Questions tagged [spanish-language]
Questions about literature in Spanish: works of literature which were originally written in the Spanish language, whether from Spain, Latin America, or elsewhere.
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What differences are there between the editions of Grossman's translation of Don Quixote?
Putting aside the physical (like the cover, flaps etc.), what, if any, differences are there between these three editions of Edith Grossman's translation of Don Quixote? Are the annotations the same ...
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What is the relation (if any) of Fanny Buitrago to her biographer Letty Buitrago?
In the ninth volume ("Biografias") of the Colombian encyclopedia "Gran Enciclopedia de Colombia" there is a biography of the Colombian author Fanny Buitrago. It can be read here (...
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Does Don Quijote in fact say "Facts are the enemy of truth"?
I recall a quote of the sort "Facts are the enemy of truth" attributed to Miguel de Cervantes in his book Don Quijote de la Mancha. However, I could not find the quote in the book by ...
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What's the symbolism of the Cid's beard?
The book El "Cantar de Mio Cid" y la épica medieval española by Alan Deyermond, at page 37, mentions
el simbolismo de la barba del Cid
that is, "the symbolism of the Cid's beard",...
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In what year is Santiago murdered in Chronicle of a Death Foretold?
I have seen several analyses and reviews that claim the story is set in the fifties.
I think the story is actually set in 1947. Could this be right?
Here is my reasoning:
The narrator says that he is ...
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What does Borges want to convey with this theme in his work?
In many of his works, Borges uses a "final twist" in which two characters exchange their role. For example in the short story Three versions of Judas the life of a theologian who analyses ...
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Latin America (Brazil?) short stories. Just recall fragments: A lone traveler
The protagonist, a traveler to some distant town narrating the stories. In some of them, he sees another figure on the horizon, shadowing him. In one of the stories (an early one in the collection) ...
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When did the terms "Mester de Clerecía" and "Mester de Juglaría" start to be used?
Mester de Juglaría was a genre of Spanish literature from the 12th-13th centuries, which was transmitted orally by travelling entertainers (juglares). It was later surpassed by the Mester de Clerecía, ...
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What does "solidification" mean in "his departure or farewell was a kind of solidification"?
But I had to give up on that idea or hope, I had to wrench it out of my head and heart, or out of my cunt, as the women say back in Torre del Greco, and although I never completely gave up, somehow I ...
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How long has El Cantar de mio Cid been considered a national epic of Spain?
El Cantar de mio Cid or The Poem of the Cid is not only "the oldest preserved Castilian epic poem" but also "considered a national epic of Spain". The text may date from the 12th ...
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Meaning of 'white mask on my otherwise tan face'
I nearly always saw them at the beach, where it’s difficult to get a good look at anyone. Particularly so in my case, because I’m nearsighted and would rather see everything through a haze than return ...
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Meaning of "Her face, a revolving door, swings open and shut, open and shut"
First her ears hear; they open. Then her eyes can see; they open. Her face, a revolving door, swings open and shut, open and shut. She no longer sleeps at night; it’s too hard to breathe after four ...
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What does the ellipsis in Machado's poem 'Pegasos, lindos pegasos' mean?
What does the ellipsis in Machado's poem 'Pegasos, lindos pegasos' mean? I don't know what all those dots represent. Maybe it is something specific I'm not aware of. Here is the poem.
Pegasos, lindos ...
user13380
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Options for when a text has not been translated into English from Spanish
Several of Arturo Perez-Reverte's works have been translated into English, but in the case of "El Cid" (Sidi), no English version has been published to my knowledge.
I fear my prospects are ...
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What does "Yira" mean in "Yira, Yira" by Carlos Gardel?
In the song Yira, Yira by Carlos Gardel (which was also later performed by Los Piojos) I am curious about the phrase, well, "Yira, Yira" (full lyrics).
I couldn't find the definition in many ...
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Why does Rebeca kill José Arcadio in One Hundred Years of Solitude?
In One Hundred Years of Solitude, it is apparent that Rebeca kills José Arcadio, her husband.
What mythology or post-colonial meaning does this event hold generally? How do you understand it ...
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Does Aldonza Lorenzo appear as a real character in Don Quixote?
