Glossary entry (derived from question below)
Spanish term or phrase:
de pie
English translation:
I am the river \"standing strong\" or \"standing firm\"
Added to glossary by
Jane Martin
Mar 9, 2022 16:46
2 yrs ago
48 viewers *
Spanish term
de pie
Spanish to English
Art/Literary
Poetry & Literature
I am translating Canto del Hombre de la Selva by Raúl Otero for a Spanish lesson I am teaching and am puzzled by the last line.
Yo soy un río de pie.
The whole verse is:
Yo soy el hombre de la selva,
perfume, cántico y amor
pero encendido de relámpagos,
pero rugiendo de huracanes.
Yo soy un río de pie.
Any thoughts?
The whole poem is here:
https://www.poeticous.com/raul-otero-reiche/canto-del-hombre...
Yo soy un río de pie.
The whole verse is:
Yo soy el hombre de la selva,
perfume, cántico y amor
pero encendido de relámpagos,
pero rugiendo de huracanes.
Yo soy un río de pie.
Any thoughts?
The whole poem is here:
https://www.poeticous.com/raul-otero-reiche/canto-del-hombre...
Proposed translations
(English)
References
| Mi corazón es la colmena y mi cerebro e... |
O G V
|
Proposed translations
17 hrs
Alicia Chiesa-Repetto Ferrari
United States
United States
Native in Spanish
United States
*ATA Certified EN-ES *Exprcd.NYS Courts
Native in: Spanish (Variants: Rioplatense, Latin American) 
Works in: English to Spanish, Spanish to English
Related KudoZ points
:
4
Selected
I am the river "standing strong" or "standing firm"
Poetry translation requires a high respect for musicality, meaning, and coherence with the rhythm the author intended to give to his composition. This strophe and this verse, because they are precisely at the end, are bearing all the weight in meaning as well as in musicality. Words, then, should be carefully chosen. Not an easy task, indeed.
Note from asker:
| Hi Alicia, these answers work really well and take into account the poetic qualities of the language. Thank you. |
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "Thank you"
+2
6 mins
Jennifer Levey
Chile
Chile
Native in English
Chile
Human-scale Globalization
Native in: English (Variant: British)
Works in: Spanish to English, French to English, English to Spanish, and 2 more.
Related KudoZ points
:
20
standing upright
https://www.laregion.bo/escultor-gana-un-premio-inspirado-en...
The sculpture referred to in the webref looks (vaguely) like a stretch of river standing vertically.
The sculpture referred to in the webref looks (vaguely) like a stretch of river standing vertically.
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
philgoddard
: Yes, he's both man and river.
51 mins
|
| agree |
Martina Rouillet
12 hrs
|
14 mins
Barbara Cochran, MFA
United States
United States
Native in English
Specializes in field
United States
Laudable Lady Linguist
Native in: English
Works in: Spanish to English, French to English, English to Spanish, and 3 more.
Related KudoZ points
:
103
standing wave river/river of standing waves
I might go with this, to complement the use of phrases like "hombre de la selva", "encendido de relámpagos", and "rugiendo de huracanes".
1 hr
Simone Taylor
United Kingdom
United Kingdom
Native in English
Specializes in field
United Kingdom
ITI/SUBTLE affiliate BRPTEN
Native in: Portuguese (Variant: Brazilian) 
, English (Variant: British)
Works in: Portuguese to English, English to Portuguese
Related KudoZ points
:
28
River on edge
I think it is a play with words with a pie del rio - riverside, edge of the river, so it could creatively be inverted in English to river on edge to demonstrate the rage he describes taking of hurricanes and lightning bolts.
Obviously, a river can't be on edge but it could be imagery associated with his rage.
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/learner-english/...
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 1 hr (2022-03-09 18:00:36 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
https://www.wordreference.com/es/en/translation.asp?spen=a p...
Obviously, a river can't be on edge but it could be imagery associated with his rage.
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/learner-english/...
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 1 hr (2022-03-09 18:00:36 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
https://www.wordreference.com/es/en/translation.asp?spen=a p...
20 mins
Cecilia Gowar
United Kingdom
United Kingdom
Native in Spanish
Specializes in field
United Kingdom
I read the Alethiometer
Native in: Spanish
Works in: English to Spanish, Spanish to English, French to Spanish, and 1 more.
Related KudoZ points
:
227
upright
I am an upright river.
Meaning dignified, honorable.
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 49 mins (2022-03-09 17:35:51 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
In accordance with this particular meaning of the expression ¨de pie/en pie¨:
3. loc. adv. Con permanencia y duración, sin destruirse, derogarse ni acabarse.
(taken from the RAE´s DLE).
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 2 hrs (2022-03-09 18:55:06 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
Thanks Jane.
