cole heinowitz on translating mario santiago papasquiaro:
In all of his poems, Santiago Papasquiaro uses the numeral “1” in place of both the indefinite article (“a” or “an”) and the impersonal pronoun (“one”). When read aloud in Spanish, this aspect of his poems is scarcely noticeable, as the indefinite articles “un” and “una” as well as the impersonal pronoun “uno” have the same pronunciation as the number 1. In English, the sonic effect of the “1” is more jarring—as it is on the page in both languages. In a documentary sense, this rapid vertical stroke registers the frenetic speed with which Santiago wrote. Graphically, it echoes the purposive, unequivocal thrust of his speech. Symbolically, it carries his commitment to the irreducible singularity of every phenomenon, every sensation, every thought, every instant.
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