# The Seven Madmen, The Astrologer Los siete locos · Roberto Arlt · Part One Source: https://1732studios.com/books/arlt/el-astrologo. Data: https://1732studios.com/books/arlt/el-astrologo.json. Audio: https://audio.1732studios.com/arlt/.m4a. El edificio que ocupaba el Astrólogo estaba situado en el centro de una quinta boscosa. The building the Astrologer occupied stood in the middle of a wooded estate. > «quinta»: A «quinta» is a country house or villa set on its own grounds, on the outskirts of a city — a Río de la Plata staple. «Quinta boscosa» = a wooded country property, the kind of half-rural retreat just beyond the edge of 1920s Buenos Aires. La casa era chata y sus tejados rojizos se divisaban a mucha distancia sobre la espesura de los árboles silvestres. The house was squat, and its reddish roofs could be made out from far off above the thickness of the wild trees. > Passive «se»: «Se divisaban» uses the passive «se»: literally 'they let themselves be made out', i.e. 'they could be seen'. Spanish constantly uses «se» + a verb to say something happens without naming who does it — here the roofs are visible, with no observer specified. Por los claros que dejaban los abultamientos, entre el auténtico oleaje de pastos y enredaderas, gruesos insectos de culo negro moscardoneaban todo el día entre la perenne lluvia de hierbajos y tallos. Through the gaps left by the swellings of growth, amid the true surf of grasses and creepers, fat black-bottomed insects droned all day long through the endless rain of weeds and stalks. > «moscardonear»: Arlt coins this verb from «moscardón» ('horsefly, large droning fly'). «Moscardoneaban» = 'they buzzed / droned about like big flies'. The novel is full of such invented, physical verbs — read it as a sound word. No lejos de la casa, la rueda del molino giraba su cojera de tres paletas sobre un prisma de hierro oxidado, y más allá, sobre la caballeriza, se distinguían los cristales azules y rojos de una mampara destruida por el orín. Not far from the house, the mill wheel turned its three-bladed limp on a prism of rusted iron, and farther off, above the stable, you could make out the blue and red panes of a partition wrecked by rust. Tras del molino y la casa, más allá de las bardas, negreaba la sierra verde botella de un monte de eucaliptos, apenachando de borbotones y cresterías en relieve el cielo de un azul marítimo. Behind the mill and the house, beyond the walls, the bottle-green saw-edge of a stand of eucalyptus loomed dark, pluming the sea-blue sky with gushes and raised crests. > Verbs of color in «-ear»: «Negreaba» comes from «negro» ('black'): 'it showed black / loomed darkly'. Spanish turns color adjectives into verbs with «-ear» — «verdear», «blanquear», «negrear» — to say a color appears in the distance. Note the imperfect ending «-aba», setting a continuous scene. Chupando una flor de madreselva, Erdosain cruzó la quinta hacia la casa. Sucking on a honeysuckle flower, Erdosain crossed the estate toward the house. > Gerund for a simultaneous action: «Chupando» is the gerund (the «-ando/-iendo» form) of «chupar» ('to suck'). Placed up front, it tells you what Erdosain was doing while the main verb «cruzó» ('he crossed') happened: 'sucking… he crossed'. The gerund marks an action going on at the same time. Le parecía estar en el campo, muy lejos de la ciudad, y la vista del edificio lo alegró. It seemed to him he was out in the country, far from the city, and the sight of the building cheered him. > «parecer» with an indirect object: «Le parecía estar en el campo» = 'it seemed to him that he was in the country'. «Parecer» ('to seem') takes the indirect-object pronoun «le» ('to him') to say to whom it seems; the imperfect «parecía» holds the impression open in time. Aunque chato, éste tenía dos pisos, con ruinosa balconada en el segundo y un descascarado juego de columnas griegas en el recibimiento, hasta donde trepaba una destruida gradinata, guarnecida de palmeras. Squat though it was, the building had two floors, with a ruined balcony on the second and a peeling set of Greek columns at the entrance, up to which climbed a wrecked flight of steps trimmed with palms. > «aunque» without a verb: «Aunque chato» drops the verb: 'although [it was] squat'. «Aunque» ('although / even though') can govern just an adjective, leaving 'it was' understood — a compact way to concede a point before the main clause. Los rojizos tejados caían oblicuamente, protegiendo con el alero los tragaluces y ventanitas de las buhardillas, y entre la pimpante hojarasca de los castaños, por encima de la copa de los granados manchados de asteriscos escarlatas, se veía un gallo de cinc moviendo su cola torcida a todos los vientos. The reddish roofs sloped down at an angle, sheltering with their eaves the skylights and little windows of the garrets, and among the jaunty foliage of the chestnut trees, above the crowns of the pomegranates flecked with scarlet asterisks, you could see a zinc weathercock swinging its twisted tail to every wind. En derredor, intrincadamente, surgía el jardín, con amaño de bosquecillo, y ahora en la quietud del atardecer, bajo el sol que aplomaba en el espacio una atmósfera de cristal nacarado, los rosales vertían su perfume potentísimo, tan penetrante, que todo el espacio parecía poblarse de una atmósfera roja y fresca como un caudal de agua. All around, intricately, the garden rose up, contrived to look like a little wood, and now in the stillness of dusk, under a sun that hung a pearly crystal atmosphere upon the air, the rosebushes poured out their overpowering scent, so piercing that the whole space seemed to fill with an atmosphere red and cool as a flow of water. > Superlative «-ísimo»: «Potentísimo» = «potente» ('powerful') + «-ísimo», the absolute superlative: 'extremely powerful', 'overpowering'. Adding «-ísimo» to an adjective intensifies it without comparing to anything — a favorite Spanish device for emphasis. Erdosain pensó: Erdosain thought: –Aunque tuviera una barca de plata con velas de oro y remos de marfil, y el océano se volviera de siete colores lisos, y desde la luna una millonaria con las manos me tirara besos, mi tristeza sería la misma... "Even if I had a silver boat with sails of gold and oars of ivory, and the ocean turned seven solid colors, and from the moon a millionairess blew me kisses with her hands, my sadness would be the same..." > Hypothetical «aunque» + imperfect subjunctive: Here «aunque» means 'even if', not 'although', and so triggers the imperfect subjunctive: «tuviera», «se volviera», «tirara». Paired with the conditional «sería» ('would be'), it frames an unreal supposition: 'even if I had… my sadness would be the same'. Mas esto no hay que decirlo. But this is not something to say aloud. > «hay que» + infinitive: «Hay que» + an infinitive states an impersonal obligation: 'one must / it is necessary to'. Negated, «no hay que decirlo» = 'one must not say it', 'this is not to be said'. Note «mas» (no accent) is a literary word for 'but'. Sin embargo, mejor viviría aquí que allí. And yet, I would live better here than there. Aquí podría tener un laboratorio. Here I could have a laboratory. Una camilla mal cerrada goteaba en un tonel. A poorly shut faucet was dripping into a barrel. > «camilla» / «canilla»: In the River Plate a «canilla» (the more usual spelling) is a tap or faucet; the dripping water returns a few paragraphs later as «el gotear de la canilla». In standard Spanish «camilla» elsewhere means a stretcher — a reminder to read Arlt's vocabulary as porteño. Al pie del poste de una glorieta dormitaba un perro, y cuando se detuvo para llamar frente a la escalinata apareció por la puerta la gigantesca figura del Astrólogo, cubierto con un guardapolvo amarillo y la galera echada sobre la frente, sombreándole el anchuroso rostro romboidal. At the foot of an arbor's post a dog was dozing, and when he stopped to call out before the front steps, the Astrologer's gigantic figure appeared in the doorway, draped in a yellow duster with his top hat pulled down over his forehead, shading his broad, diamond-shaped face. > «galera»: In Argentina a «galera» is a top hat (a stovepipe hat). Together with the «guardapolvo» — a long dust-coat — it gives the Astrologer his strange, theatrical silhouette in the doorway. Algunos mechones de cabello rizado se escapaban sobre sus sienes, y su nariz, con el tabique fracturado en