Glossary entry (derived from question below)
French term or phrase:
Crise de spleen
English translation:
Woe is us
Added to glossary by
Kevin Oheix
Jul 27, 2018 19:45
5 yrs ago
2 viewers *
French term
Crise de spleen
French to English
Marketing
Business/Commerce (general)
Customer service?
I'm translating text for a French app that is pretty kooky all the way through, so I'm having to get a little creative to translate some of their ideas. But I'm pretty stuck on this one, especially since it doesn't have much context - it's a short text sent to a customer.
"Objet : C’est le spleen de xxxx (company name)
Preview : Dites-nous tout, nous sommes tout ouïe !
CRISE DE SPLEEN"
That's all there is, though it's on a page full of other short texts in which the general context is that they are trying to lure the customer back with various discounts, asking for customer feedback, etc... And this excerpt is the first on the list in fairly random order.
So I've learned that spleen in French refers to melancholy, ennui, yearning, sadness, etc. So I'm guessing it's expressing something along the lines of "we're sad to see you go, tell us what's wrong, we miss you, etc." But I'm really stuck on what to put for "crise de spleen" since it seems to be a heading or subject line of sorts. Other examples include MOT DE PASSE OUBLIÉ, QUE S’EST-IL PASSÉ, JE VOUS DIS TOUT, JE VOUS EXPLIQUE, JE RAVIVE LA FLAMME. So it needs to be short and sweet, the cheekier the better.
Any creative types have any ideas?
UK English.
Thanks!
"Objet : C’est le spleen de xxxx (company name)
Preview : Dites-nous tout, nous sommes tout ouïe !
CRISE DE SPLEEN"
That's all there is, though it's on a page full of other short texts in which the general context is that they are trying to lure the customer back with various discounts, asking for customer feedback, etc... And this excerpt is the first on the list in fairly random order.
So I've learned that spleen in French refers to melancholy, ennui, yearning, sadness, etc. So I'm guessing it's expressing something along the lines of "we're sad to see you go, tell us what's wrong, we miss you, etc." But I'm really stuck on what to put for "crise de spleen" since it seems to be a heading or subject line of sorts. Other examples include MOT DE PASSE OUBLIÉ, QUE S’EST-IL PASSÉ, JE VOUS DIS TOUT, JE VOUS EXPLIQUE, JE RAVIVE LA FLAMME. So it needs to be short and sweet, the cheekier the better.
Any creative types have any ideas?
UK English.
Thanks!
Proposed translations
(English)
4 | Woe is us | Kevin Oheix |
4 | Vent your spleen | Jackie Doble |
4 | crisis of confidence | Francois Boye |
3 | EXISTENTIAL CRISIS | Marco Solinas |
2 | Are we belöw par? | Wendy Streitparth |
Change log
Jul 27, 2018 20:16: writeaway changed "Field" from "Other" to "Marketing"
Aug 2, 2018 13:30: Kevin Oheix Created KOG entry
Proposed translations
5 days
Selected
Woe is us
As requested by Asker
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "Thanks for your suggestions! "
4 hrs
EXISTENTIAL CRISIS
Just to get the ball rolling.
13 hrs
Are we belöw par?
Suggestion.
16 hrs
Vent your spleen
See this explanation in Wikipedia:
"The connection between spleen (the organ) and melancholy (the temperament) comes from the humoral medicine of the ancient Greeks. One of the humours (body fluid) was the black bile, secreted by the spleen organ and associated with melancholy. In contrast, the Talmud (tractate Berachoth 61b) refers to the spleen as the organ of laughter while possibly suggesting a link with the humoral view of the organ. In eighteenth- and nineteenth-century England, women in bad humor were said to be afflicted by the spleen, or the vapours of the spleen. In modern English, "to vent one's spleen" means to vent one's anger, e.g. by shouting, and can be applied to both males and females. Similarly, the English term "splenetic" is used to describe a person in a foul mood."
Vent your spleen seems to fit with the context, as the company is asking its clients to tell it what they think
"The connection between spleen (the organ) and melancholy (the temperament) comes from the humoral medicine of the ancient Greeks. One of the humours (body fluid) was the black bile, secreted by the spleen organ and associated with melancholy. In contrast, the Talmud (tractate Berachoth 61b) refers to the spleen as the organ of laughter while possibly suggesting a link with the humoral view of the organ. In eighteenth- and nineteenth-century England, women in bad humor were said to be afflicted by the spleen, or the vapours of the spleen. In modern English, "to vent one's spleen" means to vent one's anger, e.g. by shouting, and can be applied to both males and females. Similarly, the English term "splenetic" is used to describe a person in a foul mood."
Vent your spleen seems to fit with the context, as the company is asking its clients to tell it what they think
1 day 18 hrs
crisis of confidence
A company is realizing that its ability to perform is down and cannot be reversed.
Discussion
"Il s'agit d'un mail de churn, on envoie ce message en disant à l'utilisateur que nous sommes déprimés car il nous manque et ne vient plus nous voir. Son absence provoque le spleen, la nostalgie dont on parle."
With your ideas and this extra info, I'll figure something out!
Heavy heart, sick at heart
Doom and gloom
The doldrums (UK)
That's a real downer, on a downer
Our heart is in our boots (UK)
Oh the miseries (get us)
Sick as a parrot (UK), long face
Rue the day, lost without you