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Glossary entry

French term or phrase:

c\'est un peu de la famille

English translation:

we are distantly related

Added to glossary by NancyLynn
Nov 12, 2013 03:32
10 yrs ago
French term

c'est un peu de la famille

French to English Medical Social Science, Sociology, Ethics, etc.
This is a medical interview with the mother of a child afflicted with a metabolic disorder. They are asking here if the doctors explained the origin of this disease with her, and her response is:


Ils pensaient que c’était peut-être héréditaire.
Ils ont cherché dans les deux côtés.
Moi, dans ma famille, il n’y en a pas.
Mon mari non plus.
Ils nous ont dit peut-être… parce qu’on est marié, c’est un peu de la famille, ils nous ont dit :
« Peut-être que c’est ça ».
Mais on a cherché.


I have a pretty good idea... but I'd like some confirmation. She is from the South of France or perhaps North Africa.
TIA
Proposed translations (English)
1 +3 we are slightly related
3 +2 it runs in the family
4 extended family
4 We are now married and having children. One child already has it. It must be somewhat genetic.
3 it may have something to do with the family background
Change log

Nov 12, 2013 08:49: writeaway changed "Field" from "Social Sciences" to "Medical"

Votes to reclassify question as PRO/non-PRO:

Non-PRO (1): GILLES MEUNIER

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Discussion

Melissa McMahon Nov 12, 2013:
I think it is most likely that she is just repeating herself (presenting the same story of the hereditary question in a different way), and the 'parce qu'on est marié' is either a red herring or a way of saying that she and her husband are the parents of their child. The "mais on a cherché" at the end supports the idea that she is just being emphatic. It's a transcript of an oral interview and people are much more 'untidy' and uneconomic when speaking than when writing.
NancyLynn (asker) Nov 12, 2013:
I've given you the full context as to this part of the interview. After this, they move on to discussing diets, schedules, etc. My original thought was that they were distantly related and that this cosanguinity might be at the root of the disorder, exactly due to the wording used by the mother, as Lorraine pointed out. However, it's apparent that the medical specialists do not know the cause.
Carol Gullidge Nov 12, 2013:
everybody belongs to an ethnic group! so I don't see the relevance of this - unless we/re talking about a very small ethnic group with specific problems that could arise from having a child with someone from the same family, however distantly related - ie, inbreeding. But please note that this is NOT about incest here - just to avoid any confusion :)
Sandra & Kenneth Grossman Nov 12, 2013:
They are not inbreeding ... ... as far as we know. However, they DO belong to an ethnic group, (North African for example) and accordingly, they are both are susceptible to some conditions. They may also be from the same community, tribe, village or "hamula".
Carol Gullidge Nov 12, 2013:
so it seems as though the problem doesn't stem from the fact that they are married (that's completely beside the point!), but rather from the fact that they are inbreeding (even if this isn't about incest)
Sandra & Kenneth Grossman Nov 12, 2013:
... because different ethnic groups have different susceptibilities to medical conditions and it is well known that some diseases are more prevalent in certain ethnic groups. Lots of research on the subject. Here is the first of 6 million Ghits for the keywords "ethnic susceptibility to disease examples" Diseases and Different Ethnic Groups | Doctor | Patient.co.uk - http://is.gd/27vhvk
Carol Gullidge Nov 12, 2013:
sorry Sandra/Ken, but I don't see why belonging to the same ethnic group should have any bearing on whether or not the couple are married, nor on what diseases they might pass on. Most people marry someone from their own ethnic group with no ill effects!

Unless you're talking about inbreeding, which is quite a different kettle of fish...!
Sandra & Kenneth Grossman Nov 12, 2013:
It seems clear to me ... that they both belong to the same ethnic group ("parce qu’on est marié"). If they are both from North Africa, they may even have the same extended family (marriages of cousins are not uncommon). This would explain the apparent contradiction in the text.
Carol Gullidge Nov 12, 2013:
parce que on est mariés... what is the significance of this?
The text suggests that this is a possible reason for the disease to manifest itself.
Perhaps, as Anna suggests, it might be a particular combination of genes from both sides of the family rather than one particular gene causing the problem and running down one side of the family. But in any case, I feel that what follows this particular phrase must be crucial to the explanation. Who did they marry, and why should this cause a problem?
It obviously can't have anything to do with their marital status!

