31)
"Just as true as I live!"
— Tan cierto como es de día.
The English gets translated to the equivalent of “Just as sure as it’s daytime.”
32)
"Shut up, Sid! A body does just the same in a dream as he'd do if he was awake. Here's a big Milum apple I've been saving for you, Tom, if you was ever found again -- now go 'long to school."
— ¡Cállate, Sid! Uno hace en sueños justamente lo que haría estando despierto. Aquí tienes una manzana como no hay otra, que estaba guardando para ti si es que llegaba a encontrarte... Y ahora vete a la escuela.
Here “Milum apple” becomes “an apple like no other” (“una manzana como no hay otra”). As the Milum was a type of apple known only in certain parts of the US, most Spanish speakers would have not heard of it. The point was that it was a “special” apple, not your “garden variety” apple.
33)
"Yes, every one that's friends to me -- or wants to be"; and she glanced ever so furtively at Tom, but he talked right along to Amy Lawrence about the terrible storm on the island, and how the lightning tore the great sycamore tree "all to flinders" while he was "standing within three feet of it."
— Sí, a todos los que son amigos míos... o que quieran serlo — y echó a Tom una mirada rápida y furtiva; pero él siguió charlando con Amy sobre la terrible tormenta de la isla y de cómo un rayo hendió el gran sicomoro «en astillas» mientras él estaba «en pie a menos de una vara del árbol».
The “all to flinders” is translated as «en astillas» which literally means “in splinters” so is really pretty much a literal translation, as “flinders” is “small fragments, or splinters,” but I found it an interesting phrase, as “all to flinders” is at least somewhat archaic.
34)
At recess Tom continued his flirtation with Amy with jubilant self-satisfaction. And he kept drifting about to find Becky and lacerate her with the performance. At last he spied her, but there was a sudden falling of his mercury. She was sitting cosily on a little bench behind the schoolhouse looking at a picture-book with Alfred Temple --
Durante el recreo Tom siguió coqueteando con Amy jubiloso y satisfecho. No cesó de andar de un lado para otro para encontrarse con Becky y hacerla sufrir a su sabor. Al fin consiguió verla; pero el termómetro de su alegría bajó de pronto a cero. Estaba sentada confortablemente en un banquito detrás de la escuela, viendo un libro de estampas con Alfredo Temple;
The English “sudden falling of his temperature” is more precisely expressed in Spanish: el termómetro de su alegría bajó de pronto a cero (“the thermometer of his happines fell quickly to zero”)
35)
And he went through the motions of thrashing an imaginary boy -- pummelling the air, and kicking and gouging.
Y realizó todos los actor y movimientos requeridos para dar una formidable somanta a un muchacho imaginario, soltando puñetazos al aire, sin olvidar los puntapiés y acogotamientos.
A simple “and” in the phrase “pummeling the air, and kicking” becomes in Spanish “sin olvidar” (without forgetting).
36)
"Go away and leave me alone, can't you! I hate you!"
— ¡Vete de aquí y déjame en paz! ¡No te puedo ver!
The Spanish translation is not as harsh. Where Becky Thatchy tells that “Saint Louis Smarty” (Albert Temple), “I hate you!” is translated as merely, “¡No te puedo ver!” (“I don’t want to see you!”)
37)
The words sounded like truth. The old lady could not hide a tremor in her voice when she said:
[ not translated ]
Another case of a simple omission; a decision not to translate, or perhaps an oversight. If you’re reading the Spanish version, you would never guess that anything got missed. Maybe the translator considered it superfluous, but I don’t think they have—or should have—the authority to simply leave out what they think is leave-outable.
38)
He presently encountered her and delivered a stinging remark as he passed. She hurled one in return, and the angry breach was complete.
A poco se encontró con ella, y al pasar le dijo una indirecta mortificante. Ella le soltó otra, y la brecha del odio que los separaba se hizo un abismo.
