"En la Argentina Kafka hubiera sido un escritor costumbrista"

[aleCcowaN]

"En la Argentina Kafka hubiera sido un escritor costumbrista" is a phrase attributed to a former supreme court judge, but it seems to go way back to the 40s or 50s.

I wonder how to translate it, especially "costumbrista". A folk writer?

[Perikles]

The GDO gives:

costumbrismo masculino: literary genre dealing with local customs

costumbrista masculino y femenino: author who writes about local customs


(Kafka? That makes no sense to me )
Edit: Ah - a reflection on legal processes in Argentina, perhaps

[aleCcowaN]

Originally Posted by Perikles

The GDO gives:

costumbrismo masculino: literary genre dealing with local customs

costumbrista masculino y femenino: author who writes about local customs


(Kafka? That makes no sense to me )
Edit: Ah - a reflection on legal processes in Argentina, perhaps

Thank you!

It's a reflection on daily local absurdity. I read it again today in a press report on current virtual country closure to trade (or nationalization of international trade if you want) and about companies being actually authorized to purchase one million dollars in the market only if they sell one million dollars at the same time.

[AngelicaDeAlquezar]

Interesting... the same has been said of him if he had been Mexican.


@Perikles: When you think his novels exaggerate bureaucracy, absurd situations and strange mistakes, you just have to take a look what happens around these countries and you'll find he was not so original.

[Don José]

And the same in Spain, Chile, Peru, Bolivia... (Google: Kafka "escritor costumbrista").

costumbrista masculino y femenino: author who writes about local customs

Too long! You, English speakers, should have a word for that. It seems there were "costumbristas" English writers:

En Inglaterra fueron escritores costumbristas Richard Steele (1672-1729), que publicó su revista costumbrista The Tatle, y Joseph Addison (1672-1719), quien en unión del anterior fundó The Spectator, una publicación de las más influyentes en cuanto al costumbrismo europeo se refiere; no en vano ambos han sido considerados los fundadores del costumbrismo o los inventores de lo que ellos mismos denominan Essay or sketch of manners.

http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Costumbrismo_literario

Would you say "a sketch of manners writer" or something like that?

[poli]

I would interpret it this way (hope I don't misinterpret the quote) In Argentina, Kafka would would feel right at home.
or- What's considered kafkaesque in the rest of the world is considered
normal custom in Argentina.

Neither of these are direct translations, but I believe the gist of the statement is translated.

I think term chronicler may be a good term for costumbrista. Chroniclers like Erma Bombach write humorous and
often true accounts of life in the United States of their time. Currently Gail Collins in the New York Times writes this way but with a strong political slant.

[aleCcowaN]

Very interesting Don José. I think they should have a word for that too. I thought it was maybe "folk writer", but I was wrong.

@poli: You're basically right. The phrase is more intended to describe how easily public bureaucracy and private customs jump from pretty reasonable situations to the deepest absurdity without even noticing.