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I'm working on a translation and am having trouble making sense of this
phrase. I tried looking up the meaning each individual word and putting the
phrase through Google Translate, but something doesn't click to me. The best
way I could make sense of it is "Do you think I can contain my joy?" which
seems like an odd thing for this character to say.

The context is as follows:

> **Nene** : え、どうしたの類。いつもより気持ち悪い顔して  
>  **Emu** : うん！ とーっても嬉しそうだねえ！  
>  **Rui** : フフフ…… **これが喜ばずにいられると思うかい** ？

Side note: working on the translation on Google Docs and it keeps asking to
correct "これ **を** 喜ばずにいられると思うかい？" But the original version says it's が。
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translation phrases
"これが喜ばずにいられると思うかい？" meaning?
This これが is indeed tricky, and it somehow sounds almost the same as saying
**こんな状況で** to me. This これが is like saying "in a situation like this", "see
what's going on", "look", "come on" or something. This usually appears in a
rhetorical question pattern, `これが + ～て/ないで/ずに + いられるか/いられようか`.

  * これが笑わないでいられようか。  
How can I not laugh at this (news/situation)?

  * これが飲まずにいられるか!  
How can I refrain from drinking (alcohol) in a (sad) situation like this?  
→ I can't help but drink on a day like this!

  * これが落ち着いて(い)られるかよ！  
Hey, how can I stay calm now?

  * これが喜ばずにいられると思うかい？  
In a situation like this, do you think I can keep being not pleased?  
→ Come on, how can I be not pleased?

As you can see in the second example, this type of これ is clearly not the
subject nor the object of the following verb. But rather than trying to
analyze further, I think it's best to memorize this これが is almost like a fixed
guiding adverb that indicates いられるか is coming and strengthens the meaning of
the rhetorical question.

これ **を** 喜ばずにいられると思うかい and これ **に** 喜ばずにいられると思うかい are also correct and make
sense, but これが sounds more idiomatic and natural to me.

You may know this, but これが and それが also work like a conjunction meaning
"however", "actually" or "despite your expectation":

  * それが、明日は休みなんです。  
However (actually), I have a day off tomorrow.

  * 実は私は寿司が嫌いなんですね、これが。  
Well, I don't like sushi, actually.

  * [How does work それが and ため in the context of ･･･それが熊のために騙されて･･･?](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/q/67906/5010)
  * [でございまして in this sentence?](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/q/54376/5010)
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answer
In my reading, これを pairs with 喜ぶ (if not 思う) whereas これが pairs with いられる.

> ［これを喜ばずに］いられる

> これが［喜ばずに］いられる

Though the agent of the verb いる is a person and not これ, which I believe refers
to the situation the speaker is in, the potential form いられる permits it to be
marked with が as if it's the subject.

The speaker is asking the listener, rhetorically, if she thinks the current
situation is such that they _can be_ (いられる) _without rejoicing_ (喜ばずに).

> これが喜ばずにいられる（状況だ）と思うかい？  
>  How could I/we be not happy in this situation?

They are basically saying
[喜ばずにはいられない](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/q/3925/43676).
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answer