Two interesting things here: “a stinging remark” becomes “una indirecta mortificante” (a mortifying hint). A sting is not a mere hint, so the Spanish translation is milder. On the other hand, the second interesting thing is the way the Spanish translation makes the rather straightforward “the angry breach was complete” more colorful. The translation is, “la brecha del odio que los separaba se hizo un abismo” — back-translated: “the breach of hatred that separated them became an abyss.” Much stronger!
39)
"Be so mean if you want to! I know something that's going to happen. You just wait and you'll see! Hateful, hateful, hateful!" -- and she flung out of the house with a new explosion of crying.
— ¡Pues sé todo lo innoble que quieras! Yo sé una cosa que va a pasar. ¡Te aborrezco! ¡Te odio! — y salió de la clase, con una nueva explosión de llanto.
I believe this is a mistranslation. Where in English it says, “Hateful, hateful, hateful!” the point is that Becky is saying Tom is hateful. She’s saying, “Why are you so hateful?” or “You are so hateful!” not “I hate you!” (¡Te odio!), as it is translated.
40)
There was not a sound. One could have heard a pin drop. The stillness continued; the master searched face after face for signs of guilt.
Profundo silencio. Se hubiera oído volar una mosca. La inquietud continuaba: el maestro examinaba cara por cara, buscando indicios de culpabilidad.
There was not a sound. One could have heard a pin drop. The stillness continued; the master searched face after face for signs of guilt.
Profundo silencio. Se hubiera oído volar una mosca. La inquietud continuaba: el maestro examinaba cara por cara, buscando indicios de culpabilidad.Bla
The two phrases I have in mind here are “One could have heard a pin drop.” and “Se hubiera oído volar una mosca.” The Spanish can be back-translated as “One could hear a fly flying.” Same thought is being expressed; I find the difference in the idioms interesting.
41)
They swore in the sign-painter's boy, told him the scheme, and asked his help.
Tomaron juramento al chico del pintor-decorador, le confiaron el proyecto y le pidieron su ayuda.
“Sign-painter” becomes “pintor-decorador”; so it’s not translated as “pintor de letreros” (painter of letters) but as “painter-decorator.” I wonder why? Just plain “Painter” is ambiguous in English, because you wonder: Does the person paint houses (he’s in construction), pictures, or paintings (he’s an artist), signs (as is the case here), or what, exactly? I find it interesting that in Spanish a house painter can be called a “pintor de brocha gorda” (painter with a fat brush). This is, apparently, the way to differentiate between a painter of houses (he uses wide brushes) and a painter of pictures (who uses much thinner brushes).
42)
"The Boy Stood on the Burning Deck" followed; also "The Assyrian Came Down," and other declamatory gems.
Siguieron otras conocidas joyas del género declamatorio;
As the poems specifically mentioned in English were apparently unknown to Spanish speakers, they are simply referred to as “other known declamatory gems.” The second one named is currently known as “The Destruction of Sennacherib.” It is “Lord Byron’s” (George Gordon’s) poetic retelling of the events recorded in the 37th chapter of the Bible book of Isaiah.
43)
It may be remarked, in passing, that the number of compositions in which the word "beauteous" was over-fondled, and human experience referred to as "life's page," was up to the usual average.
[ not translated ]
Did the translator consider rendering this part was optional because Twain wrote, “It may be remarked, in passing, ...”? Or maybe he didn’t want to come up with a commonly hackneyed Spanish word that corresponded to “beauteous” and a corresponding phrase for “life’s page.”
44)
During two long weeks Tom lay a prisoner, dead to the world and its happenings. He was very ill, he was interested in nothing. When he got upon his feet at last and moved feebly down-town, a melancholy change had come over everything and every creature. There had been a "revival," and everybody had "got religion," not only the adults, but even the boys and girls.
Durante dos largas semanas estuvo Tom prisionero, muerto para el mundo y sus acontecimientos. Estaba muy malo; nada le interesaba. Cuando al fin pudo tenerse en pie y empezó a vagar, decaído y débil, por el pueblo, vio que una triste mudanza se había operado en todas las cosas y en todas las criaturas. Había habido un revival [ Exacerbación periódica de celo religioso, muy frecuente en Estados Unidos, promovida por predicaciones y otros medios de propaganda. ] y todo el mundo se había «metido en religión».
