rethinking translation in the second language classroom

RETHINKING TRANSLATION IN THE SECOND LANGUAGE CLASSROOM: 

TEACHING DISCOURSE AND TEXT ANALYSIS THROUGH TRANSLATION TO 

ADVANCED STUDENTS 

A Thesis Presented 

by 

BEATRIZ PARIENTE-BELTRAN 

Submitted to the Graduate School of the 

University of Massachusetts Amherst in partial fulfillment 

of the requirements for the degree of 

MASTER OF ARTS 

September 2006 

Hispanic Linguistics

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 

I would like to dedicate this work to my professor and mentor, Eduardo 

Negueruela. He has believed in my ideas, and helped me to develop them in a fruitful 

way. Thanks to his encouragement, support, willingness and accessibility, I have been 

able to go far beyond my own expectations. Thank you for being such a great professor, 

mentor and colleague. 

I would also like to thank my other two professors of the committee, Francesco 

D’Introno and Juan C. Zamora Munné for their useful feedback and comments on my 

first draft and overall work with them. 

Last but not least, I would like to thank my proof-reader, Matthew Syzdek for his 

support, patience, advice and help with this work. 

2 

Beatriz Pariente-Beltrán

TABLE OF CONTENTS 

3 

Page 

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ............................................................................................ iii 

LIST OF TABLES ........................................................................................................ vi 

LIST OF FIGURES ..................................................................................................... vii 

CHAPTER 

1. RETHINKING TRANSLATION IN THE SECOND LANGUAGE 

CLASSROOM: AN OVERVIEW OF THE ROLE OF TRANSLATION 

IN TEACHING FOREIGN LANGUAGES …………………………………….. 1 

Purpose of the study ........................................................................................... 1 

Translation and Second Language Teaching ....................................................... 2 

Relevance ........................................................................................................... 5 

Overview ........................................................................................................... 7 

2. TEACHING DISCOURSE AND TEXT ANALYSIS THROUGH 

TRANSLATION IN THE L2 CLASSROOM ..................................................... 9 

Introduction: Goal of Chapter and Overview ...................................................... 9 

Defining Discourse and Text Analysis in the L2 Classroom ..............................10 

How to Teach Discourse and Text Analysis through Translation .......................14 

Pedagogical Considerations ...............................................................................18 

Conclusion ........................................................................................................21 

3. TRANSLATION AS A COMMUNICATIVE ACTIVITY.........................................22 

Introduction: Goal of Chapter and Overview .....................................................22 

Interlingual Translation .....................................................................................23 

Translation as a Communicative Activity ..........................................................24 

Practical Applications ........................................................................................26 

Conclusion ........................................................................................................29 

4. TRANSLATION AS A COGNITIVE ACTIVITY.....................................................30 

Introduction: Goal of chapter and Overview ......................................................30 

Intralingual Translation .....................................................................................31 

Translation as a Cognitive Activity ....................................................................31 


Conclusion ........................................................................................................37

5. TRANSLATION AS A CULTURAL ACTIVITY ....................................................38 

Introduction: Goal of Chapter and Overview .....................................................38 

Semiotic Translation ..........................................................................................39 

Translation as a Cultural Activity ......................................................................41 


Conclusion ........................................................................................................46 

6. CONCLUSIONS ......................................................................................................47 

APPENDICES 

A. MATERIALS FOR TRANSLATION AS A COMMUNICATIVE ACTIVITY .......49 

B. MATERIALS FOR TRANSLATION AS A COGNITIVE ACTIVITY ....................61 

C. MATERIALS FOR TRANSLATION AS A CULTURAL ACTIVITY ....................64 

BIBLIOGRAPHY .........................................................................................................68 

4

LIST OF TABLES 

Table Page 

1. Introductory explanation about discourse and text analysis ........................................20 

2. Communicative activity #1 .......................................................................................27 

3. Communicative activity #2 .......................................................................................28 

4. Cognitive activity #1 .................................................................................................34 



7. Cultural activity #1 ...................................................................................................43 



5

LIST OF FIGURES 

Figure Page 

1. Model of communication ..........................................................................................32 

2. Process of translation ................................................................................................32 

