Day 61: Red Ink on the Kitchen Table
In the kitchen of their shared flat in Marburg, Marlene (A), a doctoral student in German, gets back the chapter she asked her flatmate Chiara (B), also doing a doctorate, to read before submission.
How to study this lesson 3 steps
- Read the situation under the title. It says who is talking and how they know each other, which decides how politely they speak.
- Read the dialogue line by line with its translation, until every line makes sense. Point at (or tap) a German word to see what it means.
- Spend at least 30 minutes listening to native German, for example from the Resources page. It doesn't matter if you don't understand it yet.
Dialogue
Audio recordings are on the way. For now, each lesson is the dialogue with its English translation.
Keys: E hide English · ← → previous / next day · point at a word to see its meaning
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A
Chiara, ich hatte dich um Anmerkungen gebeten, nicht um eine Blutspende. Auf Seite zwölf ist mehr Rot als Text.
Chiara, I asked you for comments, not a blood donation. There's more red than text on page twelve.
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B
Da verliert dein Kapitel ja auch seine These. Danach zählst du nur noch auf, was Wilhelm Grimm in jeder Auflage geändert hat.
Well, that's where your chapter loses its thesis. After that you just list what Wilhelm Grimm changed in each edition.
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A
Das nennt sich Quellenarbeit. Und was soll „Das Kapitel bedarf einer These“? Die steht in der Einleitung, dritter Absatz.
It's called working with sources. And what's 'The chapter is in need of a thesis' supposed to mean? It's in the introduction, third paragraph.
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B
Da steht, die Grimms hätten ihre Märchen „behutsam überarbeitet“. Das ist keine These, das ist Klappentext: Dem widerspricht kein Mensch.
It says the Grimms 'carefully revised' their tales. That's not a thesis, it's a blurb: nobody would ever disagree with it.
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A
Und die Fußnoten? Bei jeder zweiten steht „zu lang“, und neben Fußnote 47 prangen drei Fragezeichen.
And the footnotes? Every other one says 'too long', and next to footnote 47 there are three big question marks.
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B
Die heißen: Warum versteckst du das? Rapunzel klagt 1812 noch über zu enge Kleider und 1819 nicht mehr: Das ist deine These!
They mean: why are you hiding this? In 1812 Rapunzel still complains that her dresses are too tight, and in 1819 she doesn't: that's your thesis!
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A
Die steht mit Absicht unten. Mein Doktorvater empföhle mir dafür einen eigenen Aufsatz, frühestens nach der Promotion.
It's down there on purpose. My supervisor would recommend a separate article for that, after my doctorate at the earliest.
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B
Dann nimm dich ihrer an, bevor ein anderer an diesem Zopf hochklettert. Stünde Rapunzel auf Seite eins, läse ich dein Kapitel freiwillig zweimal.
Then take it on yourself, before someone else climbs up that plait. If Rapunzel were on page one, I'd read your chapter twice, of my own free will.
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A
Freiwillig zweimal, soso. Und was heißt das hier auf der letzten Seite, winzig und mit Bleistift: „Leider gut“?
Twice, of your own free will? Really? Then what's this on the last page, tiny and in pencil: 'Annoyingly good'?
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B
Das solltest du nicht sehen. Mein Kapitel bedarf selbst noch einer These, und deins ist besser: Der Rotstift war wohl auch ein bisschen Neid.
You weren't supposed to see that. My own chapter is still in need of a thesis, and yours is better: I suppose the red pen was partly envy.
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A
Dann her mit deinem Kapitel, bis zur Abgabe sind es noch drei Wochen. Meine Anmerkungen kriegst du aber in Grün, das schont das Ego.
Then hand over your chapter. There are still three weeks until submission. But you're getting my comments in green: it's kinder on the ego.
Your progress is saved in this browser only, with no sign-up. The course page and the menu show where you left off. Well done! Next up: Day 62: A Cooking Show for Grandpa's Eightieth
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