I find this one especially interesting. First, notice at the end of the passage that in Engish it says that, “everybody hat “got religion,” not only the adults, but even the boys and girls” whereas in Spanish it simply says, “y todo el mundo se habia «metido en religión»; in other words, everybody (literally “all of the world”) was involved. The Spanish doesn’t specify that even the younger folks were part of the craze.
The more interesting thing (I think) is that the original text by Twain considers it enough to say there had been a revival, but this was apparently an unknown occurrence for the Spanish speakers, as the translator explains it within the angle braces. The literal translaton of the explanation is: Periodic exacerbation of religious zeal, very common in the United States, promoted by preaching and other means of propaganda
The “Revival” Twain wrote about was what’s known as the “Second Great Awakening.” It lasted from 1790-1840 (“Tom Sawyer” was set in the 1830s and 1840s).
45)
NOTE: There are other instances of passages simply not being translated; leaving them out doesn’t take much away from the story, granted, but I question whether that is the prerogative of the translator or his editor or publisher to elide passages from the original that way. If you really want to see some more examples of that, see pages 400 and 405 in the book “The Adventures of Tom Sawyer: In English and Spanish” available here.
46)
Huck was willing. Huck was always willing to take a hand in any enterprise that offered entertainment and required no capital, for he had a troublesome superabundance of that sort of time which is not money.
Huck estaba presto. Huck estaba siempre presto para echar una mano en cualquier empresa que ofreciese entretenimiento sin exigir capital, pues tenía una abrumadora superabundancia de esa clase de tiempo que no es oro.
Here the English expression “time is money” is translated to the equivalent Spanish saying, “time is gold” (el tiempo es oro).
47)
"I reckon you don't. But if you was to go to Europe you'd see a raft of 'em hopping around."
— Me figuro que no. Pero si tú fueras a Europa verías manadas de ellos brincando por todas partes.
"Do they hop?"
— ¿De veras brincan?
"Hop? -- your granny! No!"
— ¿Brincar?... ¡Eres un mastuerzo! ¡No!
Huck takes Tom literally about kings hopping. The English idiomatic expression “your granny!” is then translated as “¡Eres un mastuerzo!” A mastuerzo is literally “cress” (the plant), but figuratively means a dolt or an imbecile.
48)
"Say, Huck, if we find a treasure here, what you going to do with your share?"
— Dime, Huck, si encontramos un tesoro aquí, ¿qué vas a hacer con lo que te toque?
"Well, I'll have pie and a glass of soda every day, and I'll go to every circus that comes along. I bet I'll have a gay time."
— Pues comer pasteles todos los días y beberme un vaso de gaseosa, y además ir a todos los circos que pasen por aquí.
While the English (speaking) Huck wants to have pie every day (smart boy!), his Spanish (speaking) alter ego prefers cake (pasteles). I guess pie is not really a “thing” in Spanish-speaking cultures.
49)
"Here! You're a watchman, ain't you! All right, though -- nothing's happened."
— ¡Vamos! ¡Vaya un vigilante que estás hecho! Pero no importa; nada ha ocurrido.
It’s interesting that “watchman” is translated as “vigilante.” Actually, vigilante seems the perfect word for watchman, as such a one must be vigilant. But then the English word “vigilante” comes under suspicion, for why is one who takes the law into his own hand deemed equivalent to a watchman, even figuratively? According to google translate, the Spanish word “vigilante” equates with the very similar English word “vigilant” (not “watchman”); and the English word “vigilante” equates with the Spanish word justiciero (“justice”)—which gives a positive impression in Spanish, although vigilantes are typically viewed with suspicion or even abhorrence in the English-speaking world. “Watchman” is translated as “sereno.” So the choice of “vigilante” as the translated word in the book seems questionable.
50)
"My! have I been asleep?"