3. Model of communication with the process of translation ...........................................33 

6

CHAPTER 1 

RETHINKING TRANSLATION IN THE SECOND LANGUAGE CLASSROOM: 

AN OVERVIEW OF THE ROLE OF TRANSLATION 

IN TEACHING FOREIGN LANGUAGES 

Translation is thus conceived as an end desired in itself 

and as a method of furthering proficiency in the foreign language 

Purpose of the study 

7 

(Cordero, 1984, p. 351) 

The existence of translation and, therefore, its practice, dates back to the birth of 

languages. Since humans became nomadic, they encountered other people and cultures, 

and the need of translation emerged in order to facilitate communication. However, 

translation was not conceived as a discipline by its own until 1976, when André Lefevere 

christened this discipline Translation Studies (Bassnett, 2002). In the academic field, 

translation used to be associated with the teaching of foreign languages. Nevertheless, 

with the birth of Translation Studies and the modern language teaching methodologies, 

the use of translation in the second language (L2) classroom was pushed into the 

background. 

Since then, translation and language teaching have been incompatible. Yet taking 

into account that one of the main purposes of translation is communication, and that one 

the main goals of learning a L2 is communication, too, this incompatibility does not seem 

to be intrinsic. The aversion of using translation in the L2 classroom was due in part to 

the belief in the old-fashioned grammar-translation methodology used in the beginning of

the twentieth century, but also due to the implementation of a translation course 

curriculum in a L2 classroom. 

The goal of this thesis is to consider the use of translation as another component 

along with the four skills of the foreign language teaching: speaking, writing, listening 

and reading. It is proposed that translation, as a pedagogical resource, may contribute to 

enhance the learner’s accuracy of the L2, which will eventually foster communicative 

confidence and development of their linguistic and communicative skills in both 

languages. Specifically, this work focuses on teaching discourse and text analysis in L2 

through the implementation of translation exercises. 

Translation and Second Language Teaching 

It was in the nineteenth century when the use of translation in language teaching 

got its first detractors, and followed later by members of the Reform Movement, like 

Sweet (1899/1964) and Jespersen (1901/1904). 

In the twentieth century, new language teaching and learning methodologies, such 

as the direct, natural and communicative methods, considered the use of translation in L2 

again detrimental for the development of the language. The reason is due to the 

widespread influence of the grammar-translation method. This method was implemented 

in the nineteenth century in secondary schools along Prussia, and it was mainly designed 

to teach dead languages such as Latin and Greek, where the main aim was to study the 

written form of language and learn to read it. In opposition to the newer methodologies, 

the grammar-translation method presented lists of vocabulary with their corresponding 

translation in L1, explained the grammatical rules in L1, and included sentences to be 

translated into and out of the L2. Due to the concentration on reading and translation 

8

exercises, this method had little to offer in terms of oral proficiency and communicative 

activities. Moreover, its major characteristic was to talk about the language and not in 

the language, and, consequently, the use of L1 could be greater than L2 (Hadley, 2001, 

p. 107). 

Some of the first detractors in using translation pointed out that “a good 

translation cannot be achieved without mastery of the second language. We, therefore, 

teach the language first, and then we may teach translation as a separate skill, if that is 

considered desirable” (Lado, 1964, p. 53). Nevertheless, in a L2 classroom the goal is to 

learn the language through all sorts of different communicative, comprehensive and 

writing activities. Consequently, we are not looking for professional translations, but for 

ways of learning how to express the same idea in L2 in different ways. That is why the 

use of translation should be considered as one more resource within the L2 curriculum, 

and not the reason for becoming professional translators. 

Another interesting objection to the use of translation was introduced by Gatenby 

(1967), who compared the implications of the translation in the L1 and L2 acquisition. In 

relation to the way in which a child learns its first language, he claims that “in the natural 

course of events, there is, of course, no translation” (Malmkjaer, 1998, p. 5). Similarly, 

Sankey (1991) points out the lack of translation in the acquisition of L1: 

“When they (children) acquire their mother tongue they do not translate it, 

but rather learn to understand it directly. Similarly, adults […] may 

immerse themselves in a foreign language and learn it by the direct 

method from native speakers […] The independence of understanding 

9

from translation […] suggests that one can understand a language without 

translation” (p. 418). 

