9.3 Usage
9.3.1 Este corresponds more or less to English ‘this’, i.e. ‘relating to me, near to me’. The
difference between ese and aquel is a subtle one; broadly speaking, ese relates to
notions which are nearby and aquel to notions which are more remote. In a
conversation, it is often appropriate to think of ese as meaning ‘relating to us’
(the speakers involved) and aquel as meaning ‘relating to neither of us’. Aquel is the
more ‘marked’ of the two, and tends to be used to indicate a notion of remoteness,
often in contrast with ese.
–Me da un kilo de manzanas.
‘A kilo of apples, please.’
–¿Ésas?
‘Those?’ (near to you)
–No, aquéllas.
‘No, those.’ (over there)
¿Te acuerdas de ese día que pasamos juntos en Benidorm?
Do you remember that day (shared experience) we spent together in
Benidorm?
En aquella noche murieron muchas personas en el bombardeo.
That night (remote from our experience) many people died in the
bombing.9.3.2 Éste and aquél also denote ‘the latter’ and ‘the former’ respectively:
Juan salió primero, seguido de Pedro. Éste saludó con entusiasmo al
público, mientras que aquél no dijo palabra.
Juan appeared first, followed by Pedro. The latter greeted the audience
enthusiastically while the former did not say a word.NOTE Este is used as a filler in Latin American Spanish (see 30.8.4).Usage 9.3