Korean Music Time! #15: Two Two - One and a Half (투투 - 일과 이분의 일)

This is a catchy song that was a big hit way back in 1994. There is a translation that has circulated the internet, but it's pretty bad. It reminds me of the translations I did back when I knew even less about Korean than I do now. You can see that translation in this video, and you don't have to feel bad about not understanding what the heck it's talking about if you read it.


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Here's a translation that I humbly suggest is better:

일과 이분의 일
One and a Half

멀리서 널 보았을 때
When I saw you from afar
다른 길로 갈까 생각했는데
I thought about going in a different direction
변한 듯한 널 보고 싶고
But I missed you, who seemed to have changed
짧은 인사할까 하는 마음에
And I wondered whether I might give a short greeting

두근데는 가슴으로 한걸음씩 갈 때
When I went one step at a time with my chest pounding
네 어깨 손 올리는 다른 어떤 사람
Some other person put his hand on your shoulder
화가난 네 얼굴은 미소로 바뀌고
Your angry face turned into a smile
두사람은 내 옆을 지나갔지
And two people walked right past my side

둘이 되어버린 날 잊은 것 같은 너의 모습에
Since it looks like you’ve forgotten me, I who have become two
하나 일때 보다 난 외롭고 허전해
I feel more lonely and empty than when I was one
니가 가져간 나의 반 쪽 때문인가
Is it because of the half of me you took away?
그래서 넌 둘이 될 수 있었던 거야
Therefore, you had been able to become two

멀리서 널 보았을 때
When I saw you from afar
다른 길로 갈까 생각했는데
I thought about going in a different direction
변한 듯한 널 보고 싶고
But I missed you, who seemed to have changed
짧은 인사할까 하는 마음에
And I wondered whether I might give a short greeting

두근데는 가슴으로 한걸음씩 갈 때
When I went one step at a time with my chest pounding
네 어깨 손 올리는 다른 어떤 사람
Some other person put his hand on your shoulder
화가난 네 얼굴은 미소로 바뀌고
Your angry face turned into a smile
두사람은 내 옆을 지나갔지
And two people walked right past my side

(Girl)
지금 너에겐 변명처럼 들리겠지
I know this will sound like an excuse to you now
널 보낸 후 항상 난 혼자였는데
After I let you go I was always alone…

두근데는 가슴으로 한걸음씩 갈 때
When I went one step at a time with my chest pounding
네 어깨 손 올리는 다른 어떤 사람
Some other person put his hand on your shoulder
화가난 네 얼굴은 미소로 바뀌고
Your angry face turned into a smile
두사람은 내 옆을 지나갔지
And two people walked right past my side

둘이 되어버린 날 잊은 것 같은 너의 모습에
Since it looks like you’ve forgotten me, I who have become two
하나 일때 보다 난 외롭고 허전해
I feel more lonely and empty than when I was one
니가 가져간 나의 반 쪽 때문인가
Is it because of the half of me you took away?
그래서 넌 둘이 될 수 있었던 거야
Therefore, you had been able to become two

It's still probably a little confusing, since there's math involved. Fractions even! As the Anti-Fraction Militia of my junior year math class can tell you, fractions are hard.

Basically, you can (hopefully) see in my translation that this song is about a guy who spots his ex-girlfriend, whom he still has feelings for. He decides to go over and talk to her, only to be heartbroken when he sees she's with another guy. The "one and a half" in the title refers to the girl, plus the half of him that she took with her when she passed by. When he says that he's become two, he means that he's been split into two pieces, but when he says that she's become two, he means she has her own heart, plus half of his heart and half of the new guy's heart. Some wordplay and numberplay there, and it makes for a fun, if slightly heartbreaking, little song.