"tapar el sol con un dedo"
I was reading this back and forth from Yahoo Answers about the idiom "tapar el sol con un dedo".
From what I read, it saying that "blocking the sun with a finger" is like covering up something huge that you don't want to deal with (the sun... with a finger) and then pretending it's not there, which then was explained to mean that you're trying to a solve a huge problem with a simplistic, insufficient action or trying to ignore it altogether.
Question 1: Am I getting the meaning right?
Question 2: I saw somewhere else that it is similar to "bury your head in the sand," but to me in English that idiom is just saying that you try to tune things out, not that you try to make up for something you did with an insufficient gesture. Is the phrase more similar to "bury your head in the sand" or does it really come with the extra meaning of something like "too little, too late"?
4 Answers
The usual expression in Spanish is No se puede tapar el sol con la mano
I think the phrase doesnt really mean you are doing too little for something that is too big, or that it has anything to do with having to fix something really.The way ive always seen the phrase used is to refer to something of an impact or consequence to strong to ignore. Usually it points out the fact that someone is trying to ignore or minimize the event that is still evident nonetheless.
I think that you are getting the meaning right and I agree that "bury your head in the sand" does not have the exact same meaning. The first time that I heard this phrase was in a song by Son By Four called A Puro Dolor:
...Vida devuelveme mis fantasias, mis ganas de vivir la vida; devuelveme el aire. Cariño mio, sin ti yo me siento vacio; las tardes son un laberinto y las noches me saben a puro dolor.
Quisiera decirte que hoy estoy de maravilla que no me ha afectado lo de tu partida pero con un dedo no se tapa el sol...
Yes , I think you are right. Covering, pretending that it's not there and it's something that disturbs you so you don't want to deal with it. It can be an abstract thing also..