la parte media, estaba extraordinariamente desviada hacia la izquierda. A few locks of curly hair escaped over his temples, and his nose, the septum fractured at its midpoint, was extraordinarily bent off to the left. Bajo sus cejas abultadas se movían vivamente unos redondos ojos negros, y esa cara de mejillas duras, surcadas de estrías rugosas, daba la impresión de estar esculpida en plomo. Beneath his bulging brows a pair of round black eyes moved briskly, and that face with its hard cheeks, furrowed by rough creases, gave the impression of being sculpted in lead. > «se» + plural verb, postponed subject: «Se movían… unos redondos ojos negros» = 'a pair of round black eyes moved'. The pronominal «moverse» ('to move') takes its subject after the verb, a normal Spanish word order for description; the eyes do the moving on their own. ¡Tanto debía de pesar esa cabeza! So heavy that head must have been! > «deber de» = supposition: «Deber de» + infinitive expresses a guess, not an obligation: «debía de pesar» = 'it must have weighed', 'it surely weighed so much'. Compare plain «deber» + infinitive ('to have to'); the «de» shifts the meaning to inference. ¡Ah! ¿Es usted?... "Ah! Is that you?..." Pase. "Come in." > «usted» command: «Pase» is the formal («usted») imperative of «pasar» ('to come in / pass'). Formal commands borrow the present-subjunctive form, hence «pase» rather than the informal «pasa». The whole exchange uses «usted», keeping the men at a polite distance. Le voy a presentar al Rufián Melancólico. "I'm going to introduce you to the Melancholy Ruffian." > «rufián»: A «rufián» is a pimp — a man who lives off prostitutes. The Astrologer's nickname for Haffner, «el Rufián Melancólico» ('the Melancholy Ruffian'), is half mockery, half affection, and names him by his trade throughout the chapter. Atravesando el vestíbulo oscuro y hediondo a humedad, entraron a un escritorio de muros rameados por un descolorido papel verdoso. Crossing the dark vestibule that reeked of damp, they entered a study whose walls were patterned by a faded greenish paper. > «escritorio» = study: Here «escritorio» means the room — a study or private office — not the desk. The desk itself shows up later in the same chapter, also as «escritorio» («Haffner se dirigió al escritorio»), so context decides. La habitación era francamente siniestra, con su altísimo cielorraso surcado de telarañas y la estrecha ventana protegida por el nudoso enrejado. The room was frankly sinister, with its very high ceiling crossed by cobwebs and the narrow window guarded by a knotted iron grille. En el enchapado de un armario antiguo, arrinconado, la claridad azulada se rompía en lívidas penumbras. On the veneer of an old cabinet shoved into a corner, the bluish light broke into livid half-shadows. Sentado en un sillón forrado de raído terciopelo verde estaba un hombre vestido de gris, renegrida onda de cabellos le soslayaba la frente, y calzaba botines de caña clara. Seated in an armchair upholstered in threadbare green velvet was a man dressed in gray, a jet-black wave of hair slanting across his forehead, and he wore light-suede ankle boots. > Possessive dative: «Le soslayaba la frente» literally reads 'slanted across the forehead to him' — the indirect object «le» marks whose forehead it is, instead of a possessive 'his'. Spanish routinely uses this dative with body parts: «le» = 'his/her', the body part stays with the definite article «la». In the same line, «la caña» of a boot is its shaft, the part above the foot: «botines de caña clara» are ankle boots with light-coloured uppers. Onduló el amarillo guardapolvo del Astrólogo al acercarse al desconocido. The Astrologer's yellow duster rippled as he approached the stranger. > «al» + reflexive infinitive: «Al acercarse» = 'on drawing near'. The «al» + infinitive construction marks the moment of an action; here the verb is reflexive («acercarse», 'to approach'), so the pronoun «se» rides on the end of the infinitive. –Erdosain, le voy a presentar a Arturo Haffner. "Erdosain, I'm going to introduce you to Arturo Haffner." En otra oportunidad, el fraudulento hubiérale dicho algo al hombre que el Astrólogo llamaba en su intimidad el Rufián Melancólico, quien, después de estrechar la mano de Erdosain, se cruzó de piernas en el sillón, apoyando la azulada mejilla en tres dedos de uñas centellantes. On another occasion the swindler would have said something to the man the Astrologer privately called the Melancholy Ruffian, who, after shaking Erdosain's hand, crossed his legs in the armchair, resting his bluish cheek on three fingers with glittering nails. > Enclitic pronoun on the pluperfect subjunctive: «Hubiérale dicho» = «le hubiera dicho» ('he would have said to him'), with the pronoun «le» attached to the end of the auxiliary — an old literary placement. The form is the pluperfect subjunctive (hubiera + dicho), which in this literary usage functions as a substitute for the conditional perfect (le habría dicho), here used for a hypothetical 'on another occasion'. Y Erdosain remiró aquel rostro casi redondo, con laxitud de paz, y en la que sólo denunciaba al hombre de acción de chispa burlona, movediza, en el fondo de los ojos, y ese movimiento de levantar una ceja más que otra al escuchar al que hablaba. And Erdosain looked again at that nearly round face, slack with peace, in which the man of action was betrayed only by a mocking, shifting spark deep in his eyes, and by that habit of raising one eyebrow higher than the other as he listened to whoever was speaking. > Prefix «re-» for 'again': «Remiró» = «re-» + «miró»: 'looked again, looked once more'. Spanish stacks «re-» on a verb to mean repeating or intensifying the action; «remirar» is to study something a second time, more closely. Erdosain distinguió a un costado, entre el saco y la camisa de seda que usaba el Rufián, el cabo negro de un revólver. Off to one side, between the jacket and the silk shirt the Ruffian wore, Erdosain made out the black butt of a revolver. Indudablemente, en la vida, los rostros significan poca cosa. Undoubtedly, in life, faces mean very little. Luego el Rufián volvió nuevamente la cabeza hacia un mapa de los Estados Unidos de la América del Norte, al cual se dirigió al Astrólogo recogiendo un puntero. Then the Ruffian turned his head once more toward a map of the United States of North America, toward which he addressed the Astrologer, picking up a pointer. Y ya detenido, con el brazo amarillo cortando el azul mar del Caribe, exclamó: And, halted now, his yellow arm cutting across the blue Caribbean Sea, he exclaimed: –El Ku–Klux–Klan tenía sólo en Chicago 150 mil adherentes... "The Ku Klux Klan had a hundred and fifty thousand members in Chicago alone..." En Missouri, 100.000 adherentes. "In Missouri, a hundred thousand members." Se dice que en Arkansas hay más de 200 «cavernas». "They say that in Arkansas there are more than two hundred "caverns"." > Impersonal «se»: «Se dice que…» = 'it is said that / they say that'. The impersonal «se» reports a claim without naming a source — the natural Spanish equivalent of English 'one says' or 'people say'. En Little Rock, el Imperio Invisible afirma que todos los pastores protestantes están adheridos a la hermandad. "In Little Rock the Invisible Empire claims that all the Protestant pastors are bound to the brotherhood." En Texas domina absolutamente en las ciudades de Dallas, Fort, Houston, Beaumont. "In Texas it dominates absolutely in the cities of Dallas, Fort, Houston, Beaumont." En Binghamtom, residencia de Smith, que era Gran Dragón de la Orden, se contaban 75.000 adeptos, y en Oklahoma éstos hicieron decretar por las Cámaras un «bill» suspendiéndolo a Walton, el gobernador, por perseguirlos, de tal modo que prácticamente el estado se encontraba hasta hace poco tiempo bajo el control del Klan. "In Binghamton, home of Smith, who was Grand Dragon of the Order, seventy-five thousand adepts were counted, and in Oklahoma they had the Chambers decree a "bill" suspending Walton, the governor, for persecuting them, so that practically until recently the state lay under the control of the Klan." > Causative «hacer» + infinitive: «Hicieron decretar» = 'they had [it] decreed / they made [someone] decree'. «Hacer» + an infinitive is the causative: you don't do the action yourself, you cause it to be done — here, they made the legislature pass the bill. El guardapolvo