Dex-chan lover
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- Jun 12, 2018
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Having perused the raws up to the end of what's available, it's going to get even more confusing in terms of when terms were introduced and what not.
That's what I was thinking too. I'm pretty sure the author only uses the word "bento" in the raw because it's a translation for "boxed/packed lunch". I'll probably change it based on context, so if someone is aware of what a "bento" is, I'll translate it as bento while outsiders (ie. Lonbaudt and Benedicta) mention "bento" in the raw, I'll translate it as "packed lunch" until either someone mentions it or if there's an appropriate time to switch "packed lunch" for "bento".
I just went back to check chapter 15 and I think the use of "bento" in chapter 15 makes sense since there's a time skip between Helmina mentioning she has an idea and actually selling the boxes. Either Taisho or Shinobu could've brought up bentos and from there, Berthold used the word.
The "boxed lunch served as dinner" thing also does make sense in the context of this chapter since Lonbaudt is looking to ruin the meeting by serving lunch as dinner.
Everything's a little wonky since it's a translation and some words hold more value in Japanese than English and vice versa. I really don't think there's a right or wrong answer. I'll try to make it make some more sense moving forward by considering context and whatnot.
Fair enough. I'll keep that in mind.The thing is, "Toriaezunama" is written in kana when used by Aitherans and normal hiragana/kanji when used by Shinobu side to denote that the term is understood differently between them.
Same thing with terms like Shoyu, "Daizu", etc.
This is not the case with bento. Nobody said bento with kana so it's not treated as a foreign term.
And the 'boxed lunch' logic is completely EN only, the way bento is written there's no specific requirement for which meal it's for (in fact late night bento is pretty common for overworked office workers)
It's up to you if you want to translate it or keep it as bento, but it should NOT be translated differently between the natives and the Japanese group. This is not one of those terms.
And yeah, as you say, "bento" isn't treated as a foreign term because it's not written with katakana. Which also supports that the native-to-English "lunchbox" is a better translation than the loanword "bento".The thing is, "Toriaezunama" is written in kana when used by Aitherans and normal hiragana/kanji when used by Shinobu side to denote that the term is understood differently between them.
Same thing with terms like Shoyu, "Daizu", etc.
This is not the case with bento. Nobody said bento with kana so it's not treated as a foreign term.
Yep, Nobu takes place in that world's version of Germany, while Gen takes place in Oiria which that world's version of France and the homeland of the spy and glasses-girl from a few chapters ago.huh, didnt know that. those 2 manga are connected??
i almost forget that manga exist (with the lack of update)
Gen also brings in the supernatural elements of the story much earlier and does so much more explicitly.Yep, Nobu takes place in that world's version of Germany, while Gen takes place in Oiria which that world's version of France and the homeland of the spy and glasses-girl from a few chapters ago.
i would agree with you if it's "onigiri". sure, you might find onigiri in a bento, but having onigiri isn't a requirement for it to be a bentoIt would have been hilarious if you replaced "Bento" with "Jelly Donut"
LMAO
It's confirmed in universe by events in both series. From Nobu Celeste is the Queen Regent of Oilia. Gen takes place in there and they confirm there is a Regent. Gen also confirms a shop like Gen's in the Empire which is where Aitheria is.huh, didnt know that. those 2 manga are connected??
i almost forget that manga exist (with the lack of update)
It really is. Unfortunately, I'm an overthinker and a people pleaser, so I'll probably end up going back and forth on the whole "bento" vs "packed lunch" debacle for a while.These are the little context things that make a good translator a great one.
You could always go with boxed meals or takeout if its too out of context when translating. You don't have to specifically say lunchbox for dinner time situations, unless its the afternoon, or if you have no other option.It really is. Unfortunately, I'm an overthinker and a people pleaser, so I'll probably end up going back and forth on the whole "bento" vs "packed lunch" debacle for a while.
I'll probably go with switching based on context since that would make the most sense story-wise.
I do find that weird as well. I'm in the line of thinking that it could just be the author could've just used "bento" as a catchall term for bentos and lunch boxes.But getting meta it is interesting if the locals don't use it as a foreign word. Either its one of those little things that point out how this isn't just "medieval europe", or I think more likely it's just something that the author didn't think of doing here? We are translating Japanese to English, not every Japanese word choice is important.
Nope.