We have a phrase in Spanish:
¨Es mejor/más vale morir de pie que vivir de rodillas¨.
I believe that is the idea in this case.
“Más vale morir de pie que vivir de rodillas”
Interpretación:
Es una frase que significa que es mejor vivir con dignidad, con libertad, sin ataduras que lo estén oprimiendo a uno, sin ser controlado por alguien, vivir como se debe, en absoluta libertad, crear un mundo bello en el cual se pueda vivir mejor.
shorturl.at/emqAO
Meaning dignified, honorable.
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 49 mins (2022-03-09 17:35:51 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
In accordance with this particular meaning of the expression ¨de pie/en pie¨:
3. loc. adv. Con permanencia y duración, sin destruirse, derogarse ni acabarse.
(taken from the RAE´s DLE).
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 2 hrs (2022-03-09 18:55:06 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
Thanks Jane.
We have a phrase in Spanish:
¨Es mejor/más vale morir de pie que vivir de rodillas¨.
I believe that is the idea in this case.
“Más vale morir de pie que vivir de rodillas”
Interpretación:
Es una frase que significa que es mejor vivir con dignidad, con libertad, sin ataduras que lo estén oprimiendo a uno, sin ser controlado por alguien, vivir como se debe, en absoluta libertad, crear un mundo bello en el cual se pueda vivir mejor.
shorturl.at/emqAO
Note from asker:
| Hi Cecilia, thank you for this. I am sure, being poetry, it probably alludes to all the meanings offered but I think this one fits best with the rest of the poem. |
Peer comment(s):
| neutral |
philgoddard
: Your dictionary reference doesn't say dignified or honorable, it says long lasting
42 mins
|
|
Not exactly long lasting, but remaining standing, whole, despite the odds.
|
+1
1 hr
standing (river)
At least, according to this version it is:
"... Raul Otero Reiche: “I am the man of the jungle, perfume, song and love, but lit by lightning, but roaring with hurricanes. I am a standing river. "
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 1 hr (2022-03-09 18:04:30 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
"Jhanisse Vaca Daza is co-founder of Ríos de Pie, a non-violent citizen movement focused on human rights and environmental rights in Bolivia. She is also Manager of the Freedom Fellowship at the Human Rights Foundation and Network Manager for the Oslo Freedom Forum. She began teaching nonviolence in Bolivia at the age of 23, which later led to the creation of a youth nonviolence movement: Ríos de Pie (Standing Rivers in English). "
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 1 hr (2022-03-09 18:05:21 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
The link I posted doesn't seem to work. I found it by running a search for "I am a standing river",
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 3 days 2 hrs (2022-03-12 19:07:38 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
Cf. Stepping Razor, a song by Peter Tosh.
"... Raul Otero Reiche: “I am the man of the jungle, perfume, song and love, but lit by lightning, but roaring with hurricanes. I am a standing river. "
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 1 hr (2022-03-09 18:04:30 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
"Jhanisse Vaca Daza is co-founder of Ríos de Pie, a non-violent citizen movement focused on human rights and environmental rights in Bolivia. She is also Manager of the Freedom Fellowship at the Human Rights Foundation and Network Manager for the Oslo Freedom Forum. She began teaching nonviolence in Bolivia at the age of 23, which later led to the creation of a youth nonviolence movement: Ríos de Pie (Standing Rivers in English). "
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 1 hr (2022-03-09 18:05:21 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
The link I posted doesn't seem to work. I found it by running a search for "I am a standing river",
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 3 days 2 hrs (2022-03-12 19:07:38 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
Cf. Stepping Razor, a song by Peter Tosh.
Reference:
https://jhanisse.com/2020/09/02/theres-no-love-for-santa-cruz-without-love-for-all-thats-green/
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
O G V
: A standing river. Un río puesto de pie, como un hombre que va caminando y es un río
6 days
|
Reference comments
6 days
Reference:
Mi corazón es la colmena
y mi cerebro el hormiguero.
Vibran mis músculos de boa,
se abren cantando mis arterias.
Mis labios sangran en el grito de luz
y aroma del clavel.
Yo soy el hombre de la selva,
perfume, cántico y amor,
pero encendido de relámpagos,
pero rugiendo de huracanes.
Yo soy un río de pie.
Identificación total del cuerpo con la naturaleza
y mi cerebro el hormiguero.
Vibran mis músculos de boa,
se abren cantando mis arterias.
Mis labios sangran en el grito de luz
y aroma del clavel.
Yo soy el hombre de la selva,
perfume, cántico y amor,
pero encendido de relámpagos,
pero rugiendo de huracanes.
Yo soy un río de pie.
Identificación total del cuerpo con la naturaleza
Something went wrong...