I just finished Don Quixote and I'm confused about the status of "Aldonza Lorenzo" the peasant. Obviously, "Dulcinea of Toboso" is a figment of Don Quixote's imagination, but ...
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English translation of "Encargo"
Is there an English translation of "Encargo" by Julio Cortázar? I've not been able to find one online.
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"Cease, cows, life is short" - what does it mean?
"Cease, cows, life is short" is a quote from One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez. It is a phrase that Aureliano Segundo says in Chapter 17, and is later written on his ...
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1955 in Otro poema de los dones by Jorge Luis Borges
In the poem Otro poema de los dones by Jorge Luis Borges, there is a line which refers to 1955. Is Borges, being Argentine, referring to the military coup to unseat President Juan Perón of Argentina? ...
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The relevance of "El Consejo De Los Dioses" by José Rizal
José Rizal's play "El Consejo de los Dioses" (The Council of the Gods) uncovered some relative aspects covering the social components of the western humanistic viewpoint, (that human beings ...
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Julia Wong Kcomt, "The Red Rooster"
The Chinese-Peruvian poet Julia Wong Kcomt wrote two poems for Words Without Borders about her experiences as a product of two different cultures. I'm particularly interested in the first of them, ...
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What do the silks and tattoos represent in Sui-Yun's poem about Eve?
One of the Peruvian writer Sui-Yun's Four Short Poems (translated from Spanish by Jennifer Shyue) is written as addressed to "Eve, my eternal mother".
I hope I'm not being excessively dirty-...
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Meaning of Lorca's "Romance sonámbulo"?
What does Lorca mean in his poem "Romance sonámbulo" when he says:
Tiny tin-leaf lanterns
were trembling on the tiles.
A thousand crystal tambourines
were wounding dawn's dark sky.
(...
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Is there any evidence that William Shakespeare influenced Lope de Vega?
During the Spanish Golden Age of the arts, one of the key figures in Spanish literature was Lope de Vega, a prolific author of plays, poetry, and novels. He was approximately contemporary with William ...
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Is there any evidence that Lope de Vega influenced William Shakespeare?
During the Spanish Golden Age of the arts, one of the key figures in Spanish literature was Lope de Vega, a prolific author of plays, poetry, and novels. He was approximately contemporary with William ...
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What does Borges' reference to the Greek mean in "The Lottery in Babylon"?
In the first section of his short story "The Lottery in Babylon", Borges writes:
I have known that thing the Greeks knew not -- uncertainty.
As far as I know, there was nothing specific ...
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Origin of the title of "La Dragontea" by Lope de Vega?
Why Lope de Vega titled his poem La Dragontea, what were the prerequisites? I tried to search the etymology of this word but was not successful.
Yes, I know that Chinese Dragon Tea exists, but I ...
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Penelope's Letter in The Shadow Of The Wind
Penelope's real letter to Julian says "Many times I tried to find you through Miguel, but he told me that you didn't want anything more to do with me."
Nowhere in the book does it explain why Miguel, ...
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What does "atom" mean in Don Quixote?
This is a question about Don Quijote de la Mancha (Edición conmemorativa de la RAE y la ASALE / 400th-anniversary commemorative edition by the Spanish language academies).
In Chapter XXVI of the ...
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Can someone elaborate on the subject of "Discursive Hybridity" in Don Quixote?
Our teacher has asked us about the subject of "Discursive Hybridity" in Don Quixote, I've read about it but I'm not still so sure what it actually designates.
So here I am asking for your help. What ...
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Are Lorca's "Gypsy Ballads" adapted from, or inspired by, traditional Romani songs?
Federico Garcia Lorca's Romancero Gitano, usually translated as Gypsy Ballads, is a collection of poems, about which Wikipedia says:
All of the poems deal with the Romani people (gypsies) and their ...
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What does Neruda mean when he says ‘Maybe January light will consume My heart with its cruel Ray.’?
I’ve been a fan of Neruda for a while now. In his Sonnet LXVI: I Do Not Love You Except Because I Love You, he says:
Maybe January light will consume
My heart with its cruel
Ray, stealing my ...
