Was Charlottesville the Exception or the Rule?

In 1918 the Peruvian poet César Vallejo completed the collection of poems “Los Heraldos Negros,” known in English as “The Black Riders,” “The Black Messengers” or “The Black Heralds,” depending on the translator. “There are blows in life so powerful, I can't answer” is a literal translation of the first line of the title poem. In the original Spanish, the line is “Hay golpes en la vida, tan fuertes. … Yo no sé.” As with the title, there has been some disagreement around how to translate “yo no sé.” “I don't know,” “I can't say” and “I can't answer” are just three possibilities. Each translator has to confront Vallejo's lacunas for the ungraspable experience of having to bear unbearable acts of power.