La Legendo de Dorm-Valeto

Irving, Washington, 1783-1859Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.5

Word count: 69K words
Chapters: 7

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.La Legendo de Dorm-Valeto by Washington IrvingAuthor: Irving, Washington, 1783-1859,Language: Esperanto, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: Sep 16, 2006

Editor's review

This is an Esperanto translation of the classic short story "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" by Washington Irving, presented by Project Gutenberg as a free eBook. For readers familiar with Esperanto or learning it, this is valuable reading material: it preserves the narrative rhythm and Gothic humor of Irving's prose while demonstrating Esperanto's expressive flexibility in translating literature. The work itself is short and serves well as an introduction to Esperanto in actual use, and it also allows comparative literature enthusiasts to observe translation choices against the English version. As a public-domain eBook, the text is easy to obtain and suited to reading on electronic devices in short sessions. Note that the Esperanto translation is not a textbook for beginners; readers need basic vocabulary and grammar to appreciate the original's irony and suspense.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Language learners with basic Esperanto who want to consolidate their reading with a short original text
Readers interested in Washington Irving who want to study translation strategies by comparing versions
Literature lovers who enjoy Gothic humor and folklore and are willing to try a text in a lesser-known language

Not a good fit for

Ordinary readers with no Esperanto who want to read the story effortlessly in Chinese
Classroom users who need annotations, introductions, or teaching aids

Reading tips

Read through once for the plot, then consult the English original to check translation choices and note expressions that differ markedly.
Group new words by theme and use Esperanto word formation to understand derivations, avoiding word-for-word translation.
Read a short section each day and retell it aloud to test your grasp of the narrative rhythm and the humor and irony.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this book suitable for Esperanto beginners?

Not really for absolute beginners. It is a literary translation, not a graded reader, and its vocabulary and sentence structures exceed introductory textbooks. Learn basic Esperanto grammar and common roots first, then try reading with a dictionary and the English original at hand.

Should I read it alongside the English original?

Comparative reading helps a great deal. Irving's original is light and ironic; comparing it with the English version shows how Esperanto handles idioms, humor, and long descriptive sentences, and helps avoid misreading the plot when vocabulary is unfamiliar.

What should I keep in mind when reading the electronic edition?

This is a free electronic text from Project Gutenberg, laid out mainly as plain text without illustrations or notes. Use reading software that supports dictionary lookup and bookmarks so you can mark new words and revisit passages easily.

Comments

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About the author

Irving, Washington, 1783-1859 Author

Washington Irving (1783–1859) was an important early American author known for his essays, stories, and historical biographies. The library holds 32 of his works, including The Sketch-Book of Geoffrey Crayon, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, The Alhambra, Old Christmas, and The Life and Voyages of Christopher Columbus. His writing often blends travel observations, folk legend, and historical narrative, with a leisurely, elegant style rich in nostalgia and humor, and has had a lasting influence on American literature and the essay tradition. It should be noted that public information on details of his life, such as his nationality and exact dates, is limited; this introduction is based only on the works recorded in the library.