Glossary entry (derived from question below)
Spanish term or phrase:
tablero multipolar
English translation:
multipolar checkerboard
Added to glossary by
Comunican
Jun 20, 2019 07:44
4 yrs ago
Spanish term
tablero multipolar
Spanish to English
Social Sciences
Education / Pedagogy
University
"Tras el final de la Guerra Fría y la desaparición del mundo de bloques, el escenario internacional comenzó a configurarse como un tablero multipolar. El eje de influencia se ha desplazado del Atlántico al Pacífico, a la vez que emergen nuevos actores para desarrollar papeles protagonistas."
Any elegant suggestions, please?
Many thanks!
Any elegant suggestions, please?
Many thanks!
Proposed translations
(English)
| 4 +1 | multipolar checkerboard |
Robert Carter
|
| 4 +1 | multipolar chessboard |
Francois Boye
|
| 3 | multipolar deck |
Juan Arturo Blackmore Zerón
|
Proposed translations
+1
7 hrs
Robert Carter
Mexico
Mexico
Native in English
Mexico
Translating full-time since 1998
Native in: English (Variant: British) 
Works in: Spanish to English
Related KudoZ points
:
182
Selected
multipolar checkerboard
I'm don't think we can let go of the "multipolar" concept here, as I think it's highly significant in the context of international relations (multilaterality and multilateralism are different but related concepts), but I'm not sure "chess board" is the right angle.
I'm more inclined to think of the board itself rather than the game being played, and there are indeed some references to this idea, notably tying the idea of "checkerboard geography" to "multipolarity", although all or most seem to stem from one paper by Christensen and Snyder.
Regarding polarity, and by extension, multipolarity, etc.:
Polarity in international relations is any of the various ways in which power is distributed within the international system. It describes the nature of the international system at any given period of time. One generally distinguishes three types of systems: unipolarity, bipolarity, and multipolarity for four or more centers of power. The type of system is completely dependent on the distribution of power and influence of states in a region or globally.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polarity_(international_relati...
Whereas:
In international relations, multilateralism refers to an alliance of multiple countries pursuing a common goal.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multilateralism
Multipolarity, Perceptions, and the Tragedy of 1914 - Jstor
https://www.jstor.org/stable/23019689
by TJ Christensen - 2011 - Cited by 4 - Related articles
"the multipolar checkerboard configuration of power" (Christensen and Snyder. 1990:148).
The paper in question is entitled Chain Gangs and Passed Bucks: Predicting Alliance Patterns in Multipolarity.
In multipolarity, equal and opposite alliance dilemmas impede efficient balancing. The first is the chain gang problem. In multipolarity the approximate quality of alliance partners leads to a high degree of security interdependence within an alliance. Given the anarchic setting and this relative equality, each state feels its own security is integrally intertwined with the security of its alliance partners.
...
Analytically more difficult are multipolar settings that lack the familiar checkerboard geography which makes one's neighbor an enemy and makes the enemy's neighbor one's friend
http://home.sogang.ac.kr/sites/jaechun/courses/Lists/b7/Atta...
Soviet-American Relations After the Cold War
https://books.google.com.mx/books?id=85J1AAAAMAAJ
Robert Jervis, Seweryn Bialer - 1991 - Political Science
18 One difficulty with solving the security dilemma through arms control in multipolarity is that allies arrayed in the typical multipolar checkerboard pattern need ...
I'm more inclined to think of the board itself rather than the game being played, and there are indeed some references to this idea, notably tying the idea of "checkerboard geography" to "multipolarity", although all or most seem to stem from one paper by Christensen and Snyder.
Regarding polarity, and by extension, multipolarity, etc.:
Polarity in international relations is any of the various ways in which power is distributed within the international system. It describes the nature of the international system at any given period of time. One generally distinguishes three types of systems: unipolarity, bipolarity, and multipolarity for four or more centers of power. The type of system is completely dependent on the distribution of power and influence of states in a region or globally.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polarity_(international_relati...
Whereas:
In international relations, multilateralism refers to an alliance of multiple countries pursuing a common goal.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multilateralism
Multipolarity, Perceptions, and the Tragedy of 1914 - Jstor
https://www.jstor.org/stable/23019689
by TJ Christensen - 2011 - Cited by 4 - Related articles
"the multipolar checkerboard configuration of power" (Christensen and Snyder. 1990:148).
The paper in question is entitled Chain Gangs and Passed Bucks: Predicting Alliance Patterns in Multipolarity.
In multipolarity, equal and opposite alliance dilemmas impede efficient balancing. The first is the chain gang problem. In multipolarity the approximate quality of alliance partners leads to a high degree of security interdependence within an alliance. Given the anarchic setting and this relative equality, each state feels its own security is integrally intertwined with the security of its alliance partners.
...
Analytically more difficult are multipolar settings that lack the familiar checkerboard geography which makes one's neighbor an enemy and makes the enemy's neighbor one's friend
http://home.sogang.ac.kr/sites/jaechun/courses/Lists/b7/Atta...
Soviet-American Relations After the Cold War
https://books.google.com.mx/books?id=85J1AAAAMAAJ
Robert Jervis, Seweryn Bialer - 1991 - Political Science
18 One difficulty with solving the security dilemma through arms control in multipolarity is that allies arrayed in the typical multipolar checkerboard pattern need ...
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
Charles Davis
: Well, I must admit that the essay by Jack Snyder you've cited at the end lends support to the phrase, but I haven't the foggiest what he means by "checkerboard". Maybe an American usage I'm not familiar with.
31 mins
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Thanks, Charles. As I mention in the discussion, I don't quite understand the metaphor either. My feeling is that it relates to a kind of "patchwork", so that's why I tried to isolate the board itself (i.e., separate from the game of chess).
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4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "Thanks Robert, Charles and everyone else. Your help and ideas much appreciated!"
+1
4 hrs
Francois Boye
United States
United States
United States
An economic geek with social skills
Native in: French
Works in: English to French, French to English, Spanish to English, and 1 more.
Related KudoZ points
:
66
multipolar chessboard
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
Michael Confais (X)
5 days
|
6 hrs
Juan Arturo Blackmore Zerón
Mexico
Mexico
Native in Spanish
Specializes in field
Mexico
Confianza, certeza, creatividad.
Native in: Spanish (Variant: Mexican)
Works in: English to Spanish, Italian to Spanish, French to Spanish, and 6 more.
Related KudoZ points
:
20
Discussion
https://www.google.es/search?q=multiplayer chess board&prmd=...
https://www.google.es/search?ei=ZBQMXZm5OYKRlwSM5LLICg&q="4 ...
As for how to express that idea, I'll wait for your input ;)
I agree, it is a duff metaphor, as you say, because it falls apart on examination. Great analysis!
I think he (I mean Snyder, but also the author of this Spanish text, who may even have got the phrase from "multipolar checkerboard") probably means nothing more than "field of play", as it were. As soon as you start to probe the metaphor it falls apart. Chessboards and checkerboards are essentially the same: they consist of alternating squares of two different colours. Both are used for two players (or in theory teams) to play, each with his/her own pieces. All the pieces of one colour are allies of all the pieces of the same colour. In their geometry and their function they are essentially binary. I don't think we are intended to look at "tablero" any further than as a setting in which a game is played out. It's a duff metaphor, IMO.
I suppose you could invent a game of chess or checkers with three or four players playing on the same board, each playing against all the others. Maybe it's even been done. 3D chess certainly exists. It would be horrendously complicated, and you'd probably need more squares.
Regarding whether multipolar or multilateral is significant, the text is referring to influence (latent power), not alliance (agreement), so that's where I have an issue with using "multilateral".