Register disappears in translation
Spanish marks the relationship between speakers in almost every sentence. Tú is familiar, usted is formal, and the choice tells you whether two people are close colleagues or careful strangers. English collapses tú, usted, ustedes, and vosotros into one word: you. It matters when the register is itself the content. A witness who switches from usted to tú mid-deposition has told you something, and none of it reaches a flat translation.










