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alles heißt Rezept

English translation: everything goes (is done) by the book

GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)
German term or phrase:alles heißt Rezept
English translation:everything goes (is done) by the book
Entered by: Yorkshireman

16:13 Jan 10, 2014
German to English translations [PRO]
Art/Literary - Idioms / Maxims / Sayings / Art - Schiele
German term or phrase: alles heißt Rezept
I'm translating a text on Egon Schiele and this is from a letter he wrote his future brother-in-law about needing to get out of Vienna. There are quite a few of his letters etc in the text and he had a very eccentric style so is often hard to understand. Any suggestions for what he's getting at here would be very gratefully received!

„Peschka!“,
schreibt Schiele darin, „ich möchte fort von Wien,
ganz bald. Wie häßlich ist’s hier. – Alle Leute sind
neidisch zu mir und hinterlistig; ehemalige Kollegen
schauen mit fal schen Augen auf mich. In Wien ist
Schatten, die Stadt ist schwarz, **alles heißt Rezept.** Ich
will alleine sein. Nach dem Böhmerwald möcht’ ich.“
Rachel Ward
United Kingdom
Local time: 21:43
everything goes (is done) by the book
Explanation:
everything is regulated by petty laws (and the KuK Geheimpolizei)

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 1 hr (2014-01-10 17:46:50 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

Rezept = prescription

By the book = prescribed (alles läuft so vorschriftsmäßig ab, alles wird vorgeschrieben)
Selected response from:

Yorkshireman
Germany
Local time: 22:43
Grading comment
This works best for me, but the others are good suggestions too.
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



Summary of answers provided
3 +4everything is so rigid
Helen Shiner
4 +1Everything is scripted [,no freewill, no spontaneity]
Lirka
3 +2everything goes (is done) by the book
Yorkshireman
3 +1everything is regimented
Michele Fauble
3It's all systematic and symptomatic ( "It's oppressive")
Andrew Bramhall
3nothing changes.
Jonathan Smith
3no one dares to say "boo!" to a cat
Ramey Rieger (X)
3They have a rule for everything
Michael Martin, MA
2Rules, rules, rules!
Cilian O'Tuama
Summary of reference entries provided
pinterest
Johanna Timm, PhD

Discussion entries: 7





  

Answers


19 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5
It's all systematic and symptomatic ( "It's oppressive")


Explanation:
"Peshka!" Schiele writes, "I'd like to get awy from Vienna as soon as possible. How horrible it is here.People are envious and underhand with me; former colleagues look at me with contempt. In Vienna there are shadows, the city is dark, it's all systematic and symptomatic (of the same thing, i.e, oppression). I want to be alone, and head for the Böhmerwald ;"


Andrew Bramhall
United Kingdom
Local time: 21:43
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 12
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19 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 2/5Answerer confidence 2/5
Rules, rules, rules!


Explanation:
And more rules.

Sticking my neck out here

Cilian O'Tuama
Germany
Local time: 22:43
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 109
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30 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +1
Everything is scripted [,no freewill, no spontaneity]


Explanation:


oh, yes, he is soooo right!

die Menschen als Roboter

:)

[get me out of here, too!]

Lirka
Austria
Local time: 22:43
Works in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 4

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Eleanore Strauss
1 day 7 hrs
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34 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): +4
everything is so rigid


Explanation:
I think I would translate it like this. See my discussion post.

Helen Shiner
United Kingdom
Local time: 21:43
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 74

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  AllegroTrans
7 hrs
  -> Thanks, AllegroTrans
agree  Usch Pilz
14 hrs
  -> Thanks, Usch
agree  Rebecca Garber
22 hrs
  -> Thanks, Rebecca
agree  Eleanore Strauss: this characterizes the sentiment nicely, or, closer to the text, 'everything is so scripted' - oops - just saw this is already a suggestion
1 day 7 hrs
  -> Thanks, ElliCom, for me 'scripted' is too modern an idiom.
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1 hr   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5
nothing changes.


Explanation:
"nothing changes" or "nothing ever changes" ... maybe an option?

Jonathan Smith
Canada
Local time: 18:13
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
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36 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): +2
everything goes (is done) by the book


Explanation:
everything is regulated by petty laws (and the KuK Geheimpolizei)

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 1 hr (2014-01-10 17:46:50 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

Rezept = prescription

By the book = prescribed (alles läuft so vorschriftsmäßig ab, alles wird vorgeschrieben)

Yorkshireman
Germany
Local time: 22:43
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 39
Grading comment
This works best for me, but the others are good suggestions too.

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
neutral  Lancashireman: 'prescriptive' would work here
7 hrs
agree  Horst Huber (X): This comes closest to the German, maybe without "goes"? It is maybe not just the authorities, it's about everybody failing to think outside the box.
9 hrs
agree  AllegroTrans: "everything by the book" would work very well
18 hrs
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6 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5
no one dares to say "boo!" to a cat


Explanation:
This may be too regional. It was quite common in the sixties and seventies to express an oppressive, unchanging, stifling stiffness.

Another one is:
same ole, same ole

Ramey Rieger (X)
Germany
Local time: 22:43
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 70

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
neutral  AllegroTrans: I always thought it was "boo to a goose"
1 hr
  -> Also good, but where I come from it was a cat. Southern States
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16 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): +1
everything is regimented


Explanation:
Strictly organized or controlled.

Michele Fauble
United States
Local time: 13:43
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 8

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  AllegroTrans
2 hrs
  -> thanks
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22 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5
They have a rule for everything


Explanation:
I am assuming the Rezept phrase may have been idiomatic at the time. As a result, I am going for something that's also idiomatic today and tends to be used a lot by people feeling tied down by rules...

In addition, I'd go for the above because it's typically used more negatively than "There's a rule for everything"

Michael Martin, MA
United States
Local time: 16:43
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: Native in GermanGerman, Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 63
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Reference comments


6 hrs peer agreement (net): +1
Reference: pinterest

Reference information:
Found this on pinterest:
1) Letter from Egon Schiele to Anton Peschka, 1910. "I wish to leave Vienna, very soon. How ugly it is here. Everybody is envious of me and deceitful; former colleagues look at me with dissembling eyes, in Vienna there is only shadow, the city is black, everything is done by recipe. I want to be alone.


    Reference: http://www.pinterest.com/natdeaner/egon-schiele/
Johanna Timm, PhD
Canada
Native speaker of: Native in GermanGerman
PRO pts in category: 90

Peer comments on this reference comment (and responses from the reference poster)
neutral  Helen Shiner: hmmm
1 hr
agree  Sabine Reynaud: Great reference. Schiele was such a bad boy. He was supposed to have great handwriting though, however I can't really decipher the passage in question.
1 day 3 hrs
  -> Thanks! Yep, not easy to read, for sure...I finally managed to identify"Rezept": 7th line from the top.
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