amarillo del Astrólogo parecía la vestimenta de un sacerdote de Buda. The Astrologer's yellow duster looked like the vestment of a priest of Buddha. Continuó el Astrólogo: The Astrologer went on: –¿Sabe usted que quemaron vivos a muchos hombres?... "Do you know that they burned many men alive?..." > Adjective agreeing with the object: «Quemaron vivos a muchos hombres» = 'they burned many men alive'. «Vivos» ('alive') agrees in gender and number with «hombres», not with the verb — Spanish lets a predicate adjective describe the object and inflect to match it. –Sí –asintió el Rufián–; leí los telegramas. "Yes," the Ruffian assented; "I read the cables." Erdosain examinaba ahora al Rufián Melancólico. Erdosain was now studying the Melancholy Ruffian. > Imperfect for an action in progress: «Examinaba» is imperfect: 'was examining', an action stretched out in the moment rather than a single completed one. Spanish narration uses the imperfect to hold a scene open while other things happen around it. Así lo llamaba el Astrólogo, porque el macró hacía muchos años había querido suicidarse. That was what the Astrologer called him, because many years earlier the pimp had tried to kill himself. > «macró» (lunfardo): «Macró» is Buenos Aires «lunfardo» slang for a pimp, from the French «maquereau». Arlt salts the novel with «lunfardo» — the porteño street argot — so the underworld speaks in its own register. Fue aquél un asunto oscuro. That had been a murky affair. Del día a la noche, Haffner, que hacía tiempo explotaba a prostitutas, se descerrajó un tiro en el pecho, junto al corazón. From one day to the next, Haffner, who had for some time been living off prostitutes, fired a shot into his chest, next to the heart. > «hacía» + imperfect for duration: «Hacía tiempo [que] explotaba» = 'he had for some time been exploiting'. «Hacía» + a time word with a verb in the imperfect renders English 'had been (doing) for a while' — an ongoing past action measured backward from the moment in the story. La contracción del órgano en el preciso instante de pasar el proyectil lo salvó de la muerte. The contraction of the organ at the precise instant the bullet passed through saved him from death. Luego, como es natural, continuó haciendo su vida, quizá con un poco de más prestigio por ese gesto que ninguno de sus camaradas de rapiña se explicaba. Afterward, naturally, he went on with his life, perhaps with a little more prestige for that gesture which none of his comrades in plunder could fathom. Continuó el Astrólogo: The Astrologer went on: –El Ku–Klux–Klan reunió millones... "The Ku Klux Klan gathered millions..." Se desperezó el Rufián y contestó: The Ruffian stretched himself and answered: > «desperezarse»: «Desperezarse» is the pronominal verb for stretching to shake off drowsiness — the long, cat-like stretch you give on waking. It always carries the reflexive «se»: «se desperezó» = 'he stretched himself'. –Sí, y al Dragón... ¡ese sí que es un Dragón!, se le procesa por estafador... "Yes, and the Dragon... now there's a Dragon for you!, he's being prosecuted as a swindler..." > Emphatic «sí que»: «Ese sí que es un Dragón» = 'that one really is a Dragon'. «Sí que» inserts emphasis — 'truly, indeed' — into an affirmation. The «se le procesa» that follows is an impersonal «se»: 'he is being prosecuted'. El Astrólogo se desentendió de la réplica: The Astrologer brushed the retort aside: > «desentenderse de»: «Desentenderse de» means to take no notice of, to ignore or wash one's hands of something. «Se desentendió de la réplica» = 'he disregarded the reply' — the «de» marks what he refused to engage with. –¿Qué es lo que se opone aquí en la Argentina para que exista también una sociedad secreta que alcance tanto poderío como aquélla allá? "What is there to stop a secret society here in Argentina from likewise reaching as much power as that one over there?" > «para que» + subjunctive: «Para que» ('so that, in order that') always takes the subjunctive: «exista» and «alcance» are present-subjunctive forms of «existir» and «alcanzar». The conjunction signals a hoped-for, not-yet-real purpose, which Spanish marks with the subjunctive. Y le hablo a usted con franqueza. "And I speak to you frankly." No sé si nuestra sociedad será bolchevique o fascista. "I don't know whether our society will be Bolshevik or Fascist." A veces me inclino a creer que lo mejor que se puede hacer es preparar una ensalada rusa que ni Dios la entienda. "At times I lean toward thinking that the best thing one can do is to whip up a Russian salad that not even God could make sense of." > Subjunctive in a relative clause: «Una ensalada rusa que ni Dios la entienda» uses the subjunctive «entienda» because the salad is hypothetical — the kind no one could understand. A relative clause describing something indefinite or non-existent takes the subjunctive, not the indicative. Creo que no se me puede pedir más sinceridad en este momento. "I believe no more sincerity than this can be asked of me at the moment." Vea que por ahora lo que yo pretendo hacer es un bloque donde se consoliden todas las posibles esperanzas humanas. "Understand that for now what I mean to make is a bloc where all the possible human hopes can be consolidated." Mi plan es dirigirnos con preferencia a los jóvenes bolcheviques, estudiantes y proletarios inteligentes. "My plan is to address ourselves above all to the young Bolsheviks, students and intelligent proletarians." Además, acogeremos a los que tienen un plan para reformar el universo, a los empleados que aspiran a ser millonarios, a los inventores fallados –no se dé por aludido, Erdosain–, a los cesantes de cualquier cosa, a los que acaban de sufrir un proceso y quedan en la calle sin saber para qué lado mirar... "Besides, we will take in those who have a plan to reform the universe, the clerks who dream of being millionaires, the failed inventors — don't take it personally, Erdosain — the laid-off of every kind, those who have just been through a trial and find themselves out on the street with no idea which way to look..." > Negative «usted» command + idiom: «Darse por aludido» means 'to take a remark as aimed at oneself'. «No se dé por aludido» is the negative formal command ('don't take it personally'); negative commands and the formal imperative both use the subjunctive form «dé». Erdosain recordó la misión que lo llevó a la casa del Astrólogo, y dijo: Erdosain remembered the errand that had brought him to the Astrologer's house, and said: –Tendría que hablar con usted... "I would need to speak with you..." > Conditional for softening: «Tendría que hablar» = 'I would have to / I would need to speak'. «Tener que» + infinitive states an obligation; putting «tener» in the conditional («tendría») makes the request tentative and polite, as English 'I would need to' does. –Un momentito... estoy en seguida con usted –y siguió–: El poder de esta sociedad no derivará de lo que los socios quieran dar, sino de lo que producirán los prostíbulos anexos a cada célula. "Just a moment... I'll be right with you," and he went on: "The power of this society will not derive from what the members care to give, but from what the brothels attached to each cell will produce." > «no… sino» — 'not… but rather': «No derivará de… sino de…» = 'will derive not from… but rather from…'. «Sino» corrects a negated statement, replacing what was just denied. Note «quieran dar» is subjunctive after «lo que», pointing to an indefinite, unspecified amount. Cuando yo hablo de una sociedad secreta, no me refiero al tipo clásico de sociedad, sino a una supermoderna, donde cada miembro y adepto tenga intereses, y recoja ganancias, porque sólo así es posible vincularlos más y más a los fines que sólo conocerán unos pocos. "When I speak of a secret society, I don't mean the classic kind of society, but a hyper-modern one, where every member and adept has a stake, and reaps profits, because only thus is it possible to bind them more and more to the ends only a few will ever know." > Subjunctive for a hoped-for kind: «Donde cada miembro… tenga intereses, y recoja ganancias» uses the subjunctive («tenga», «recoja») because the society is still a plan, not a fact. A relative clause describing a sought-after, not-yet-existing thing takes the subjunctive. Este es el aspecto comercial. "This is the commercial side." Los prostíbulos producirán ingresos como para mantener las