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The entire article was literally dedicated to answering that question. The whole point is that it's hard to translate.
by vinceguidry 9y ago
The entire article was literally dedicated to answering that question. The whole point is that it's hard to translate.
- StavrosK 9y agoIf it was devoted to answering the question, it did a really poor job at it. It basically said "this is a word that doesn't have a direct translation, oh how odd Mexican culture is". Nothing about whether it's closer to "soon", "any minute now", "in a bit", "at some point", "anon", or any of the other time-indeterminate phrases.
- vinceguidry 9y agoThe article clearly stated that it meant all of those things, and whichever meaning is intended for any particular utterance is denoted by both context and tone. I had no problem understanding the article and came away more informed than confused. Maybe slow down more when you read?
- StavrosK 9y agoI'm just not satisfied by an explanation as clumsy as "oh those wacky Mexicans, it means all of the things". Maybe be more critical when you read?
- mysterypie 9y ago> meaning is denoted by both context and tone The article did give an example of context and tone -- a friendly ice cream vendor on the street -- but it didn't give the English translation for that context.
- dragonwriter 9y ago> The entire article was literally dedicated to answering that question. No, as made clear by the concluding paragraphs, it's dedicated to painting a vague picture of Mexicans’ attitudes toward time to support a thesis about the transformative effect immersion in that cultures attitudes on the subject can have on tightly-woubd British people (the author in particular, but by extension his intended audience.) It's a common use of exotic foreign cultures in writing.