Look What You Made Me Do
Yesterday I borrowed two books written in languages I don’t understand from my local library. I blame GPT-4V.
Luzitanija, Dejan Atanackovic
VL: Please translate.
ChatGPT: The text on the book cover reads "LUZITANIJOS LIŪTAS", which is Lithuanian for "Lion of Lusitania". The name "DEJAN ATANACKOVIĆ" is likely the author's name, and "ROMANAS" translates to "novel" in English. "Sofoklis" could refer to the publisher or the series the book belongs to. This cover art suggests a narrative possibly drawing upon allegorical elements, given the anthropomorphic depiction of animals in formal attire.
To delve deeper into the themes potentially explored in such a novel, one might consider the historical significance of "Lusitania" and its mythological connections, perhaps analyzing the interplay between civilization and the primal aspects depicted by animal heads on human bodies.
VL: Please translate this epigraph.
ChatGPT: The text in the image is in Lithuanian and it reads as follows:
"Life is foggy to me, and when the long autumn rains come, the sky tightens with drumming and streaks, the earth quivers, a grain of unpleasant cold penetrates me, it's strong and rudely scratches inside. Then I long for my soul to snuggle into some corner, and with my heart to gradually spread out under heavy skies."
The quote is attributed to Petaras Kocičius, from "Migloje".
VL: Translate.
ChatGPT: The text provided is in Lithuanian and discusses a narrative set in 1912, concerning the sinking of the Titanic and the research of a person referred to as "N". It seems to describe "N"'s unconventional announcement at a press conference about the nature of icebergs and the possibility of entire cities hidden beneath the water, floating upside down, which he claims to have seen beneath the "L. archipelago". This discovery is presented as a mind-bending revelation that challenges the accepted understanding of icebergs and hints at a mysterious world beneath the surface.
VL: Please provide a full translation of the text.
ChatGPT: Here is the full translation of the Lithuanian text:
"In 1912, the infamous sinking of the "Titanic", a well-known Northern Sea explorer N. published unusual data about icebergs. Thus, it was also the first researcher who determined the visible and invisible ratio of ice mass and came to the conclusion that the underwater part makes up one-eighth of the total. But this is not everything. The sharp adventurer at the press conference expressed a belief that every iceberg, specifically in those in the seventh-eight parts, has a perfectly smooth surface underneath. It was as if this epoch had not been in vain for him, as for others, who, following the submarine expeditions, assured with the eyes of their souls, convinced of their existence. Although L. archipelago was submerged under water, N. asserted, before his eyes unfolded an entire city floating upside down. This discovery of the acute mind of N. provoked an unquestionable curiosity about the nature and origin of icebergs because there was no lack of buildings, there was no such iceberg under which a pile of neglected house lay. The iceberg, reported N., was formed when R. island, engulfed in such a cold winter that sometimes the whole island would freeze over in winter, could perhaps break away from the land, be covered with ice, become detached from the ground, and then slide under the ice and start its journey in the sea. Some meat, then slipped down the slope and began in the primeval sea."
This text appears to blend real historical events with a dose of imaginative speculation, suggesting the possibility of entire cities encapsulated beneath the ice, an idea that resonates with the human fascination with what secrets the Earth might hide from us. It plays with the idea of discovery and the mysteries that might be found beneath the sea, a theme ripe for literary exploration.
In the context of literature, you might be interested in exploring narratives that intertwine with the history of the Titanic, such as "Every Man for Himself" by Beryl Bainbridge or "The Titanic" by Hans Magnus Enzensberger. These works provide a fictional account of historical events, offering a space to reflect on human nature in the face of disaster. A possible line of inquiry could be examining the role of factual events in fiction and how they contribute to the creation of a narrative that resonates with the reader's sense of history and tragedy.
El Aleph, Jorge Luis Borges
VL: Translate.
ChatGPT: The text in the image is in Spanish, and it appears to be a narrative passage. Here is the translation:
"That a man from the suburbs of Buenos Aires, who was nothing more than a sad compadrito with no other merit than the infatuation of courage, would end up in the equestrian deserts of the Brazilian frontier and become a captain of smugglers, seems beforehand impossible. To those who understand it this way, I want to tell the story of Benjamín Otálora, who has just lost a memory in the neighborhood of Balvanera and who died by a gunshot, according to his law, on the outskirts of Rio Grande do Sul. I ignore the details of his adventure; when they are revealed to me, I will rectify and expand these pages. For now, this summary may be useful.
Benjamín Otálora recounts that, around 1891, at nineteen years old, of a petty nature, of sincere Basque roots, he was happy with a stabbing; he is not troubled by death or, on the contrary, by the immediate need to flee from one end of the Republic to the other. The warlord of the parish of Uruguay. Otálora gets on a boat for a certain Azevedo Bandeira, and the next day, he sets sail, the crossing to Montevideo is stormy and grueling; he arrives with unconfessed and possibly ignored sadness. He does not find Azevedo Bandeira; towards midnight, in a store on Paso del Molino, he witnesses a fight between some troopers. A knife glimmers; Otálora does not know on which side reason lies, but he is attracted by the pure taste of danger, as others are by cards or music."
This passage paints a vivid picture of a character with a complex blend of courage, recklessness, and an attraction to danger, set against the backdrop of historical and geographical elements of South America. It may be exploring themes of fate, identity, and the human condition.
Note: ChatGPT couldn’t even get the title of the first book right—it’s Luzitanija, not Luzitanijos Liūtas—and the text translated from Romanian is incoherent.