crecientes ramificaciones de la sociedad. "The brothels will produce income enough to maintain the society's growing ramifications." En la cordillera estableceremos una colonia revolucionaria. "In the mountains we will establish a revolutionary colony." > «la cordillera»: For an Argentine «la cordillera», on its own, means the Andes — the mountain range along the western border. No further qualifier is needed; «en la cordillera» is simply 'up in the Andes'. Allí, los novicios seguirán cursos de táctica ácrata, propaganda revolucionaria, ingeniería militar, instalaciones industriales, de manera que estos asociados el día que salgan de la colonia puedan establecer en cualquier parte una rama de la sociedad... "There the novices will take courses in anarchist tactics, revolutionary propaganda, military engineering, industrial installations, so that these associates, on the day they leave the colony, can set up a branch of the society anywhere..." > «de manera que» + subjunctive of purpose: When «de manera que» expresses a goal ('so that they may'), it takes the subjunctive: «puedan» ('they can / may'). The same phrase with the indicative would state a result that simply happened; the subjunctive marks intended purpose. «Salgan» is likewise subjunctive after «el día que». ¿Me entiende? "Do you follow me?" La sociedad secreta tendrá su academia, la Academia para Revolucionarios. "The secret society will have its academy, the Academy for Revolutionaries." El reloj suspendido del muro dio cinco campanadas. The clock hung on the wall struck five. Erdosain comprendió que no podía perder más tiempo, y exclamó: Erdosain realized he could not lose any more time, and exclaimed: –Perdone que lo interrumpa. "Forgive me for interrupting you." > Subjunctive after an emotion verb: «Perdone que lo interrumpa» = 'forgive me for interrupting you'. After verbs of emotion or reaction like «perdonar», a «que»-clause goes into the subjunctive — «interrumpa», not «interrumpo». «Perdone» itself is the formal command. He venido para un asunto grave. "I have come about a serious matter." ¿Tiene usted seiscientos pesos? "Do you have six hundred pesos?" –El Astrólogo dejó su puntero y se cruzó de brazos: The Astrologer set down his pointer and crossed his arms: > «cruzarse de brazos»: «Cruzarse de brazos» literally 'to cross oneself of arms' = to fold one's arms. Spanish uses «de» where English would say 'with one's arms'; figuratively the same phrase can mean to stand by and do nothing. –¿Qué es lo que le pasa a usted? "What is the matter with you?" > «pasarle a alguien»: «¿Qué le pasa a usted?» = 'what's happening to you / what's wrong with you?'. «Pasar» here takes an indirect object: «le… a usted» both point to the person something is happening to. The doubled pronoun is normal Spanish, not redundancy. –Si mañana no repongo seiscientos pesos en la Azucarera, me pondrán preso. "If by tomorrow I don't put back six hundred pesos at the Sugar Company, they'll throw me in jail." > Real conditional: present + future: A real, likely condition pairs the present indicative in the «si»-clause («no repongo», 'I don't put back') with the future in the main clause («pondrán», 'they will put'). Spanish never uses the future right after «si»; the present carries it. Los dos hombres miraron curiosamente a Erdosain. The two men looked at Erdosain curiously. Debía sufrir mucho para haber lanzado así sus pedido. He must have been suffering greatly to have flung out his request like that. Erdosain continuó: Erdosain went on: –Es preciso que usted me ayude. "It is essential that you help me." > Impersonal expression + subjunctive: «Es preciso que usted me ayude» = 'it is necessary that you help me'. Impersonal expressions of necessity or judgment («es preciso que», «es necesario que») trigger the subjunctive in the «que»-clause: «ayude», not «ayuda». He defraudado en unos cuantos meses seiscientos pesos. "Over the course of a few months I have embezzled six hundred pesos." Me denunciaron en un anónimo. "They denounced me in an anonymous letter." Si no repongo el dinero mañana, me pondrán preso. "If I don't put the money back tomorrow, they'll throw me in jail." –¿Y cómo es que usted robo ese dinero?... "And how is it that you stole that money?..." > «¿cómo es que…?»: «¿Cómo es que usted robó ese dinero?» = 'how is it that you stole that money?'. «¿Cómo es que…?» asks not just 'how' but 'how did it come about that' — pressing for the circumstances. (The source prints «robo» for «robó».) –Así, despacio... "Like this, slowly..." El Astrólogo se acariciaba la barba preocupado. The Astrologer was stroking his beard, troubled. –¿Cómo ha ocurrido eso? "How did that happen?" Erdosain tuvo que explicarse nuevamente. Erdosain had to explain himself again. > Preterite of «tener que»: «Tuvo que explicarse» = 'he had to explain himself'. In the preterite, «tener que» + infinitive marks an obligation that was actually carried out at one point — 'he had to (and did)'. The imperfect «tenía que» would leave it open whether he did. Los comerciantes, al recibir la mercadería, firmaban un vale en el que reconocían deber el importe de lo adquirido. The merchants, on receiving the goods, would sign a voucher in which they acknowledged owing the value of what they had bought. > «vale»: A «vale» is an IOU or promissory voucher — a signed slip acknowledging a debt. The whole embezzlement turns on these slips: who acknowledges owing what, and which receipts go uncontrolled. Erdosain, en compañía de otros dos cobradores, recibía cada fin de mes los vales que tenía que hacer efectivos durante los treinta días restantes. Erdosain, along with two other collectors, received at each month's end the vouchers he had to make good over the remaining thirty days. > «hacer efectivo»: «Hacer efectivo» a voucher or check means to cash it, to collect the money on it. «Los vales que tenía que hacer efectivos» = 'the vouchers he had to collect on'; «efectivo» as a noun also means 'cash'. Los recibos que éstos decían no haber cobrado quedaban en su poder hasta que los comerciantes se resolvían a cancelar la deuda. The receipts these men claimed not to have collected stayed in their hands until the merchants resolved to settle the debt. > Perfect infinitive after a reporting verb: «Decían no haber cobrado» = 'they said [they had] not collected'. When the subject of the report and the embedded verb are the same, Spanish prefers an infinitive — here the perfect infinitive «haber cobrado» ('to have collected') — rather than a full «que»-clause. Y Erdosain continuó: And Erdosain went on: –Fíjense que la negligencia del cajero era tal, que nunca controló los vales que nosotros decíamos no haber cobrado, de manera que a una cuenta hecha efectiva y malversada le dábamos entrada en la plantilla de cobranza con el dinero que provenía de una cuenta que cobrábamos después. "Notice that the cashier's negligence was such that he never checked the vouchers we claimed not to have collected, so that an account already cashed and embezzled we would enter on the collection sheet with the money coming from an account we collected later." > Plural «ustedes» command + reflexive: «Fíjense» is the formal plural («ustedes») imperative of «fijarse» ('to take notice'), with the reflexive «se» attached: 'notice, you all'. Erdosain is now addressing both men at once, so he switches from «usted» to the plural form. ¿Se dan cuenta? "Do you see?" > «darse cuenta (de)»: «Darse cuenta» means 'to realize, to grasp'. «¿Se dan cuenta?» = 'do you realize?'