If there is or is not translation in the acquisition of the language in a child seems 

to be controversial. Even when we try to extrapolate a child’s natural way of learning 

into an adult’s acquisition, there are substantial differences that might prevent desirable 

results. It seems to be the case that children’s acquisition appears to be unconscious. 

However, adults can make use of explicit awareness to facilitate communicative 

development due to their higher mental functions and their already existing code in L1. 

Thus, adults go from a visible language (learnt through L1) into automatic language 

(thinking in L2), while children go from automatic language (thinking in L1) into visible 

language (through literacy of L1). So in order to understand L2, adults may involuntarily 

filter the new language through L1. Consequently, one thing is to teach everything in L2 

in an adult classroom, and another is to avoid their internal thinking in L1. Then, adults, 

having their L1 as a reference, will automatically compare L1 and L2 consciously or 

unconsciously. In this process they usually use translation for their private speech as a 

resource to internalize and retain L2 words or expressions. This is applicable mainly in 

beginners and intermediate students. However, mainly in an advance level, certain 

students could reach that level of “automatic (or unconscious) translation.” 

However, keeping in mind the deficiencies of the grammar-translation method, 

nowadays the implementation of translation in L2 classroom does not imply the literal 

return to this method. Then, written and oral translation could be used without sacrificing 

a communicative approach. 

10

Relevance 

But, before moving forward, what do we understand to be the notion of “translation”? 

According to Bassnett (2002), translation “involves the rendering of a source language 

(SL) text into the target language (TL) as to ensure that (1) the surface meaning of the 

two will be approximately similar, and (2) the structures of the SL will be preserved as 

closely as possible but not so closely that the TL structures will be seriously distorted” 

(p. 11). Nevertheless, it is also important to notice that translation also involves other 

useful exercises to expand the skills of paraphrasing, simplification and/or summarizing 

not only in the L2, but also in L1. 

Then, we should think of translation as a complex discipline that goes beyond the 

linguistic activity of translatability. Schäffner (1998) pointed out that “such conceptual 

developments are evidence of the increasing awareness of the complexity of translation 

as both a cognitive and a social activity, which cannot be fully explained by reference to 

concepts derived from linguistics only […] Translation Studies by its very nature can 

thus be characterized as interdisciplinary” (p. 1). 

Consequently, based on the five “C’s” proposed by the Standards for Foreign 

Language Learning Project (Hadley, 2001, p. 38-41) (communication, cultures, 

connections, comparisons and communities), we could also think of the different 

activities that translation involves: 

1. Translation as a communicative activity, because it enables the construction of 

meaning from L1 into L2 or vice versa. As Zohrevandi (1992) points out “translation 

now deals with communicative needs and purposes for stretches of written or oral 

discourse […] what Dell Hymes calls communicative competence” (p. 182). 

11

2. Translation as a cognitive process, because conscious knowledge helps towards the 

development of L2 proficiency. It involves a deeper understanding and internalization of 

the language (translation becoming a mediation resource for communication). 

3. Translation as a cultural experience, because it also bridges and shares the 

transference of the culture in L1 into the culture in L2 and vice versa; 

Taking into account the complexity of this activity, it is also crucial to observe 

how the translation competence can actually enhance the communicative one in the L2. 

On one hand, the theoretical framework for communicative competence developed by 

Canale & Swain (1980) sets out four types of competences: grammatical (master of the 

linguistic code), sociolinguistic (use or understanding of L2 in different contexts), 

discursive (cohesion in form and coherence in thought), and strategic (paraphrase, 

gestures) (Hadley, 2001, p. 6). On the other hand, the translation competence deals not 

only with the language competence itself, but also with a textual, subject, cultural and 

transfer competences. It is true that a language competence counts theoretically with the 

pragmatic and discursive dimension of the language; however, in practice, little attention 

is paid in these aspects. It is obvious that the implementation of translation could not 

only enhance the process of learning the language from a pragmatically and sociocultural 

point of view, but also contribute to a better and deeper understanding of the L2 and 

culture. 

