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Schaltglocke
Lokalaugenschein
Mar 1, 2006 13:30
18 yrs ago
German term

mythisch

German to English Art/Literary Art, Arts & Crafts, Painting contemporary art
This is an article/essay about a group exhibition of contemporary artists, a lot of whose works borrow motifs from TV/media - objects like planes, trains automobiles etc.
"So beweist hier die Malerei auch noch in ihrer Motivwahl die Möglichkeit von Zeitgenossenschaft statt, in einer vermeintlich ewigen, zeitlosen und damit ach so **mythisch** dumpfen „Klassik“ zu versinken, wie die derzeit die auf dem internationalen Kunstmarkt recht erfolgreiche XX- Schule."
(yes, a comma too many aftrer "statt", methinks)
Yes, rather snearing, but what does "mythisch" mean here, i.e. in connection with "dumpf"? In the sense of "notoriously" or "traditionally"?
Proposed translations (English)
3 +1 replete with mythical themes (alt. ‘mythological themes’)
4 +5 mythical

Discussion

Francis Lee (X) (asker) Mar 11, 2006:
Thanks everybody! As implied by Andrew above, "mythical" was the obvious answer, but one that I didn't feel worked here. I was therefore looking from the outset for either a) an alternative solution b) convincing evidence/arguments in favour of "mythical"
Francis Lee (X) (asker) Mar 4, 2006:
@ Andrew. Rest assured, I never considered using "mythic(al)" anyway. As you yourself suggest, its closer to "mythological", which is why I'm considering something like 'uninspired and mythicised ”classical” aesthetic'. Marks out of 10, sir?
Francis Lee (X) (asker) Mar 3, 2006:
STOP PRESS! Well, the author got back to me and confirmed that he in fact meant "mythischEN dumpfen ...".
Tradesca (X) Mar 1, 2006:
"mythisch dumpf" ist grammatikalisch absolut korrekt, genauso wie herrlich groß, entsetzlich dumm, geheimnisvoll ruhig, usw, usw.
Francis Lee (X) (asker) Mar 1, 2006:
Well, the confusion over mythisch vs mythischEN (also amongst German natives) has prompted me to contact the author just to make sure. Thanks for all the input so far!. And yes, Johanna, there is indeed talk later on of a "romantische Aufladung" !
Johanna Timm, PhD Mar 1, 2006:
...und die Klassik wird ja dann auch der Romantik abgelöst!
Johanna Timm, PhD Mar 1, 2006:
‘ach so mythisch’ ist grammatisch übrigens nicht korrekt. Es müsste eigentlich ‘...in einer ach so mythisch*en*, dumpfen Klassik heißen,
wobei dumpf hier m.M.n. im Sinn von ’ langweilig, farblos, fantasielos zu verstehen ist
Lancashireman Mar 1, 2006:
Hi, Francis. I take it you first looked in your Collins Gem Dictionary where you found 'mythisch = mythical'. From the way you have phrased your question I presume you were hoping for something more...
Francis Lee (X) (asker) Mar 1, 2006:
@ Andrew (below). My thoughts precisely on 'classic'. I was thinking about adding 'genre' or aesthetic'.
Tradesca (X) Mar 1, 2006:
Ja, das Komma gehört vor "statt" nicht dahinter.
Francis Lee (X) (asker) Mar 1, 2006:
Danke, Tradesca. Und wenn man das Komma nach "statt" wegnimmt liest sich der Satz richtig oder?
Tradesca (X) Mar 1, 2006:
Mythisch hat hier in der Tat die Bedeutung von "notoriously": man könnte auch sagen: " dia ach so oft beschworene Dumpfheit der Klassik", "die immer wieder als dumpf qualifizierte Klassik", "die ach so gern als dumpf bezeichnete Klassik". Hope this helps
Sabine Odinga Mar 1, 2006:
that's why I suggested dull mythical (dumpf mythische ....) IMO the same as mythisch dumpf, mythically dull just sound odd.....
Non-ProZ.com Mar 1, 2006:
Thanks for the response so far! But a) I'm bothered by the "mythisch dumpfen" part, i.e. not "mythischEN" b) I'm still not sure what "mythisch" is supposed to mean here.

Proposed translations

+1
24 mins
Selected

replete with mythical themes (alt. ‘mythological themes’)

"... and thus - alas - wallowing in a dull classicism replete with mythical themes"

Rewrite! (chuckle)

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 1 hr (2006-03-01 14:50:22 GMT)
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mythically dull = made stiflingly dull by its mythical themes

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 1 hr (2006-03-01 15:08:42 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

I suppose they are suggesting that the XX-Schule are rather unimaginatively recycling tired clichés from classical mythology.

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Note added at 4 hrs (2006-03-01 18:23:58 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

Tradesca's interpretation leans towards your original notion of 'notoriously'. This should certainly be posted as a new and separate answer because if it is correct, then both the current answers on offer are wide of the mark.
I am reluctant to badger you for further context. In your position I would do some web research on the XX-Schule to see what sort of themes they incorporate into their works.

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 10 hrs (2006-03-01 23:36:24 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

Sorry. That was before Tradesca said: "mythically dull" ist sicher nicht falsch...

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 2 days10 hrs (2006-03-03 23:47:21 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

Re stop press announcement:
'Classicism', 'the classical style' or 'the classical genre' can seem rather dull and unimaginative if all this amounts to is recycling the standard themes of Greek mythology (nymphs and shepherds etc). The interpretations based on the adverbial use of 'mythisch' have clearly been superseded by the author’s latest input.
As a native speaker of English, Francis, you know that 'dull mythical classic' (or 'mythical dull classic' let alone 'mythically dull classic') is simply not going to work here.


--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 3 days39 mins (2006-03-04 14:10:01 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

8
Peer comment(s):
agree Henry Schroeder : Nicely formulated
3 hrs
Thanks H.
Something went wrong...
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer. Comment: "Thanks for the input!"
+5
7 mins

mythical

why not mythical classic / dull mythical classic
Peer comment(s):
agree Steven Blanchard : yep, that was my first thought.
12 mins
agree stahat (X)
44 mins
neutral Lancashireman : 'classic' (same applies to 'classical') is an adjective in English so this would need a noun to follow up with. Any ideas for the full context?
1 hr
Well, I think the translator is well aware of this and will add the according 'art, painting or style whatever it exactly refers to"
agree Anne Schulz : In Anbetracht der Klarheit der Argumentation ist ja kaum zu entscheiden, was der Verfasser mit "mythisch" assoziiert, so dass man eigentlich nur wörtlich übersetzen kann. Vielleicht meint er/sie gar "mystisch"?
3 hrs
agree Erik Macki : Yes. My take is is that "mythisch" here probably means "legendarily": "mythically (legendarily) dull." But I agree with Anne that it's hard to know the author's intent without interviewing her--so staying close is well advised.
4 hrs
agree Tradesca (X) : "mythically dull" ist sicher nicht falsch.
5 hrs
Something went wrong...
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