My father, who was very old, had given me a good education, and designed me for the law, but I would be satisfied with nothing but going to sea. My inclination to the sea led me against the will of my father, and against all the entreaties and persuasions of my mother and friends.
El extracto pertenece a la novela titulada: "Robinson Crusoe" de Daniel Defoe. La traducción al español es la siguiente:
"Mi padre, que era muy anciano, me había dado una buena educación y planeaba que fuera abogado; pero a mí nada me entusiasmaba más que no fuera hacerme a la mar. Mi inclinación al mar me guió en contra de la voluntad de mi padre y en contra de todas las súplicas y toda la insistencia de mi madre y amigos."
Why did you choose this particular text, Gloria? This is an adaptation of a paragraph from a book written in 1719! It's obvious to any native speaker that the language is archaic. If you came across the phrase 'My father designed me for the law' in any context other than an 18th century novel, it would be seen as a mistake or a misprint. If a non-native used 'designed' in this way in an exam they would lose marks. The phrase means nothing to the present-day native English-speaker. The word 'design' can never be used in this way in modern English. Likewise, 'my inclination to the sea' means very little in modern English, and 'entreaties' is a word which is almost never used.
Translation exercises can be useful, but only if the original text is written in clear and comprehensible language. Translating historical texts is a specialised skill. Surely it would be more useful for students to translate something from 'normal English'?
Fabiana, gracias por participar.
¿Alguien más se anima y quiere dar su versión?
¿Estáis de acuerdo con la traducción de Fabiana?
¿Qué cambios deberíamos hacer?
¿Algo que comentar?
No, this is not my experience. I found it in a book.
I think it can be a good exercice for those people learning Spanish.
Students can try to translate and at the end I'll give the corrections.
Mi padre, que estaba muy vejo, ha dado a mi una buena educaciòn, y me ha ensenado la leje, pero yo querrìa ser satisfado sin ir a el mar. Mi inclinaciòn hacia el mar es contra aquella de mi padre, y hacia las deseos de mi madre y mis amigos.