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Temat: Black character - help!

OK, I'm a total idiot. I have just interviewed black actress and I've asked her "Was it fun to play a black character?" - meaning that her role was quite negative. It was an awkward moment as black character of course doesn't mean what czarny charakter means in Polish. I know that now (I should have known better than to do direct translation), but I still don't know what is the best way to put it. How would you say 'czarny charakter' in English?
Help!
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Temat: Black character - help!

the villain
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Anna S.

Anna S. IT recruitment and
Business Development
Consultant at Vm.pl

Temat: Black character - help!

or antagonist
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Temat: Black character - help!

I disagree. An antagonist requires something he can oppose, whereas a villain can be a villain on his own merit.Adam Lipiński edytował(a) ten post dnia 02.09.08 o godzinie 22:46
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Steve Jones

Steve Jones Business English
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Temat: Black character - help!

Anna W.:
OK, I'm a total idiot. I have just interviewed black actress and I've asked her "Was it fun to play a black character?" - meaning that her role was quite negative. It was an awkward moment

I bet it was! Ouuuch!

the closest literal translation would be "dark character"
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Temat: Black character - help!

dark character, seconded.

EDIT P.S. A). Ouch is right, but B). Don't worry about it. :)Joj Y. edytował(a) ten post dnia 02.09.08 o godzinie 22:56
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Temat: Black character - help!

Steve Jones:
Anna W.:
OK, I'm a total idiot. I have just interviewed black actress and I've asked her "Was it fun to play a black character?" - meaning that her role was quite negative. It was an awkward moment

I bet it was! Ouuuch!

the closest literal translation would be "dark character"

It would have been rather embaressing, but I didn't actually realize untill later. I was trying to figure out her weird reaction to my question :) and did some research. Well, first asked my husband (who is American) and he had no idea what I was talking about.

I guess dark character is the closest to what I mean. What's wrong with the black character expression anyway? It's such a useful one. Is the word 'black' off limits in English?
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Steve Jones

Steve Jones Business English
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Temat: Black character - help!

I guess dark character is the closest to what I mean. What's wrong with the black character expression anyway? It's such a useful one. Is the word 'black' off limits in English?

The basic reason why it's wrong is that it just doesn't mean what you want it to mean.

We just don't use the expression "black character" in English.

"To play a black character" means literally to play a character who is black in skin colour. So to ask this question to a black person would be just bloody strange!
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Temat: Black character - help!

Villain is great, nemesis or maybe adversary would do. I wouldn't worry about it too much, I am sure the girl is quick enough to realize that it was not meant to be malicious.
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Temat: Black character - help!

I wouldn't worry too much about it. Nothing beats a female student who once opened the door to the teachers' room, looked a male teacher straight in the eye and asked, "May I please you?" (Czy mogę pana prosić?)
I have no idea whether she ever realized what she'd said.
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Temat: Black character - help!

Tatiana It's nothing, I have heard some conversation few months ago at the office, like one of the group leaders -she- said over the phone, speaking with her supervisor- (she wanted to be so open!!)
The supervisor asked her: -Are you available right now? than she had replied: -If you want me now I am ready!! hehehehehe
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Temat: Black character - help!

Tatiana S.:
I wouldn't worry too much about it. Nothing beats a female student who once opened the door to the teachers' room, looked a male teacher straight in the eye and asked, "May I please you?" (Czy mogę pana prosić?)
I have no idea whether she ever realized what she'd said.
Gimme a mop and a diaper! I think I may have pissed me pants :)))
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Temat: Black character - help!

Well, I've got lots of stories like this one. Yesterday, I was chatting with a girl that comes over for "conversations". As she'd been on vacation with her boyfriend, I wanted her to tell me a bit about it. She did, with the best Freudian slip ever! "We had lovely weather all SEX days!" :)
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Temat: Black character - help!

A long time ago, a student during his matura exam, when dictionaries were still allowed, for some stupid reason. The "old matura" asked for translating a set of fixed requests etc., and one of them was "Czy mogę skorzystać z toalety?".
Guess what I heard?
"May I profit by your toilet?"
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Temat: Black character - help!

I once conducted a serious training for a certain bank's employees. While some of them were easy-going and friendly, a few of them were bigheads and showoffs. So, it's Saturday morning, just before our first session (fancy hotel, there's a golf course nearby) I was sitting in the lobby talking to some of the employees and along comes the biggest dickhead of all, grabs a coffee, sits down, and joins in with, "I can't hold my coffee cup as I spent all night polishing my balls!"

Curtain. I behaved very, VERY unprofessionally then.
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Temat: Black character - help!

Tatiana S.:
I once conducted a serious training for a certain bank's employees. While some of them were easy-going and friendly, a few of them were bigheads and showoffs. So, it's Saturday morning, just before our first session (fancy hotel, there's a golf course nearby) I was sitting in the lobby talking to some of the employees and along comes the biggest dickhead of all, grabs a coffee, sits down, and joins in with, "I can't hold my coffee cup as I spent all night polishing my balls!"

Curtain. I behaved very, VERY unprofessionally then.
Spank my butt and call me Cindy! hahahaha pricelessJarek A. edytował(a) ten post dnia 03.09.08 o godzinie 08:31
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Temat: Black character - help!

Anna, I hope it makes you feel a bit better!
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Ilter K.

Ilter K. Business Developer,
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Temat: Black character - help!

Rafal W.:
Villain is great, nemesis or maybe adversary would do...
"villain" is the technical term used in such contexts... context of turning films I mean...
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Temat: Black character - help!

I have heard such word like: "baddy".
What is more it was during an interview about: "American Beauty" movie. Where Steven Spielberg himself was asked by the interviewer to consider: Did Cevin Spacy -who played one of the major roles in that film, act/perform as a baddy?
So, I think it might be suitable also.
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Steve Jones

Steve Jones Business English
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Temat: Black character - help!

Łukasz Klejment:
I have heard such word like: "baddy".
What is more it was during an interview about: "American Beauty" movie. Where Steven Spielberg himself was asked by the interviewer to consider: Did Cevin Spacy -who played one of the major roles in that film, act/perform as a baddy?
So, I think it might be suitable also.

Yeah, baddy would have been a good choice!
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