Thread: a phrase

There is only one thing in the world worse than being talked about, and that is not being talked about.

Could you explain that phrase cause I have hell a lot of trouble figuring that out...

Originally Posted by Chuvak

There is only one thing in the world worse than being talked about, and that is not being talked about.

Could you explain that phrase cause I have hell a lot of trouble figuring that out...

Мне кажется, это что-то вроде "хуже, чем если про вас говорят/сплетничают, только когда про вас ничего не говорят"

Being talked about = slandered/trash-talked/back-stabbed, etc.
Not being talked about = you're as popular as the plague.

Think of celebrities:
Your favorite Hollywood actor most likely gets lots of tabloid coverage -- everyone in the world hears about pregnancies, hears about divorces/ relationships in dire straits, soaks up any form of information about scandals -- real or imagined.
Yet all this negative attention just proves that Jennifer Aniston (or Angelina Jolie or Brad Pitt, etc.) is just immensely popular since people DO care about that crap. Who cares if everyone sees your new baby's pictures, if your next film goes first place at the box office?
There's another saying in a similar vein: "There's no such thing as bad publicity."

It's an Oscar Wilde quote (though I believe it should be "... one thing in life...".

What he meant was; being in the public eye, having people making gossip and possibly telling untruths about you may be unpleasant, but it is better than being anonymous or ignored and thereby having no-one talking about you at all.

Chuvak, you are probably unfamiliar with the structure "being..."

"talking about" (the active voice) = the subject talks/is talking about sth/somebody.
"being talked about" (the passive voice) = the subject is being talked about, i.e. somebody else talks/is talking about the subject.


"talking about" - ты говоришь о чем-то/ком-то; так сказать процесс или состояние "говорения"

"being talked about" - о тебе говорят, так сказать процесс или состояние, когда о тебе говорят (пребывание в таком положении/состоянии, когда о тебе говорят).

Просто в русском нет такой конструкции.

Дошло?

Да!!!
Большое спасибо всем!!!!