In the L2 curriculum classroom, the weight of translation exercises should be 

proportional to the other standards in L2 acquisition. Then, the goal is not to translate 

full specialized texts (as in a course in a translation course) but to get introduced to the 

basics of translation strategies and exercises as a pedagogical resource to improve the 

12

learners’ L2 development. This begins with something as simple as how to use a 

dictionary. L2 textbooks do not even dedicate a section about it, and my presumption is 

that “it is assumed that students know how to use a dictionary”. This is partially true if 

we consider a dictionary in their L1, but it is completely different to use a dictionary in 

L2. One of the most challenging assignments is compositions. This is due to a variety of 

reasons, but one of them seems to be the misuse of the dictionary and, most importantly, 

the thinking in L1 structures and discourse instead of in L2 ones. Through the teaching 

of how to use a dictionary and how to analyze the discourse of L2 readings along with the 

comparison of L2 parallel texts, students familiarize themselves with the basic structure 

and flow of L2 texts. However, besides the practice of this activity along the course, 

there are multiple ways of integrating the use of translation in every day class that will be 

illustrated in this work. 

Thus, translation and related exercises, such as summarizing and paraphrasing, 

could be extremely beneficial to improve the linguistic proficiency. Schäffner (2002) 

lists the following benefits: “(a) improve verbal agility, (b) expand the students’ 

vocabulary in L2, (c) develop their style, (d) improve their understanding of how 

languages work, (e) consolidate L2 structures for active use, and (f) monitor and improve 

the comprehension of L2” (p. 125). 

Overview 

In this thesis, I will study the use of translation in the L2 classroom from a 

pedagogical point of view. I will mainly focus on strategies for the teaching of discourse 

and text analysis in order to improve discursive competence, which involves both oral 

and written discourse. In order to do so, I will lay out different pedagogical units 

13

considering translation as 1) a communicative activity, 2) a cognitive process, and 3) a 

cultural experience that could eventually be implemented in a L2 classroom. Therefore, 

these units will demonstrate that translation can not only serve as a teaching resource, but 

also as a valuable tool for the deeper comprehension of L2. In summary, the use of 

translation in a L2 classroom will a) verify comprehension and accuracy, b) build up 

passive and active vocabulary, c) deepen comprehension, d) improve writing skills, e) 

ease the retention of sentence structure, f) contribute to a better communication and 

expression, and g) assist in problem solving and make decisions. 

The rest of the work is structured as follows: Chapter 2 is an overview of teaching 

discourse and text analysis through translation in the L2 classroom, chapter 3 deals with 

translation as a communicative activity, chapter 4 studies translation as a cognitive 

process, chapter 5 investigates translation as a cultural experience, and chapter 6 

summarizes conclusions. 

14

CHAPTER 2 

TEACHING DISCOURSE AND TEXT ANALYSIS THROUGH 

TRANSLATION IN THE L2 CLASSROOM 

Introduction: Goal of Chapter and Overview 

The purpose of communication in the L2 is usually achieved within the L2 

classroom, however, what happens when students travel abroad? It is very common for 

students to encounter problems in the use of language in specific situational contexts. 

The question is: how can we teach students to use the language effectively and 

appropriately in different social and cultural contexts? In other words, how can we 

expand the use of language in the L2 classroom? The goal of this chapter is to consider 

the application of translation into the teaching of discursive skills in order to facilitate the 

internalization of L2 pragmatic competence. 

It seems that we are leaving out an important aspect of language that is usually 

learned through the interaction with native speakers and cultural experiences abroad. 

