# gumowe uszy



## MatysW

Witam wszystkich,

Potrzebuję pomocy w znalezieniu jakiegoś angielskiego ekwiwalentu/sformułowania, które oddawałoby znaczenie "gumowe uszy" w takim oto kontekście: "Marek Krystian Emanuel Baczewski przyzwyczaił nas już do swoich  ekscesów i akrobacji lirycznych, felietonowych szyderstw i kpin, [...] *słuchowskich dla gumowych uszu* [...]." Generalnie myślę, że chodzi o kogoś, kto po prostu ma znakomity słuch, jednak ciężko mi znaleźć odpowiednie tłumaczenie tego sformułowania. Jeśli ktoś byłby w stanie pomóc, byłbym ogromnie wdzięczny.

Z góry dziękuję i pozdrawiam forumowiczów,

MatysW


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## dreamlike

Hej,

Ja "gumowe ucho" zawsze rozumiałem jako określenie na osobę, która ma w zwyczaju podsłuchiwać rozmowy innych. To chyba nie pasuje w Twoim tekście?


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## MatysW

Twoje rozumienie jest poprawne, ponieważ wówczas oznacza "kapusia", "donosiciela". Natomiast w tekście, który ja przerabiam, myślę, że chodzi o kogoś, kto po prostu ma, że tak powiem, "acute hearing", ponieważ spiker w radiu najzwyczajniej w świecie mówi cicho. I tu jest problem - jak to oddać po angielsku?


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## BezierCurve

Sharp-eared? Quick-eared?


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## MatysW

Hm, Twoja propozycja jest na pewno lepsza niż moja, mianowicie "for good ears". Dziękuję bardzo. Jeśli ktoś jeszcze miałby jakiś pomysł, to będzie on mile widziany.


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## LilianaB

Whose ears do they have in mind -- the audience's or his? I would understand it as the kind of ears that would listen to anything -- any kind of junk. I think it refers to the audience, not him. What do you think?


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## BezierCurve

In this particular case I think that "gumowe" meant "flexible" in relation to the listeners - it comes right after listing all kind of programmes by that author. But MatysW was asking about a synonym of a person with acute hearing, hence my propositions.


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## LilianaB

I would not associate "gumowe" here with any type of sensitivity in relation to hearing, but rather all enduring -- more like a garbage pail.


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## dreamlike

LilianaB said:


> Whose ears do they have in mind -- the audience's or his? I would understand it as the kind of ears that would listen to anything -- any kind of junk. I think it refers to the audience, not him. What do you think?


That it refers to his audience is clear, but I wouldn't read it to mean 'listeners that would listen to any kind of junk'. 'Gumowe ucho' is a fixed phrase  --  'someone who tends to eavesdrop on the conversations of others'. This meaning obviously doesn't apply here, but I'm clueless as to what the author might have meant. Using a phrase with such a well-established meaning to mean something else may be problematic... as evidenced by this very passage.


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## MatysW

In my opinion, the use of this phrase here indicates that the author meant an audience of a radio play where the circumstances to hear anything are very difficult. This might be supported by the existence of 'uszu bez woskowiny' (waxless ears) that is present right next to the former phrase (and which I, not knowing why, simply omitted, but now I think it was a mistake, for it is somewhat a complement to the overall understanding of this whole enumeration). Thus I believe it all comes down to the idea that people who have problems with hearing may find it difficult to hear what the speaker actually says. Of course, I might be mistaken, but if it is so, then I really have no idea what other thing it would refer to.

Thanks again for the help.


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## dreamlike

Hi, Matys.

Could you supply us with the sentence that comes immedietaly after the one with 'gumowe uszy'? Also, do you have any way of reaching out to the writer of the text and asking him what he had in mind? That's really an unusual usage of 'gumowe uszy'.


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## MatysW

Here's the sentence you asked for: "Teraz, po raz kolejny, w _Była sobie książka_ odsłania przed nami swoją, pełną przewrotnej błyskotliwości, mechanikę dzieła, tym razem eseju zawierciańskiego postmodernisty wiernego Bóstwu Ironii."

I doubt whether it explains anything. The sentence I had provided and the one I'm currently providing are the first two sentences that open this text. In the first one, as you've seen, there is just an enumeration of 'things' the artist is famous for. And answering your second question - no, I do not have any way of reaching out to the author.

As I was saying, this 'gumowe uszy' phrase might refer to people who excel at hearing various, not always important, things, so that nothing can slip by their attention. That is also why I consider the phrase 'sharp-eared' quite appropriate.


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## dreamlike

No, it does not explain a thing. I've just seen your post in which you write that there's 'uszu bez woskowiny' later in the text. Having read that, I'd be inclined to agree with Bezier's interpretation --_ sharp-eared_, that's what 'gumowe uszy' probably means here. As I have repeatedly stated, though, I find this usage a bit far-fetched and confusing.


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## MatysW

Yes, I'd albo be inclined to agree with it. I can't seem to be able to come up with something more adequate, for now at least. Anyway, thank you all for your contributions, most appreciated.


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## LilianaB

MatysW said:


> In my opinion, the use of this phrase here indicates that the author meant an audience of a radio play where the circumstances to hear anything are very difficult. This might be supported by the existence of 'uszu bez woskowiny' (waxless ears) that is present right next to the former phrase (and which I, not knowing why, simply omitted, but now I think it was a mistake, for it is somewhat a complement to the overall understanding of this whole enumeration). Thus I believe it all comes down to the idea that people who have problems with hearing may find it difficult to hear what the speaker actually says. Of course, I might be mistaken, but if it is so, then I really have no idea what other thing it would refer to.
> 
> Thanks again for the help.



I personally doubt it. I would think expandable ears were meant, no matter what the original idiom means.


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