At 16:41 17-01-1999 +0000, I wrote:
>At 02:49 10-01-1999 -0300, Sergio Albano wrote:
>>In Spanish the verb TO KNOW has two differents means. TO KNOW SOMETHING (
>>articulated-) and TO KNOW SOMETHING without articulated words. This is the
>>sense of SABER-
>>
>>In french is the same : CONNAISANCE - SAVOIR.
>
>In all the latin languages, there are two words, indeed.
>
>In portuguese : Conhecer - Saber
After my answer I have been thinking a bit more about the subject, and
discussed it with other portuguese and french speaking people, and I would
like to clarify some points.
It's true that both words exist, but they are normally used with the same
meaning. My French dictionary says "Savoir - posseder dans sa memoire ou
son esprit, CONNAITRE". We can say "savoir le francais" (to know French"
as we can say "connaitre le francais". BUT we can also say "savoir nager"
(to know how to swim) and one can't say "connaitre nager" (???). So,
"Savoir" has a double use, it can mean the same as "Connaitre" (to know)
and in different situations it means "know how". It is only this second
meaning that can be used as "tacit knowledge", I think.
This is also the meaning in Portuguese. I don't know exactly if it is the
same in Spanish, but Sergio will clarify that, I hope.
It is interesting to note that in French, there is also a composite noun
"savoir-faire - habilite' 'a faire reussir ce qu'on entreprend"
(translation - capacity to make well what one tries to accomplish), but it
is a "general capacity", as it doesn't accept a complement (it's a noun,
not a verb). If some one has "savoir-faire" he knows how to behave
gracefully. The noun "savoir faire" doesn't exist in portuguese. If I say
"Saber fazer" (to know how to do) it is a verb, and I have to add a
complement "saber fazer something".
But the initial question from Sergio was
>> I make a question which I think is very important to solve critical
>>problems concerning traduction features.
And I fully agree with him (and others...): it is very difficult to
translate from one language to a different one, and there are
possibilities (and constraints) in each language that facilitate (or not)
to understand some subjects.
Let me clarify this with a "special feature" of French (that doesn't exist
in English nor Portuguese), and that we all should think about when
discussing "teaching vs learning".
The verb "Apprendre" has a double meaning - "to learn" and "to teach".
"J' aprend le francais" (I learn French) and "Je t' apprend le francais"
(I teach you French).
Please note also the use of "francais" with no capital.
And have you ever noticed that english is the only language (that I know)
where one writes "I" with a capital? - je, eu, yo, etc. don't begin with a
capital! Do you have any explanation for that. If so, i would appreciate
to ear about ;-) ].
Sorry if this mail is too detailed
Regards
Artur
--"Artur F. Silva" <artsilva@individual.eunet.pt>
Learning-org -- Hosted by Rick Karash <rkarash@karash.com> Public Dialog on Learning Organizations -- <http://www.learning-org.com>