— ¡Diablo! ¿Me he dormido?
¡Diablo! is not a bad choice for “My!” I’m sure, as the literal equivalent to “My!” in Spanish would be “¡Mi!” which would probably make no sense. It’s interesting, though, that the corresponding Spanish expression is “Devil!” (“Diablo”).
51)
"Why, it's ha'nted with whiskey! Maybe all the Temperance Taverns have got a ha'nted room, hey, Huck?"
— Pues que está encantado de whisky. Puede ser que en todas las «Posadas de Templanza» [ Establecimiento donde se supone que no se consumen bebidas alcohólicas y goza por ello de ciertos privilegios y exenciones de impuestos. ] tengan un cuarto encantado, ¿eh?
The interesting thing here is that “Temperance Tavern” probably had no correspondency in the Spanish-speaking world. And so they had to explain it with everything between the brackets above, which can be translated as: Establishment where it is assumed that alcoholic beverages are not consumed and therefore enjoys certain privileges and tax exemptions
52)
"All right, I will. All you got to do is to trot up Hooper Street a block and maow -- and if I'm asleep, you throw some gravel at the window and that'll fetch me."
— Muy bien, lo haré. Todo lo que tú tienes que hacer es ir corriendo a mi calle y maullar, y si estoy durmiendo tiras una china a la ventana, y ya me tienes dispuesto.
Here “you throw some gravel at the window” is translated as “tiras una china a la ventana.” It’s not clear why the Spanish equivalent of “gravel” (grava) is not used, but “china” can mean crockery or earthenware, so it apparently means a broken piece of such.
Note, too, that “trot up Hooper Street” is translated as “ir corriendo a mi calle” (go running to my street). Why not just stick with transliteration of the placename?
53)
"Joe Harper, have you seen my Tom this morning?"
— Joe Harper, ¿has visto a mi Tom esta mañana?
"No'm."
[ not translated ]
"When did you see him last?"
[ not translated ]
Joe tried to remember, but was not sure he could say.
With these bits left untranlsated, it doesn’t make much sense. Why would that part of the translation be omitted? Nothing is gained, and at least a little is lost.
54)
The place was grandly lighted, and everybody that was of any consequence in the village was there. The Thatchers were there, the Harpers, the Rogerses, Aunt Polly, Sid, Mary, the minister, the editor, and a great many more, and all dressed in their best. The widow received the boys as heartily as any one could well receive two such looking beings. They were covered with clay and candle-grease. Aunt Polly blushed crimson with humiliation, and frowned and shook her head at Tom. Nobody suffered half as much as the two boys did, however. Mr. Jones said:
El salón estaba profusamente iluminado, y toda la gente de alguna importancia en el pueblo estaba allí: los Thatcher, los Harper, los Rogers, tía Polly, Sid, Mary, el reverendo pastor, el director del periódico y muchos más, todos vestidos con el fondo del área. La viuda recibió a los muchachos con tanta amabilidad como hubiera podido mostrar cualquiera ante dos seres de aquellas trazas. Estaban cubiertos de la cabeza a los pies de barro y de sebo. Tía Polly se puso colorada como un tomate, de pura vergüenza, y frunció el ceño a hizo señas amenazadoras a Tom. Pero nadie sufrió tanto, sin embargo, como los propios chicos.
It’s not a mistranslation, but I found it interesting that “Aunt Polly blushed crimson” was tranlsated as “Tía Polly se puso colorada como un tomate” (Aunt Polly turned red as a tomato) which is more accurate and more visual.
55)
Tom ran out of doors. The company looked at each other with a perplexed interest -- and inquiringly at Huck, who was tongue-tied.
Salió corriendo del comedor. Todos se miraron unos a otros, curiosos y perplejos, y después las miradas interrogantes se dirigieron a Huck, que seguía silencioso como un pez.
Where the English says, “who was tongue-tied,” the Spanish is: “que seguía silencioso como un pez” (who remained as silent as a fish).
- Next, I plan on doing the same thing with “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn”