How difficult is this to read in Spanish?
Fairly difficult since it's not just in Spanish, it's also in OLD Spanish. Imagine if it was the opposite and you were a native Spanish speaker trying to read The Canterbury Tales. If you're good enough with Spanish that you can read a modern book, you'll probably be able to handle it.
>>8162879
It's even hard for native Spanish speakers to red Don Quixote
Try reading this
En un lugar de la Mancha2, de cuyo nombre no quiero acordarme3, no ha mucho tiempo que vivía un hidalgo de los de lanza en astillero, adarga antigua, rocín flaco y galgo corredor4. Una olla de algo más vaca que carnero, salpicón las más noches5, duelos y quebrantos los sábados6, lantejas los viernes7, algún palomino de añadidura los domingos8, consumían las tres partes de su hacienda9. El resto della concluían sayo de velarte10, calzas de velludo para las fiestas, con sus pantuflos de lo mesmo11, y los días de entresemana se honraba con su vellorí de lo más fino12. Tenía en su casa una ama que pasaba de los cuarenta y una sobrina que no llegaba a los veinte, y un mozo de campo y plaza que así ensillaba el rocín como tomaba la podadera13. Frisaba la edad de nuestro hidalgo con los cincuenta años14. Era de complexión recia, seco de carnes, enjuto de rostro15, gran madrugador y amigo de la caza. Quieren decir que tenía el sobrenombre de «Quijada», o «Quesada», que en esto hay alguna diferencia en los autores que deste caso escriben, aunque por conjeturas verisímilesII se deja entender que se llamaba «Quijana»III, 16. Pero esto importa poco a nuestro cuento: basta que en la narración dél no se salga un punto de la verdad.
>>8162939
You could try and get an anotated version and read it along a good dictionary (read: diccionario de la real academia española) or a more modern version
>>8162879
My Spanish isn't good, but as a French speaker I don't find the old language much more difficult. In fact, I find anything from before ~1700 so much better written (when did Spanish get dumbed down so bad?) that it somehow makes it less of a chore to read.
>>8162876
My AP Spanish teacher made us read it. It was annoying to read and I was actually rather fluent in Spanish at that point in time.
>>8162907
Spanish is my first language and I struggled through that. Fuck if I had to read that as a non-native speaker/reader. Godspeed, OP.
>>8162879
You might be exaggerating. I've taken months reading Chaucer and Chaucerian poetry, and developing to the point where I don't have to look at footnotes every five minutes.
Cervantes is nowhere near that hard, you should just need footnotes for the historical context or whole phrases that have been lost.
>>8163953
I don't think it was ever actively dumbed down, Cervantes wrote in a highly poetic manner even for his own time.
>>8162876
It's in old Spanish and it's fucking Castillian so it's full of innumerable colloquialisms and weird shit
It reminds me of the time I tried reading Lazarillo de Tormes. Fucked my shit UP senpai and I was living in Spain at the time. I can read most modern novels in Spanish but damn, the Quixote is THE Ur-Novel of Spanish for a reason
>>8164029
>Spanish is my first language and I struggled through that
Are you retarded?
>>8162876
I have a hard-cover edition from the '20s that comes in two volumes.
It's... for me, it's not hard. It never was. But I always had a big vocabulary. For the usual native spanish speaker though? Like Milton for a native english speaker, pretty much.
>>8162876
I know spanish it´s my mother tongue and even for me its so hard to understand .
But if you try you can read a good book.
look this
En un lugar de la Mancha, de cuyo nombre no quiero acordarme, no ha mucho tiempo que vivía un hidalgo de los de lanza en astillero, adarga antigua, rocín flaco y galgo corredor.
Its so beatiful
>>8162907
>not reading El Qvixote in its original orthography
I can't stand all this plebbery
En vn lugar de la Mancha, de cuyo nombre no quiero acordarme, no ha mucho tiempo que viuia vn hidalgo de los de lança en astillero, adarga antigua, rozin flaco y galgo corredor. Vna olla de algo mas vaca que carnero, salpicon las mas noches, duelos y quebrantos los sabados, lantejas los viernes, algun palomino de añadidura los domingos, consumian las tres partes de su hazienda. El resto della concluian sayo de velarte, calças de velludo para las fiestas, con sus pantuflos de lo mesmo, y los dias de entre semana se honraua con su vellori de lo mas fino.
Tenia en su casa vna ama que passaua de los quarenta, y vna sobrina que no llegaua a los veynte, y vn moço de campo y plaça, que assi ensillaua el rozin como tomaua la podadera. Frisaua la edad de nuestro hidalgo con los cinquenta años. Era de complexion rezia, seco de carnes, enjuto de rostro, gran madrugador y amigo de la caça. Quieren dezir que tenia el sobrenombre de Quixada, o Quesada, que en esto ay alguna diferencia en los autores que deste caso escriuen, aunque por conjeturas verosimiles se dexa entender que se llamaua Quexana. Pero esto importa poco a nuestro cuento; basta que en la narracion del no se salga vn punto de la verdad.
>>8162876
Wife majored in spanish, lived in spain, worked with spanish lit, says you need 2-3 seminars to get through original text.
>>8164321
Just Puerto Rican
>>8164359
Queloque, cocolo? Mansito, manín?
>>8164365
Can you rephrase that in reggaeton?
>>8164372
Si te veo por la calle dise prrrrum
>>8164377
el resto de la tribu desde que nos subieron el ivo!
>>8164355
She's full of shit. Or just retarded.
Sure, you need some footnotes or a handy dictionary, but you don't need 2-3 seminars to be able to read Milton or Shakespeare if you know English. Same with Cervantes.
Hell, not even El Cantar del Mio Cid would need that, and it's exponentially more contrived than Don Quixote. And I read both in their original text (thanks to gramma's library) when I was in, like, middle school. Just like there's many native english speaking middle schoolers who read and understand Shakespeare without needing any seminars.
>>8164377
Spanish speaker here, having a hard time with "prrrrrum"
>>8164381
EL NOVIO TUYO ESTA COMPRANDO REEBOK
>>8164383
It's an archaism, don't worry.
>>8164350
I speak portuguese and I got at least 70% of the text
Not that hard to be honest
>>8164412
There are some orthographic similarities aight? Portuguese is pretty intelligible for me too. Did you find it easier than modern spanish texts?
>>8162879
>If you're good enough with Spanish that you can read a modern book, you'll probably be able to handle it.
That's not how it works, ye retard.
>>8162879
No, it's not. It's in modern Spanish. Much like Dante, it's considered the first major work in the modern vernacular. The reason it seems "Old" to most people is that many editions publish it without taking into account the systematic respelling that the Spanish language underwent in the 1800's (for example, x is converted to j). If you compare Cervantes to earlier works of Spanish literature, such as El Cid, you'll find the latter much harder to read, as it's actually in Old Spanish.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Spanish_language
>>8164426
Yeah, lots of them
The same happens with french and italian, but it's way more common with spanish
God bless latin
Answering your question, I don't know, really
Gimme some modern spanish texts and I'll tell you
>>8165282
Check this out
Es cierto, el viajero que saliendo de Región pretende llegar a su sierra siguiendo el antiguo camino real –porque el moderno dejó de serlo–se ve obligado a atravesar un pequeño y elevado desierto que parece interminable.
Un momento u otro conocerá el desaliento al sentir que cada paso hacia adelante no hace sino alejarlo un poco más de aquellas desconocidas montañas. Y un día tendrá que abandonar el propósito y demorar aquella remota decisión de escalar su cima más alta, ese pico calizo con forma de mascarilla que conserva imperturbable su leyenda romántica y su penacho de ventisca. O bien –tranquilo, sin desesperación, invadido de una suerte de indiferencia que no deja lugar a los reproches– dejará transcurrir su último atardecer, tumbado en la arena de cara al crepúsculo, contemplando cómo en el cielo desnudo esos hermosos, extraños y negros pájaros que han de acabar con él, evolucionan en altos círculos.
>>8165525
I'm gonna do just the first paragraph cause I'm a lazy fuck
>portuguese
É certo, o vilarejo que saindo de Região pretende chegar a sua serra seguindo o antigo caminho real - porque o moderno já deixou de sê-lo - se vê obrigado a atravessar um pequeno e elevado deserto que parece interminável.
With the exception of the very start, it's very easy to understand the text, even easier than >>8164350.
Keep in mind I never took any kind of spanish class/lessons.
>>8165670
Nah our languages are hella similar mane. I got me O Livro do Desassossego some months ago. Didn't started seriously yet, but I've read some random pages and I got almost everything. No classes.
Iberian master race.
I want to teach all of you Spanish.
