Portuguese–English parallel text
Quarenta e oito
Forty-Eight
DuoText
A bilingual Portuguese–English edition: the Portuguese text with the English beside it, paragraph by paragraph.
Opening the reader…
O último dia
The last day
Min-jun era mecânico em uma fábrica de peças de carro em Seul. Ele tinha quarenta e oito anos. Ele consertava as máquinas lá.
Min-jun was a mechanic at a car-parts factory in Seoul. He was forty-eight years old. He fixed the machines there.
Na última sexta-feira de março, o chefe chamou os trabalhadores para o salão grande.
On the last Friday in March, the boss called the workers into the big hall.
Alguns trabalhadores olharam para o chão. Uma mulher começou a chorar. Min-jun ficou atrás e escutou.
Some workers looked at the floor. One woman started to cry. Min-jun stood at the back and listened.
“Sinto muito”, disse o chefe. “A empresa está fechando a fábrica. Hoje é o nosso último dia.”
“I’m sorry,” said the boss. “The company is closing the factory. Today is our last day.”
Ninguém disse nada. Aí o amigo de Min-jun da linha ao lado levantou a mão.
Nobody said anything. Then Min-jun’s friend from the next line put up his hand.
“E o nosso dinheiro?”, ele perguntou.
“What about our money?” he asked.
“Vocês vão receber o pagamento de dois meses. E uma carta minha. Sinto muito mesmo. Vocês todos são bons trabalhadores.”
“You’ll get two months’ pay. And a letter from me. I’m very sorry. You are all good workers.”
Depois da reunião, Min-jun voltou para a sua máquina. Era a número sete, uma máquina grande e cinza para portas de carro.
After the meeting, Min-jun went back to his machine. It was number seven, a big grey machine for car doors.
Ele começou na fábrica em 2004. Ele trabalhou lá por vinte e dois anos. Todo dia, ele chegava às sete e saía às cinco.
He started at the factory in 2004. He worked here for twenty-two years. Every day, he came at seven and left at five.
Ele conhecia cada máquina pelo som. Uma máquina boa tinha um som bom. Uma máquina com defeito tinha um som diferente.
He knew every machine by its sound. A good machine had a good sound. A sick machine had a different sound.
O amigo dele veio e ficou ao lado dele. “O que você vai fazer, Min-jun?”
His friend came and stood next to him. “What are you going to do, Min-jun?”
“Não sei. Eu nunca procurei emprego. Cheguei aqui com vinte e seis anos.”
“I don’t know. I’ve never looked for a job. I came here at twenty-six.”
“Eu também. Quem quer um mecânico velho? Tudo é computador agora.”
“Me too. Who wants an old mechanic? Everything is computers now.”
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