en seguida

Question

I came across the following translation at another site.

Con gran asombro vieron desprenderse de sus cimientos la casa, como catapultada por un cohete, y en seguida caer en pedazos el techo, las paredes, los pisos y los muebles.

To their utter amazement, they saw the house come apart from its foundation, as if lifted by a rocket, and one after the other the roof, the walls, the floor and the furniture fell into pieces.

I would have thought that the "en seguida" here meant "immediately" or something similar. Is the "one after the other" translation here correct'

Answer 1

That's exactly what it means where I come from: immediately. I don't see any "one after another" in the Spanish sentence.

Answer 2

Thanks. Then here is my translation.

To their utter amazement, they saw the house come off its foundation, as if lifted by a rocket, immediately followed by the collapse of the roof, the walls, the floor and the furniture.

Answer 3

something is missing here, I cant put my finger on it.
collapse of the roof, the walls, the floor and the furniture.

James Santiago said:

Thanks. Then here is my translation.To their utter amazement, they saw the house come off its foundation, as if lifted by a rocket, immediately followed by the collapse of the roof, the walls, the floor and the furniture.

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Answer 4

Well, I intentionally left out the "en pedazos," because I think the word "collapse" already conveys that nuance. But someone else might come up with a better version that specifically includes the "en pedazos."' How about this?

To their utter amazement, they saw the house come off its foundation, as if lifted by a rocket, immediately followed by the crumbling collapse of the roof, the walls, the floor and the furniture.

Answer 5

you got it.

James Santiago said:

Well, I intentionally left out the "en pedazos," because I think the word "collapse" already conveys that nuance. But someone else might come up with a better version that specifically includes the "en pedazos."' How about this'To their utter amazement, they saw the house come off its foundation, as if lifted by a rocket, immediately followed by the crumbling collapse of the roof, the walls, the floor and the furniture.

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Answer 6

Has anyone mentioned "en pedazos" means "in pieces".. Crumbled into pieces would sound good