It is necessary to transition from grammar into discourse and from the language analysis 

into teaching language for communication (Celce-Murcia, 2000, p. 5). Taking into 

account that the practice of translation involves dealing with intralinguistic, 

extralinguistic, pragmatic and cultural issues, it could be extremely beneficial for the L2 

student to become involved with all those different activities in order to have a broader 

vision of the uses of language. By bringing the translation exercise into the L2 

classroom, we are reinforcing their use of grammar, broadening their vocabulary registry, 

and becoming aware of different situational contexts. In summary, students will be 

aware of adequacy in the L2 and will eventually develop a communicative or pragmatic 

15

competence. In fact, “aprender a reconocer modelos de texto equivale a desarrollar las 

destrezas necesarias para producirlos” (Carbonell, 1999, p. 111). 

In this chapter, I will first define the notion of discourse and text analysis within 

L2 field. Second, I will apply an exercise of different types of translation as a tool to 

enhance the internalization of L2 discursive skills. 

Defining discourse and text analysis in the L2 classroom 

Theoretical linguistics has traditionally been divided according to different areas 

for the study of language: phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, and 

pragmatics. Discourse and text analysis belongs to this latter area of language. But, what 

do we understand by pragmatics? Mey (1993) defines it as “the study of the conditions of 

human language uses as these are determined by the context of society” (p. 42). In other 

words, this area of study focuses on the use of language in relation to its users and the 

circumstances involving the communication process. Therefore, in order to avoid those 

situations where the speech in L2 is grammatically correct but pragmatically incorrect, it 

is crucial to incorporate this dimension of language in our daily teaching experiences. 

Traditional research in linguistics has focused at the sentence level, but recently 

there has been an interest in studying the role of a sequence of sentences that create 

coherent passages of language. At the text level, it is possible to talk about two different 

approaches. On one hand, discourse analysis “focuses on the structure of naturally 

occurring spoken language, as found in such ‘discourses’ as conversations, interviews, 

commentaries, and speeches” (Crystal, 1997, p. 116). On the other hand, text analysis or 

the European equivalent text linguistics “focuses on the structure of written language, as 

found in such ‘texts’ as essays, notices, road signs, and chapters” (Crystal, 1997, p. 116). 

16

Carbonell proposes a more detailed comparison of these two concepts (Carbonell, 1999, 

p. 100): Text Linguistics/Text Analysis Discourse Analysis 

Focus on the model Focus on the data 

Theoretical approach Descriptive approach 

Class data Sample data 

Competence Performance 

Written language Oral language 

However, this distinction has not always been considered, and both ‘discourse’ 

and ‘text’ are sometimes use in a broader sense to refer to all communicative language 

whether spoken or written (Crystal, 1997, 116). 

Celce-Murcia (2000) defines discourse analysis as “minimally the study of 

language in use that extends beyond sentence boundaries” (p. 4). Widdowson explains 

that: 

“whereas grammarians are concerned with rules of usage, which are 

exemplified in sentences, discourse analysts study rules of use, which 

describes how utterances perform social acts. Sentences combine to form 

text and the relations between sentences are aspects of grammatical 

cohesion; utterances combine to form discourse and the relations between 

them are aspects of discourse coherence” (as cited in Kramsch, 1981, 

p. 2). 

There are different types of discourse, depending on what factors are taken 

into account (Celce-Murcia, 2000). From the channel perspective, discourse can 

be oral or written, both distinguished by register (level of formality) and genre 

17

(type of intention or purpose according to the audience and the style and format). 

Considering the number of people, it can be monologic (one person) or dialogic 

(two or more people). In relation to the speaker/writer intention, it can be planned 

or unplanned. Finally, from the speaker/writer point of view, it can be 

transactional, if the discourse is informative, or interactional, if the discourse 

expresses the speaker/writer attitude towards the situation. Nevertheless, it is 

necessary to be aware that rarely does any communication solely resemble a 

single form of discourse, and, thus, there would be different types of discourse 

involved. 

It usually happens that no matter how fluent or capable some students are at 

managing their L2 skills, they still do not speak or sound as a native speaker. Kramsch 

(1981) cites Sajavaara’s research, who found that “it is not the good language 

competence that is an indicator of fluency, but the perception of the hearer, what sort of 

attitudes various elements in a speaker’s performance trigger in the hearer” (p. 21). Thus, 

in order to sound as a native speaker, it is important to take into account the discursive 

dimension of language, which involves the following set of features (Celce-Murcia, 

2000): 

1. Cohesion (bottom-up) refers to the natural flow of language, that is, those grammatical 

ties that link all the ideas and create the semantic unity of a text. Halliday and Hasan 

proposed four types: reference, ellipsis, substitution, and conjunction. 