. With an object it takes «de»: «darse cuenta de algo». Don't confuse it with «dar cuenta de» ('to account for') — the reflexive «se» changes the meaning. Erdosain era el vértice de aquel triángulo que formaban los tres hombres sentados. Erdosain was the apex of that triangle the three seated men formed. El Rufián Melancólico y el Astrólogo se miraban de vez en cuando. The Melancholy Ruffian and the Astrologer glanced at each other from time to time. > Reciprocal «se»: «Se miraban» here is reciprocal: 'they looked at each other'. With a plural subject the pronoun «se» can mean the people act on one another, not on themselves — context («el uno al otro») tells the two apart. Haffner sacudía la ceniza de su cigarrillo, y luego, con una ceja más levantada que la otra, continuaba examinando de pies a cabeza a Erdosain. Haffner kept tapping the ash from his cigarette, and then, with one eyebrow raised higher than the other, went on examining Erdosain from head to foot. Al fin terminó por hacerle esta extraña pregunta: At last he ended by putting this strange question to him: > «terminar por» + infinitive: «Terminar por» + infinitive means 'to end up (doing)', the action one finally comes to: «terminó por hacerle… pregunta» = 'he ended up asking him… question'. Compare «terminar de» + infinitive, which means 'to finish doing'. –¿Y encontraba alguna satisfacción en robar?... "And did you find any satisfaction in stealing?..." –No, ninguna... "No, none..." –Y entonces, ¿cómo anda con los botines rotos?... "Then how is it you go around with your boots worn through?..." > «botines»: «Botines» are ankle boots or low boots — everyday footwear, not the heavy work boot English 'booties' might suggest. Haffner keeps needling Erdosain about his broken «botines»: if he stole, why is he so shabby? –Es que ganaba muy poco. "The thing is, I earned very little." > «es que» — softening an explanation: «Es que…» literally 'it's that…', is how Spanish opens an excuse or explanation: 'the thing is…'. «Es que ganaba muy poco» = 'the thing is, I was earning very little'. It cushions the reason that follows. –Pero ¿y lo que robaba? "But what about what you were stealing?" –Nunca se me ocurrió comprarme botines con esa plata. "It never occurred to me to buy myself boots with that money." > «ocurrírsele a alguien»: «Se me ocurrió» = 'it occurred to me'. The idea is the grammatical subject, and the dative «me» marks the person it strikes — an involuntary-event construction, like «se me olvidó» ('I forgot'). «Plata» here is the porteño word for 'money'. Y era cierto. And it was true. El placer que experimentó en un principio de disponer impunemente de lo que no le pertenecía se evaporó pronto. The pleasure he had felt at first of disposing with impunity of what did not belong to him soon evaporated. > Preterite for completed events: Both «experimentó» ('he felt') and «se evaporó» ('it evaporated') are preterite: bounded, finished events. The preterite drives the narrative forward — first he felt the pleasure, then it vanished — whereas the imperfect would only have described an ongoing state. Erdosain descubrió un día en él la inquietud que hace ver los cielos soleados como ennegrecidos de un hollín que sólo es visible para el alma que está triste. One day Erdosain discovered in himself the unease that makes sunlit skies look blackened with a soot visible only to the soul that is sad. Cuando comprobó que debía cuatrocientos pesos, el sobresalto lo volcó hacia la locura. When he confirmed that he owed four hundred pesos, the shock tipped him toward madness. Entonces gastó el dinero en una forma estúpida, frenética. Then he spent the money in a stupid, frantic way. Compró golosinas, que nunca le apetecieron, almorzó cangrejos, sopas de tortuga y fritadas de ranas, en restaurantes donde el derecho de sentarse junto a personas bien vestidas es costosísimo, bebió licores caros y vinos insulsos para su paladar sin sensibilidad, y sin embargo carecía de las cosas más necesarias para el mediocre vivir, como ropa interior, zapatos, corbatas... He bought sweets, which he never even fancied, lunched on crabs, turtle soups and fried frogs in restaurants where the right to sit beside well-dressed people is ruinously expensive, drank costly liqueurs and wines that were insipid to his insensitive palate, and yet he lacked the most necessary things for a modest life, like underwear, shoes, neckties... > «apetecer» like «gustar»: «Apetecer» ('to appeal to, to feel like') works like «gustar»: the thing desired is the subject and the person takes the dative «le». «Golosinas que nunca le apetecieron» = 'sweets that never appealed to him'. Note «carecía de» ('he lacked') always pairs with «de». Daba abundantes limosnas y solía dejar a los mozos que le servían cuantiosas propinas, todo ello para acabar con los rastros de ese dinero robado que llevaba en su bolsillo y que al otro día podía sustraer impunemente. He gave lavish alms and would leave the waiters who served him enormous tips, all of it to be rid of the traces of that stolen money he carried in his pocket and which the next day he could pilfer again with impunity. > «soler» + infinitive: «Soler» + infinitive expresses a customary action: «solía dejar» = 'he used to leave, he would habitually leave'. «Soler» appears mostly in the present and imperfect; in the imperfect it names a repeated past habit. –¿De modo que no se le ocurrió comprar botines? –insistió Haffner. "So it never occurred to you to buy boots?" Haffner insisted. > «de modo que» drawing a conclusion: «¿De modo que…?» = 'so then…?', drawing an inference from what was just said. Used as a question it presses the other person to confirm the conclusion — here Haffner circling back, incredulous, to the unbought boots. –Realmente, ahora que usted me lo hace observar, me parece curioso a mí también, pero la verdad es que nunca pensé que con plata robada se pudieran comprar esas cosas. "Truly, now that you make me notice it, it strikes me as odd too, but the truth is I never thought that with stolen money one could buy such things." > Past subjunctive after a negated thought: «Nunca pensé que… se pudieran comprar» = 'I never thought one could buy'. A negated mental verb in the past («nunca pensé que») throws the «que»-clause into the imperfect subjunctive — «pudieran», not «podían» — because the buying is presented as doubtful, never realized. –Y entonces, ¿en qué gastaba el dinero? "Then what were you spending the money on?" –Doscientos pesos le di a una familia amiga, los Espila, para comprar un acumulador e instalar un pequeño laboratorio de galvanoplastia, para fabricar la rosa de cobre, que es... "Two hundred pesos I gave to a family I'm friends with, the Espilas, to buy a battery and set up a little electroplating laboratory, to make the copper rose, which is..." > «e» instead of «y»: «Un acumulador e instalar» uses «e» rather than «y» for 'and'. Spanish swaps «y» for «e» before a word beginning with the «i» sound («instalar»), to avoid two i-sounds colliding. Likewise «o» becomes «u» before an «o» sound. –La conozco ya... "I know it already..." –Sí, ya le hablé de eso –repuso el Astrólogo. "Yes, I already told you about that," the Astrologer rejoined. –¿Y los otros cuatrocientos? "And the other four hundred?" –No sé... Los he gastado de una manera absurda... "I don't know... I've spent them in an absurd way..." –Y ahora, ¿qué piensa hacer?... "And now, what do you mean to do?..." –No sé. "I don't know." –¿No conoce a nadie que le pueda facilitar?... "You don't know anyone who could lend it to you?..." > Subjunctive after a negated antecedent: «¿No conoce a nadie que le pueda facilitar?» uses the subjunctive «pueda» because the antecedent «nadie» is negative and unreal — there may be no such person. A relative clause hanging off «nadie», «nada», or «alguien» you're searching for takes the subjunctive. –No, nadie. "No, no one." Le pedí a un pariente de mi mujer, Barsut, hace diez días. "I asked a relative of my wife's, Barsut, ten days ago." > «hace» + time = 'ago': «Hace diez días» = 'ten days ago'. «Hacer» in the third person plus a stretch of time means 'ago' when the main verb is in the past («pedí», 'I asked'). The same «hace + time» with a present verb instead means 'for (so long)'. Me dijo que no podía... "He told me he couldn't..." –¿Lo meterán preso, entonces? "They'll jail you, then?" –Es claro... "Of course..." El Astrólogo se volvió al macró y dijo: The Astrologer turned to the pimp and said: –Usted ya sabe que cuento con mil pesos. "You already know I count on a thousand pesos." > «contar con»: «Contar con» means 'to count on, to have at one's disposal'. «Cuento con mil pesos» = 'I have a thousand pesos to rely on'. The «con» is fixed; without it, «contar» just means 'to count' or 'to tell'. Esa es la base de todos mis proyectos. "That is the foundation of all my projects." Yo a usted, Erdosain, lo único que puedo darle son trescientos pesos. "To you, Erdosain, the only thing I can give is three hundred pesos." También, mi amigo, ¡qué cosas hace!... "And besides, my friend, the things you get up to!..." De pronto Erdosain se olvidó de Haffner y exclamó: Suddenly Erdosain forgot about Haffner and exclaimed: > «olvidarse de»: «Olvidarse de» means 'to forget about'. The pronominal «olvidarse» needs «de» before its object: «se olvidó de Haffner» = 'he forgot about Haffner'. Plain «olvidar» can take a direct object instead («olvidó a Haffner»), but the «se… de» form is more common in speech. –Es que es la angustia, ¿sabe?... "It's the anguish, you understand?..." Esa «jodida» angustia la que lo arrastra... "That "damned" anguish is what drags a man along..." > «jodido/a»: «Jodido/a» is a coarse, very common River Plate intensifier — 'damned, lousy, bloody'. From the verb «joder» (vulgar, 'to mess up / to screw'). The «guillemets» in the source mark it as low, spoken register breaking into the narration. –¿Cómo es eso? –interrumpió el Rufián. "How do you mean?" the Ruffian interrupted. –Dije que es la angustia. "I said it's the anguish." Uno roba, hace macanas porque está angustiado. "A man steals, does foolish things because he's in anguish." > «macana» (lunfardo): A «macana» in River Plate slang is a blunder, a foolish or harmful thing; «hacer macanas» = 'to make a mess of things, to do stupid things'. «Uno» here is the impersonal 'one / a man', generalizing Erdosain's own case. Usted camina por las calles con el sol amarillo, que parece un sol de peste... "You walk through the streets under the yellow sun, which looks like a sun of plague..." Claro. "Of course." Usted tiene que haber pasado por esas situaciones. "You must have been through such situations." > «tener que» + perfect infinitive: «Tiene que haber pasado» = 'you must have gone through'. «Tener que» followed by the perfect infinitive «haber pasado» expresses near-certainty about the past — a strong inference, 'surely you have'. (Compare «deber de» for a softer guess.) Llevar cinco mil pesos en la cartera y estar triste. "To carry five thousand pesos in your wallet and be sad." Y de pronto una idea chiquita le sugiere el robo. "And suddenly a tiny idea suggests the theft to you." > Diminutive «-ita»: «Chiquita» is «chica» ('small') with the diminutive «-ita», doubling down on smallness — 'tiny, teeny'. River Plate Spanish loves the diminutive for nuance and warmth, not just literal size; here it makes the tempting idea sound innocent. Esa noche no puede dormir de alegría. "That night you can't sleep for joy." Al otro día hace temblando la prueba y sale tan bien que no queda otro remedio que seguir... lo mismo que cuando usted se intentó matar. "The next day, trembling, you make the attempt, and it comes off so well that there's no choice but to go on... just as when you tried to kill yourself." > «no queda otro remedio que»: «No queda otro remedio que seguir» = 'there's no choice / no recourse but to go on'. The set phrase «no quedar otro remedio que» + infinitive expresses being left with only one option. «Se intentó matar» is reflexive: 'you tried to kill yourself'. Al pronunciar estas palabras, Haffner se incorporó sobre el sillón y se tomó con las manos las rodillas. As he spoke these words, Haffner sat up in the armchair and took hold of his knees with his hands. > Reflexive with a body part: «Se tomó… las rodillas» = 'he took hold of his (own) knees'. The reflexive «se» shows the knees belong to the subject, so Spanish uses the article «las» where English says 'his'. Note: it is Erdosain speaking, but «se incorporó» refers to Haffner reacting. El Astrólogo hubiera querido imponer silencio a Erdosain. The Astrologer would have liked to impose silence on Erdosain. Era imposible, y éste continuó: It was impossible, and the latter went on: > «éste» = 'the latter': The demonstrative «éste» ('this one') points to the most recently mentioned person — here Erdosain — so it renders as 'the latter'. Spanish uses «éste/aquél» to mean 'the latter / the former'; the accent (older usage) marks it as a pronoun, not the adjective «este». –Sí, como cuando usted se intentó matar. "Yes, like when you tried to kill yourself." Yo me lo he imaginado muchas veces. "I have imagined it many times." Se había aburrido de ser cafishio. "You had grown sick of being a pimp." > «cafishio» (lunfardo): «Cafishio» (also «cafisho», «canfinflero») is another «lunfardo» word for a pimp — Erdosain pointedly piles up the underworld synonyms («macró», «rufián», «cafishio») for Haffner's trade. «Aburrirse de» = 'to grow tired/sick of'. ¡ Ah, si supiera el interés que tenía en conocerlo! "Ah, if you only knew the interest I had in meeting you!" > «si» + imperfect subjunctive (wish): «¡Si supiera…!» = 'if you only knew…!'. An exclamation opening with «si» + the imperfect subjunctive («supiera», from «saber») voices a wish or a contrary-to-fact regret. The unspoken main clause is left hanging for effect. Me decía: Este debe ser un macró extraño. "I would say to myself: This must be a strange sort of pimp." Claro está que de cien mil individuos que como usted viven de las mujeres se encuentra uno de su forma de ser. "Of course, of a hundred thousand individuals who, like you, live off women, you find one of your cast of mind." Usted me preguntó si yo sentía placer en robar. "You asked me whether I felt pleasure in stealing." Y usted, ¿siente placer en ser cafishio? "And you, do you feel pleasure in being a pimp?" Dígame: ¿siente placer?... "Tell me: do you feel pleasure?..." > «decir» command + pronoun: «Dígame» = «diga» (formal command of «decir», 'tell') + «me»: 'tell me'. Note the irregular command stem «dig-» and the accent that appears once the pronoun attaches, to keep the original stress. Pero, ¡qué diablo!, yo no he venido aquí para dar explicaciones, ¿saben? "But, what the devil!, I haven't come here to give explanations, you understand?" Lo que necesito es plata, no palabras. "What I need is money, not words." Erdosain se había levantado, y ahora apretaba, temblando, entre sus dedos, el ala del sombrero. Erdosain had risen, and now, trembling, was clutching the brim of his hat between his fingers. > Pluperfect for a prior action: «Se había levantado» is the pluperfect ('had risen'): an action finished before another past moment. Paired with the imperfect «apretaba» ('was clutching'), it layers the scene — he had already stood up, and was now gripping the hat. Miraba indignado al Astrólogo, cuya galera cubría el estado de Kansas en el mapa, y al Rufián, que se introdujo las manos entre el cinto y el pantalón. He looked indignantly at the Astrologer, whose top hat covered the state of Kansas on the map, and at the Ruffian, who slipped his hands between his belt and his trousers. > «cuyo/a» = 'whose': «Cuya galera» = 'whose top hat'. The relative «cuyo/a» means 'whose' and agrees with the thing possessed, not the possessor: «galera» is feminine, so «cuya». It links the Astrologer to his hat in a single clause. Este volvió a acomodarse en su sillón forrado de terciopelo verde, apoyó la mejilla en su mano regordeta, y sonriendo burlón, dijo calmosamente: The latter settled himself again in his green-velvet-upholstered armchair, propped his cheek on his plump hand, and, smiling mockingly, said calmly: > «volver a» + infinitive: «Volver a» + infinitive means 'to (do) again': «volvió a acomodarse» = 'he settled himself again'. It is the standard Spanish way to say 'again', rather than adding an adverb — literally 'he returned to settling himself'. –Siéntese, amigo, yo le voy a dar los seiscientos pesos. "Sit down, friend, I'm going to give you the six hundred pesos." > Reflexive «usted» command: «Siéntese» = «siente» (formal command of «sentarse», 'to sit') + «se»: 'sit down'. The reflexive pronoun attaches to the end of an affirmative command, and an accent appears to keep the stress on «sién-». Los brazos de Erdosain se encogieron. Erdosain's arms contracted. Luego, sin moverse, lo miró largamente al Rufián. Then, without moving, he looked at the Ruffian for a long while. > Redundant object pronoun: «Lo miró… al Rufián» doubles the object: the pronoun «lo» ('him') and the full noun «al Rufián» both name the same person. This 'clitic doubling' is normal, especially marked River Plate usage; the pronoun anticipates the noun for emphasis. Este, insistió, recalcando las palabras. The latter insisted, stressing his words. –Siéntese con confianza, amigo. "Sit down and make yourself easy, friend." Yo le voy a dar los seiscientos pesos. "I'm going to give you the six hundred pesos." Para eso estamos los hombres. "That's what men are for." Erdosain no supo qué decir. Erdosain didn't know what to say. > Preterite of «saber» = 'found out / couldn't': In the preterite, «saber» shifts meaning: «supo» usually means 'he found out, he learned', and «no supo qué decir» = 'he didn't manage to know what to say', i.e. 