RIP. I felt a shock when I discovered this when I woke up. He is probably the author that has influenced me more strongly in my literary tastes. Gabo wasn't just a great writer but loved by many in spanish speaking countries. His mastery of the prose and outstanding ability on his craft are laudable but Gabo was as well a great person. A friend had the chance to meet him in the context of his PhD, I guess I'll forever envy her for that.
Being this my first HN comment (thanks Gabo for the strength) I'll go all out with a second unrelated part of the comment, less emotionally charged but perhaps more HN-like:
There are many comments in the thread about the translation of the first sentence of "One Hundred Years of Solitude". Translating is such a hard task, there is no way part of the meaning/subtleties will not be lost in it since languages are not one to one. And even if we get to pass most of the meaning keeping the flow will be so hard except for very similar languages (spanish/portuguese). What is an impossible problem for computers is one as well for translators, we can only hope they give as a tasty human take on the task. I wonder if one day automatic translations of literary works will have a "style" options to simulate different translator sensibilities or we will settle for a winner-algorithm takes all the translations.
Something more I'd like to share, I'm very curious if other people feel the same because part of my homemade theory of the language depends on this :). I'm lucky enough to read high level literature in different languages, however even if I can appreciate it, the pleasure I experience while reading Spanish is in a different level. Somehow a similar experience happens while talking, I feel more strongly bound to spanish in a very subtle way, it's not something I usually notice, just on some occasions. I only started learning languages after 8. A possible reason is how the brain gets bound to words and language when very young, another is that I have lived more emotional experiences in that language. The second hypothesis would have to explain why I do not feel that way in french even if I've lived in Paris 10 years. Obviously one case study, apply a grain of salt ;)
Being this my first HN comment (thanks Gabo for the strength) I'll go all out with a second unrelated part of the comment, less emotionally charged but perhaps more HN-like:
There are many comments in the thread about the translation of the first sentence of "One Hundred Years of Solitude". Translating is such a hard task, there is no way part of the meaning/subtleties will not be lost in it since languages are not one to one. And even if we get to pass most of the meaning keeping the flow will be so hard except for very similar languages (spanish/portuguese). What is an impossible problem for computers is one as well for translators, we can only hope they give as a tasty human take on the task. I wonder if one day automatic translations of literary works will have a "style" options to simulate different translator sensibilities or we will settle for a winner-algorithm takes all the translations.
Something more I'd like to share, I'm very curious if other people feel the same because part of my homemade theory of the language depends on this :). I'm lucky enough to read high level literature in different languages, however even if I can appreciate it, the pleasure I experience while reading Spanish is in a different level. Somehow a similar experience happens while talking, I feel more strongly bound to spanish in a very subtle way, it's not something I usually notice, just on some occasions. I only started learning languages after 8. A possible reason is how the brain gets bound to words and language when very young, another is that I have lived more emotional experiences in that language. The second hypothesis would have to explain why I do not feel that way in french even if I've lived in Paris 10 years. Obviously one case study, apply a grain of salt ;)