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A book about a recently graduated psychologist / psychiatrist who meets a redhead girl who is his first patient
First I would like to clarify that I do not know if someone can answer the question because I think that the book is from Galicia and, although it was translated into Spanish, I do not know if it was ...
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What is Baltasar Gracián's original quote to "Some never arrive at being complete, somewhat is always awanting"?
Can anyone find the original quote from Baltasar Gracián in the Spanish he wrote this in?
Some never arrive at being complete, somewhat is always awanting.
From The art of worldy wisdom.
Graham
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What is the language spoken in Babylon?
In the short story "The Lottery in Babylon", Jorge Luis Borges describes an imaginary society where a Lottery decides the fate of the people, with omnipotence and foresight. At the beginning of the ...
Fosco Loregian
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"The South" by Jorge Luis Borges: book/movie differences?
What are some of the differences and similarities between the book "The South" and the movie? The book is about Juan Dahlmann with his accident. I know that the cat is in different places, that the ...
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"The impostor magician Smerdis" from Borges
In the Jorge Luis Borges short story Tlön, Uqbar, Orbis Tertius the only historical name the narrator and Bioy recognize from the cyclopaedia entry on Uqbar is that of
the impostor magician Smerdis,...
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What does Lorca mean by ‘the oppressed reds’ and ‘garnet violence’ in his poem ‘The King of Harlem’?
I've already asked one question on this poem and I did think to include this question along with it but decided against it as the poem is quite long, though of course not as long as some ancient epics ...
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What did Lorca mean by ‘crocodiles’ in his poem ‘The King of Harlem’?
The poet Federico García Lorca, when he was studying at Colombia University visited Harlem with a friend of his, Nella Larsen, a black novelist. It made a tremendous impression upon him and its ...
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Is the original manuscript of Don Quixote extant?
Apparently, there are 27 known copies of the first edition (1605). But Cervantes' hand-written original is not extant, correct?
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What is the meaning of "Not even Jonah’s wife would swallow that story" in Marquez's "Love in the Time of Cholera"?
In the book of the Colombian novelist García Márquez Love in the Time of Cholera there is the following phrase:
She said: “Not even Jonah’s wife would swallow that story.”
I tried to find some ...
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What does "getting soaked" mean in this text?
What does "getting soaked" mean in the following excerpt from Valeria Luiselli's novel The Story of My Teeth?
I get off the bus not far from the gates, at a lovely median strip with life-size ...
Albert daigo
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In "The South" by Jorge Luis Borges, what is the significance of the cat?
What is the significance of Dahlmann's contact with the "enormous cat" in this short story?
He quickly recalled that in a cafe on the Calle Brazil (a few dozen feet from Yrigoyen's house) there was ...
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Explanation of a line from the poem "I do not love you " by Pablo Neruda
I loved her like certain dark things are to be loved, in between shadow and soul.
Can someone explain this?
What dark things are being talked about?
Original Spanish text:
te amo como se aman ...
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In Don Quixote, why wasn't Sancho Panza allowed to speak in the black mountains?
At the start of chapter 25 of Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes, Sancho Panza is not allowed to speak (to Don Quixote).
Don Quixote took leave of the goatherd, and once more mounting Rocinante bade ...
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Federico García Lorca quote: "I'm a capitalist and a socialist and a communist and an anarchist and a monarchist"
I remember very well that I was reading somewhere or I've seen it on the TV that Federico García Lorca said something like "I'm a capitalist and a socialist and a communist and an anarchist and a ...
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Which South or Central American female author wrote a short story about frozen cockroaches?
In the 90s I read a collection of short stories by a South American female author (most likely translated to English vs having been written in English originally). I remember the stories were good, ...
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What does "Let nothing unite us, so that nothing can separate us" mean?
Let nothing unite us, so that nothing can separate us.
This quote is from the second stanza of the poem "Farewell" (English translation) — the original Spanish text is
Para que nada nos amarre que ...
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Why does Samson the parrot figure so prominently in the climax of La Fiesta del Chivo?
In the final chapter of La Fiesta del Chivo (The Feast of the Goat), Samson the parrot plays a recurring role. Here are a few examples:
Her reply is a sudden jabbering. The five women turn their ...
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