'he was at a loss for words'. The imperfect «sabía» would mean the steady state 'he knew'. La misma tristeza que estalló en él cuando el hombre de la cabeza de jabalí le dijo en el escritorio que podía irse, la misma tristeza le enervaba ahora. The same sadness that burst in him when the man with the boar's head told him in the office he could go, that same sadness was unnerving him now. ¡Entonces, la vida no era tan mala! So then, life was not so bad! –Hagamos esto –dijo el Astrólogo–. "Let's do this," said the Astrologer. > «nosotros» command (let's): «Hagamos» is the first-person-plural imperative of «hacer»: 'let's do'. Spanish forms the 'let's…' command with the present-subjunctive «nosotros» ending; «hagamos esto» = 'let's do this'. Yo le doy los trescientos pesos y usted otros trescientos. "I'll give him the three hundred pesos and you another three hundred." –No –dijo Haffner–. "No," said Haffner. Usted necesita esa plata. "You need that money." Yo, no. "I don't." Para eso tengo tres mujeres.– Y dirigiéndose a Erdosain, continuó–: ¿Ha visto, amigo, cómo se arreglan las cosas? "That's what I have three women for." And turning to Erdosain, he went on: "You see, friend, how things sort themselves out?" > «arreglarse» — things sorting themselves: «Cómo se arreglan las cosas» = 'how things work themselves out'. The pronominal «arreglarse» lets the situation resolve on its own, with no agent named — the events 'arrange themselves'. «Dirigiéndose a» is the gerund of «dirigirse a» ('turning to / addressing'). ¿Está satisfecho? "Are you satisfied?" Hablaba con socarrona calmosidad, con cierta cachaza de hombre de campo que siempre sabe que la experiencia que tiene de la naturaleza le permitirá encontrar una salida en la situación más complicada. He spoke with a sly unhurriedness, with a certain country-man's phlegm of one who always knows that the experience he has of nature will let him find a way out of the most tangled situation. > «cachaza»: «Cachaza» is unflappable slowness, phlegm, cool composure — the calm of someone who refuses to be rushed. Paired with «socarrona» ('sly, mocking'), it paints Haffner's whole manner: lazy, ironic, untroubled. Y Erdosain recién ahora percibió el candente perfume de las rosas y el gotear de la canilla en el barril que por la ventana entreabierta se escuchaba. And only now did Erdosain notice the burning scent of the roses and the dripping of the tap into the barrel that could be heard through the half-open window. > «recién» (River Plate): In River Plate Spanish «recién» means 'only just, not until now': «recién ahora percibió» = 'only now did he notice'. Elsewhere «recién» mostly precedes a participle ('recién llegado'); here it stands before an adverb of time, a regional usage. Afuera ondulaban los caminos, iluminados por el sol, y el peso de los pájaros doblaban las ramas de los granados, consteladas de asteriscos escarlatas. Outside the roads rippled, lit by the sun, and the weight of the birds bent the branches of the pomegranates, constellated with scarlet asterisks. Nuevamente en los ojos del Rufián brilló la chispa de luz maliciosa. Once again the spark of malicious light gleamed in the Ruffian's eyes. Con una jeta más levantada que la otra aguardaba la explosión de júbilo de Erdosain, mas como ésta no llegó, dijo: With one side of his face raised higher than the other he waited for Erdosain's burst of jubilation, but since it did not come, he said: > «jeta»: «Jeta» is a colloquial, somewhat coarse word for the face or mug, and by extension the lips or jowls — so «una jeta más levantada que la otra» is one side of the mouth cocked higher than the other, Haffner's lopsided, mocking face. «Mas» (no accent) again means 'but'. –¿Hace mucho que usted vive de esa manera?... "Have you been living that way for long?..." > «hace… que» + present = 'for': «¿Hace mucho que usted vive…?» = 'have you been living for a long time?'. «Hace» + a time span + «que» + a present-tense verb expresses an action still going on: the present «vive» where English needs the perfect 'have been living'. –Sí, mucho. "Yes, a long time." –¿Se acuerda usted que yo le dije una vez que de esa forma, aunque usted no me confiaba nada, no se puede vivir? –objetó el Astrólogo. "Do you remember I told you once that you can't live that way, even though you confided nothing to me?" the Astrologer objected. > «acordarse (de)»: «Acordarse» means 'to remember' and normally takes «de» before its object («se acuerda de algo»). Before a «que»-clause the «de» is often dropped in speech, as here. Don't confuse it with «acordar» ('to agree') — the reflexive «se» is what makes it 'remember'. –Sí, pero no quería hablar del asunto. "Yes, but I didn't want to talk about the matter." No sé... esas cosas que uno no puede explicarse por qué las calla a las personas con quienes más confianza tiene. "I don't know... those things one can't explain to oneself why one keeps silent about, from the very people one trusts most." > «callar» as 'to keep silent about': Used transitively, «callar» means 'to keep (something) quiet, to not tell it': «las calla a las personas» = 'he keeps them [these things] from people'. The pronominal «callarse» instead means 'to fall silent / shut up'. –¿Cuándo va usted a reponer ese dinero? "When are you going to put that money back?" –Mañana. "Tomorrow." –Bueno, entonces le voy a hacer un cheque ahora. "Good, then I'll write you a check now." Lo tendrá que cobrar mañana. "You'll have to cash it tomorrow." Haffner se dirigió al escritorio. Haffner went over to the desk. Sacó del bolsillo la libreta de cheques y escribió firmemente la suma, firmando después. He took the checkbook from his pocket and wrote out the sum firmly, signing afterward. > Gerund for a following action: «Firmando después» = 'signing afterward'. Strictly the gerund marks simultaneous action, but Spanish often uses it loosely for an action that comes right after — here the sequence write-then-sign. «Firmemente» ('firmly') is the unrelated adverb; don't confuse it with «firmando» ('signing'). Erdosain pasó por ese viaje sin movimiento de un minuto con la inconsciencia del que se encuentra frente a la perspectiva de un sueño, y que luego más tarde se recuerda, para afirmar que en determinadas circunstancias la vida está empapada de un fatalismo inteligente. Erdosain passed through that motionless one-minute journey with the unawareness of someone faced with the prospect of a dream, one later remembered to affirm that under certain circumstances life is steeped in an intelligent fatalism. –Sírvase, amigo. "Here you are, friend." > «servirse» — 'help yourself': «Sírvase» is the formal command of «servirse» ('to help oneself, to be so good as to'): an idiomatic 'here you are / please take it'. With an infinitive («sírvase pasar») it politely means 'kindly do…'. Erdosain recogió el cheque, y sin leerlo lo dobló en cuatro pliegos, guardándolo en su bolsillo. Erdosain took up the check, and without reading it folded it in four, tucking it away in his pocket. Todo había ocurrido en un minuto. It had all happened in a minute. El suceso era más absurdo que una novela, a pesar de ser él un hombre de carne y hueso. The event was more absurd than a novel, despite his being a man of flesh and blood. > «a pesar de» + infinitive: «A pesar de ser él un hombre…» = 'despite his being a man…'. «A pesar de» ('in spite of') takes a noun or, as here, an infinitive; «ser él» tucks the subject «él» right after the infinitive, a literary order for 'his being'. Y no sabía qué decir. And he did not know what to say. Ya no los debía, y el prodigio lo había obrado un solo gesto del Rufián. He no longer owed them, and the marvel had been worked by a single gesture of the Ruffian's. > Object before a postponed subject: «El prodigio lo había obrado un solo gesto» reads, in order, 'the marvel — a single gesture had worked it'. The object «el prodigio» is fronted, the pronoun «lo» echoes it, and the real subject «un solo gesto» comes last — a marked order for emphasis. Este acontecimiento era un imposible de acuerdo con la lógica que rige los procedimientos corrientes, y sin embargo nada había ocurrido. This occurrence was an impossibility according to the logic that governs ordinary dealings, and yet nothing