" stands out among the Spanish songs I know. It has a universal theme but particularly unintuitive wording if you try to translate it without a solid grasp of the target culture. This post is a thought experiment, showcasing both how clunky a semi-literal translation can be and also how much modification/explanation is needed for it to flow for an English speaker. I might follow up with a Part 2 to explain the changes I made.
Ever seen an online translation of a song that looked a little like this?
Today, remembering who I am again
Knowing what you give and what I give
There's no room for you left in me
And time did its own, and I comprehended
Things don't happen because yes
You're not the person that I thought,
That I believed,
That I asked for
You're lying!
You hurt me and apologize later
There's no case/defense for what you try
The desire to feel does not stay with me
You return!
When I've almost forgotten you
Search for your road in another part
While I search for the time I lost
That today I'm better without you
Here's a translation that's been adapted to the target culture:
Now I'm left trying to remember who I am
Thinking of what each of us brings to this relationship
There's no room for you in my heart/life anymore
And time did its thing (i.e., hindsight is 20/20), and I realized
Things don’t always go your way just because you want them to
You’re not the person that I perceived you to be,
That I thought I knew,
That I wanted
Liar!
You hurt me one minute and say sorry the next
There's no excuse for how you treat me
You've left me wishing I couldn't feel emotions [because of how much you hurt me]
You keep showing up
Right when I've almost forgotten you
Go find your destiny somewhere else
While I make up for lost time
Because I'm better off without you now
@CocoPop Any suggestions for improvement?
It's hard to judge any of this without the Spanish lyrics. I think you misunderstood the line las cosas no suceden porque sí. That means that things don't always work out the way you want them to just because you want them to [=because you say "Yes! (That's how it's going to be!)"] Parents use porque sí to impose their will:
Niño: Mamá, ¿por qué tengo que comerme las espinacas?
Mamá: ¡Porque sí! (=because I said so!)
Ah, that makes more sense, thank you! I added a link to the lyric video at the very beginning of the post, for reference.
I saw the video, but you kinda have to see the translations side-by-side. I’ve already mentioned to Robin the need for a side-by-side translation format on JOURNALY. @robin here’s another example 😉