Come on, Nancy, we need the rest of the context, and your idea of what it means!
Jane F Nov 12, 2013:
@ Peter It could also mean that the disorder doesn't come from either side of the family in the immediate past but that it could come from a family member from the distant past. The Asker says she has a good idea of what it means, it would be interesting to hear her idea!
Peter LEGUIE Nov 12, 2013:
Jane F Your response to Daryo's comment: we must be quite sure about the exact meaning of what the mother said. She may in fact just be questioning the doctors' conclusions: "peut-être héréditaire; parce que on est mariés..;". In fact, do they really have a clear idea themselves?
Lorraine Dubuc Nov 12, 2013:
Je me demande si elle ne dit pas cela d'elle et de son mari qu'ils seraient un peu liés (cousins). À cause du 'la'. Normalement on dirait c'est de famille (pour héréditaire).

Proposed translations

+3
5 hrs
Selected

we are slightly related

Just a thought, but perhaps she means that the condition has manifested itself because they (the mother and father) are vaguely related. That could explain why each of them taken singly is not a problem but together they are. It is just a thought of course.
Peer comment(s):
agree Carol Gullidge : I think you could be on the right lines here (inbreeding), but we desperately need more input from the Asker!//Agree with Sheri's solution: "distantly related", "distant cousins", or something similar
5 hrs
agree Sheri P : I agree with Carol on both points! I don't see any other way to account for "parce qu’on est marié". Maybe it's just me, but I find "slightly related" to be a bit awkward. Maybe something like "distantly related" would work?
5 hrs
agree Lorraine Dubuc : we might have common family roots...This is more likely to mean what the woman says.
2 days 14 hrs
Something went wrong...
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer. Comment: "Thank you!"
+2
2 hrs

it runs in the family

It sounds like a way of saying that the child's metabolic disorder is hereditary
Peer comment(s):
neutral Daryo : it should mean that, but they just said before it's not the case - confusing!
23 mins
Yes it does seem contradictory but it's a verbatim account of what the mother said and maybe she wasn't expressing herself very accurately
agree Helen Hammond
2 hrs
thanks Helen
agree Vanessa Brandao
5 hrs
thanks Vanessa
neutral Peter LEGUIE : That is the first idea that comes up, but they have claimed that it could not be so.
5 hrs
agree Melissa McMahon : I think she's just saying the same thing twice.
17 hrs
thanks Melissa
neutral Carol Gullidge : this would be a neat solution - if only it were true! But, since the one thing we do know is that the disease has never previously manifested itself on either side of the family, you can't say it runs in the family!
1 day 3 hrs
disagree Lorraine Dubuc : Even if this was my first choice, I have to agree with Carol and say that we know to little to say it so.
2 days 17 hrs
Something went wrong...
2 hrs

it may have something to do with the family background

This may refer to their ethnic origin and their susceptibility to that condition, despite the fact that no family member had it.

"Family history" would mean heredity, which is not the case.
Peer comment(s):
neutral writeaway : backgrounds don't produce metabolic diseases afaik. imo they can produce certain behaviour(s)........
2 hrs
Something went wrong...
8 hrs

extended family

Something went wrong...
14 hrs

We are now married and having children. One child already has it. It must be somewhat genetic.

Hello,

Yes, it's somewhat in the family!

They don't say "de famille" may "de la famille"; in other words, it's even more emphatic that it must run in the family somehow. It has to be somewhat of a family genetic issue.

Sometimes when we talk as people, we're not always clear in our words. We must look at the whole picture to unravel the clues of true meaning.

I hope this helps.
Something went wrong...
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