had happened. Quería decir algo. He wanted to say something. Nuevamente examinó la catadura del hombre apoltronado en el sillón de terciopelo raído. Again he examined the look of the man sprawled in the threadbare velvet armchair. > «catadura»: «Catadura» means a person's look or aspect, usually with a faintly unsavory ring — 'mug, appearance, cast of features'. «Apoltronado» (from «poltrona», 'easy chair') = 'lounging, slumped lazily'. Ahora el revólver estaba de relieve bajo la tela gris del saco, y Haffner, displicente, apoyaba la azulada mejilla en sus tres dedos de uñas centelleantes. Now the revolver stood out under the gray cloth of his jacket, and Haffner, indifferent, propped his bluish cheek on his three fingers with glittering nails. > «saco»: In River Plate Spanish a «saco» is a suit jacket or sport coat (Spain would say «chaqueta» or «americana»). The repeated «azulada mejilla» and «tres dedos» echo Haffner's first appearance, framing the chapter. Deseaba darle las gracias al Rufián, pero no sabía con qué palabras hacerlo. He wanted to thank the Ruffian, but did not know with what words to do it. Este comprendió, y, dirigiéndose al Astrólogo, que se había sentado en un taburete junto al escritorio, dijo: The latter understood, and, turning to the Astrologer, who had sat down on a stool beside the desk, said: –¿De manera que una de las bases de su sociedad será la obediencia?... "So one of the foundations of your society will be obedience?..." –Y el industrialismo. "And industrialism." Hace falta oro para atrapar la conciencia de los hombres. "Gold is needed to trap the conscience of men." > «hacer falta» = 'to be needed': «Hace falta oro» = 'gold is needed / one needs gold'. «Hacer falta» means 'to be necessary, to be lacking'; the thing needed is its subject. It works much like «gustar» — what is needed governs the verb's number («hacen falta brazos», 'hands are needed'). Así como hubo el misticismo religioso y el caballeresco, hay que crear misticismo industrial. "Just as there was religious and chivalric mysticism, an industrial mysticism must be created." > «así como» — 'just as': «Así como hubo… hay que crear…» = 'just as there was…, one must create…'. «Así como» sets up a parallel ('in the same way that'). «Hubo» is the preterite of «haber» used impersonally, 'there was'. Hacerle ver a un hombre que es tan bello ser jefe de un alto horno como hermoso antes descubrir un continente. "To make a man see that it is as beautiful to head a blast furnace as it once was to discover a continent." > «tan… como» — equal comparison: «Tan bello… como hermoso…» = 'as beautiful… as handsome…'. «Tan + adjective + como» makes a comparison of equality between two things. «Hacerle ver» is the causative «hacer» again: 'to make him see'. Mi político, mi alumno político en la sociedad será un hombre que pretenderá conquistar la felicidad mediante la industria. "My politician, my political pupil in the society, will be a man who will seek to conquer happiness through industry." Este revolucionario sabrá hablar tan bien de un sistema de estampado de tejidos como de la desmagnetización de un acero. "This revolutionary will know how to speak as well of a system for printing fabrics as of the demagnetization of a steel." Por eso lo estimé a Erdosain en cuanto lo conocí. "That's why I valued Erdosain the moment I met him." > «en cuanto» + «conocer» in the preterite: «En cuanto» means 'as soon as'. «Lo conocí» is the preterite of «conocer», which in that tense means 'I met (for the first time)', not 'I knew'. So «en cuanto lo conocí» = 'the moment I first met him'. Tenía mi misma preocupación. "He had the very same concern as I." Usted recuerda cuántas veces hablamos de la coincidencia de nuestras miras. "You remember how many times we spoke of the coincidence of our views." Crear un hombre soberbio, hermoso, inexorable, que domina las multitudes y les muestra un porvenir basado en la ciencia. "To create a superb, beautiful, inexorable man who masters the multitudes and shows them a future grounded in science." ¿Cómo es posible de otro modo una revolución social? "How is a social revolution possible any other way?" El jefe de hoy ha de ser un hombre que lo sepa todo. "The leader of today must be a man who knows everything." > «haber de» + infinitive: «Ha de ser» = 'is to be / must be'. «Haber de» + infinitive expresses obligation or expectation, a touch more formal than «tener que». The relative clause «que lo sepa todo» uses the subjunctive «sepa» because such a man is still an ideal, not a given. Nosotros crearemos ese príncipe de sapiencia. "We will create that prince of wisdom." La sociedad se encargará de confeccionar su leyenda y extenderla. "The society will take charge of fashioning his legend and spreading it." > «encargarse de»: «Encargarse de» means 'to take charge of, to see to' something. «La sociedad se encargará de…» = 'the society will see to…'. The «de» governs an infinitive here («confeccionar», 'to fashion'). Un Ford o un Edison tienen mil probabilidades más de provocar una revolución que un político. "A Ford or an Edison have a thousand times more chance of provoking a revolution than a politician." ¿Usted cree que las futuras dictaduras serán militares? "Do you believe the dictatorships to come will be military?" No, señor. "No, sir." El militar no vale nada junto al industrial. "The soldier is worth nothing beside the industrialist." Puede ser instrumento de él, nada más. "He can be the industrialist's instrument, nothing more." Eso es todo. "That's all." Los futuros dictadores serán reyes del petróleo, del acero, del trigo. "The dictators of the future will be kings of oil, of steel, of wheat." Nosotros, con nuestra sociedad, prepararemos ese ambiente. "We, with our society, will prepare that climate." Familiarizaremos a la gente con nuestras teorías. "We will familiarize people with our theories." Por eso hace falta un estudio detenido de propaganda. "That's why a careful study of propaganda is needed." Aprovechar los estudiantes y las estudiantas. "To make use of the students, men and women alike." > «estudiantas»: «Estudiante» is normally common-gender ('el/la estudiante'). The Astrologer coins a feminine «estudiantas» to single out the women students — a non-standard form that marks his speech, and the period's, rather than correct usage. Embellecer la ciencia, acercarla de tal modo a los hombres que de pronto... "To make science beautiful, to bring it so close to men that suddenly..." –Yo me voy dijo Erdosain. "I'm leaving," said Erdosain. > «irse» = to leave: «Me voy» = 'I'm leaving / off I go'. The pronominal «irse» stresses departure from a place, where plain «ir» just means 'to go (somewhere)'. The pronoun «me» is what turns 'I go' into 'I'm leaving'. Se iba a despedir de Haffner, cuando éste dijo: He was about to say goodbye to Haffner, when the latter said: > «ir a» in the imperfect = 'was about to': «Se iba a despedir» = 'he was going to / was about to say goodbye'. «Ir a» + infinitive in the imperfect describes an action on the verge of happening in the past — often interrupted, as here by Haffner. «Despedirse de» = 'to take leave of'. –Entonces, un momento, oiga. "Then, one moment, listen." > «oiga» — 'listen / hey': «Oiga» is the formal command of «oír» ('to hear'), used as an attention-getter: 'listen, look here, hey'. The «g» appears in the command stem of «oír» («oig-»), as in «oiga, oigan». Salieron el Astrólogo y el macró un instante, luego regresaron, y al despedirse en la puerta de la quinta Erdosain volvió la cabeza para mirar al hombre gigantesco, que con el brazo encogido les hacía los gestos de un saludo. The Astrologer and the pimp stepped out for a moment, then returned, and as they said goodbye at the gate of the estate, Erdosain turned his head to look at the gigantic man, who, with his arm drawn in, was making them the gestures of a farewell. > «al» + infinitive closes the scene: «Al despedirse… Erdosain volvió la cabeza» = 'as they said goodbye, Erdosain turned his head'. The «al» + infinitive marks the simultaneous moment; the reflexive «despedirse» here is reciprocal ('they took leave of each other'), closing the chapter on the same gate the visit began at. --- Source text: public domain (Roberto Arlt, d. 1942). English translation: © 2026 1732 Studios, LLC — original draft, pending editorial review. 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