The Adventures of Ferdinand Count Fathom — Complete — Page 10
" The surprise will be greater than ever when the answer is given that, to a large extent, the plot makes Fathom interesting.
" La sorpresa será mayor que nunca cuando se dé la respuesta de que, en gran medida, la trama hace que Fathom sea interesante.
Yes, Smollett, hitherto indifferent to structure, has here written a story in which the plot itself, often clumsy though it may be, engages a reader's attention.
Sí, Smollett, hasta ahora indiferente a la estructura, ha escrito aquí una historia en la que la trama en sí, aunque a menudo torpe, capta la atención del lector.
One actually wants to know whether the young Count is ever going to receive consolation for his sorrows and inflict justice on his basely ungrateful pensioner.
Uno realmente quiere saber si el joven Conde alguna vez va a recibir consuelo por sus penas e infligir justicia a su vil e ingrato pensionista.
And when, finally, all turns out as it should, one is amazed to find how many of the people in the book have helped towards the designed conclusion.
Y cuando, finalmente, todo resulta como debe ser, uno se asombra al descubrir cuántas de las personas del libro han contribuido hacia la conclusión diseñada.
Not all of them, indeed, nor all of the adventures, are indispensable, but it is manifest at the end that much, which, for the time, most readers think irrelevant—such as Don Diego's history—is, after all, essential.
No todos ellos, en efecto, ni todas las aventuras, son indispensables, pero al final queda de manifiesto que mucho de lo que, por el momento, la mayoría de los lectores considera irrelevante —como la historia de Don Diego— es, después de todo, esencial.
It has already been said that in Count Fathom Smollett appears to some extent as a romanticist, and this is another fact which lends interest to the book.
Ya se ha dicho que en el Conde Fathom Smollett aparece hasta cierto punto como un romántico, y este es otro hecho que presta interés al libro.
That he had a powerful imagination is not a surprise.
Que tuviera una poderosa imaginación no es una sorpresa.
Any one versed in Smollett has already seen it in the remarkable situations which he has put before us in his earlier works.
Cualquiera versado en Smollett ya lo ha visto en las notables situaciones que nos ha presentado en sus obras anteriores.
These do not indicate, however, that Smollett possessed the imagination which could excite romantic interest; for in Roderick Random and in Peregrine Pickle, the wonderful situations serve chiefly to amuse.
Sin embargo, estas no indican que Smollett poseyera la imaginación capaz de despertar el interés romántico; pues en Roderick Random y en Peregrine Pickle, las maravillosas situaciones sirven principalmente para divertir.
In Fathom, however, there are some designed to excite horror; and one, at least, is eminently successful.
En Fathom, sin embargo, hay algunas diseñadas para provocar horror; y una, al menos, es eminentemente exitosa.
Vocabulary
- La
- The (feminine singular article)
- sorpresa
- Surprise or unexpected event
- será
- Will be (future tense of ser)
- mayor
- Larger, greater, or of greater importance
- que
- That, which, or than (relative pronoun)
- nunca
- Never or at no time
- cuando
- When or at what time
- se
- Reflexive pronoun; oneself or itself
- dé
- Give (subjunctive form of dar)
- respuesta
- Answer or response to something
- de
- Of or from (preposition)
- en
- In or at (preposition indicating location)
- gran
- Great or large in size or importance
- medida
- Measure or extent of something
- trama
- Plot or storyline of a narrative work
- hace
- Makes or does (third person singular)
- sea
- Be (subjunctive form of ser)
- interesante
- Interesting or engaging to one's attention
- Sí
- Yes (affirmative response)
- hasta
- Until or up to a certain point
- ahora
- Now or at the present time
- indiferente
- Indifferent or showing no interest whatsoever
- estructura
- Structure or framework of something
- ha
- Have (auxiliary verb, present perfect)
- escrito
- Written or past participle of escribir
- aquí
- Here or in this place
- una
- A or one (feminine singular article)
- historia
- History or story narrative
- sí
- Yes or itself (reflexive pronoun)
- aunque
- Although or even though despite fact
- menudo
- Often or frequently in many cases
- torpe
- Clumsy or awkward in movement
- capta
- Captures or grasps attention
- atención
- Attention or notice given to something
- del
- Of the or from the (contraction)
- lector
- Reader or one who reads
- Uno
- One or a person in general
- realmente
- Really or truly in fact
- quiere
- Wants or desires something
- saber
- Know or find out information
- si
- If or conditional conjunction
- el
- The (masculine singular article)
- joven
- Young or youthful person
- Conde
- Count or nobleman with title
- alguna
- Some or any (feminine form)
- vez
- Time or occasion when something happens
- va
- Goes or is going somewhere
- recibir
- Receive or accept something
- consuelo
- Consolation or comfort in sorrow
- por
- For or by means of something
- sus
- His, her, or their possessive
- penas
- Sorrows or punishments inflicted
- infligir
- Inflict or impose punishment on
- justicia
- Justice or fair treatment under law
- su
- His, her, its, or their
- vil
- Vile or morally base evil
- ingrato
- Ungrateful or not showing gratitude
- pensionista
- Pensioner receiving regular payment
- finalmente
- Finally or at last ultimately
- todo
- Everything or all things
- resulta
- Results or turns out to be
- como
- Like or how something happens
- debe
- Must or should do something
- ser
- To be or exist
- uno
- One or a person in general
- asombra
- Amazes or surprises greatly
- al
- To the or at the
- descubrir
- Discover or uncover something
- cuántas
- How many (feminine plural)
- las
- The (feminine plural article)
- personas
- People or human beings
- libro
- Book or written work
- han
- Have (plural auxiliary verb)
- contribuido
- Contributed or participated in
- hacia
- Toward or in the direction of
- conclusión
- Conclusion or ending of something
- diseñada
- Designed or planned out carefully
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