2. Coherence (top-down) provides the unity of a piece of discourse, like the utterances 

and the relations between each other. It characterizes the discourse as logical and 

reasoned. 

18

3. Information structure: alludes to the dichotomy between the old or shared information, 

named topic, versus the new and unknown information, named rhema. When the 

discourse has some unknown presuppositions for one of the interlocutors, then, it is 

necessary to make use of the negotiation of meaning. 

4. Conversation analysis (turn-taking) is very important in oral discourse. It requires 

speakers to know how to monitor and to control each other’s turn-taking, in order to 

achieve an adequate oral interaction, such as in a dialogue. 

5. Critical discourse analysis: is the degree of subjectivity that the speaker/writer adds in 

their discourse. Therefore, it must “be analyzed in terms of the political ideology, social 

history, and power structures that it embodies and expresses, explicitly or indirectly” 

(Celce-Murcia, 2000, p.10). This aspect of discourse should be reinforced through 

discussions and debates in the L2 classroom. 

These five components will be applied in the following chapters to different 

activities as a complementary resource for the acquisition of discursive skills. 

Due to the teacher’s discursive privileges that allow him/her to have control over 

students’ turn-taking, it is, in fact, the L2 classroom what makes the acquisition of the 

language sometimes difficult. Therefore, Gremmo states that “the teacher’s task of 

classroom management is clearly reflected in his task of discourse management” (as cited 

in Kramsch 1981, p. 14). 

In order to develop interaction, students must learn the key moves in the 

management of the L2 discourse (Kramsch, 1981). In this sense, Di Pietro (1987) 

proposed his strategic interaction, as a communicative and pragmatic activity where 

students rehearse problem-solving strategies based on real daily life. In Di Pietro’s 

19

words, strategic interaction is defined as a “classroom activity that motivates students to 

converse purposefully with each other by casting them in roles based on or taken from 

real life” (p. 2). 

How to teach discourse and text analysis through translation 

Mastering a L2 requires going beyond the acquisition of pure linguistic skills. In 

order to gain command in L2, it is extremely valuable to analyze and contrast the style, 

format and organization of the discourse in both L1 and L2. Translation, as a unifying 

discipline, could facilitate this task to the L2 student. 

For the purposes of this work, I am taking into account that students already have 

an intermediate level of linguistic competence in L2. Therefore, in the development of a 

pragmatic competence, it is not so important to correct errors or interrupt students to 

make remarks about grammar. The main goal of teaching discursive skills is to promote 

turn-taking and discussion in the classroom through the application of cohesion, 

coherence, information structure, conversation analysis, and critical discourse. 

How can translation help us to achieve a discursive competence? Roman 

Jakobson in his paper “On Linguistic Aspects of Translation” (2000, p. 113) proposed 

three types of translation as “ways of interpreting the verbal sign”: 

a) interlingual or “translation proper is an interpretation of verbal signs by means of 

some other language,” that is, translation between two languages; 

b) intralingual or “rewording is an interpretation of verbal signs by means of other signs 

of the same language,” that is, translation within the same language; 

c) intersemiotic or “transmutation is an interpretation of verbal signs by means of signs 

of nonverbal sign systems.” 

20

Even though all these types of translations could be communicative, cognitive and 

cultural, for the purposes of this work I will focus on the communicative dimension for 

the interlingual translation, the cognitive dimension for the intralingual translation, and 

the cultural dimension for the intersemiotic translation, as follows: 

a) Interlingual translation emphasizes communicative conversational management 

through listening comprehensions where students become familiar with the native 

speaker’s discourse. The idea is to recreate authentic situations through the 

implementation of authentic material, such as conversations on tapes or videos. The goal 

of the conversational management is to go beyond comprehension and “identify the 

characteristic discursive features of speech” (Kramsch, 1981, p. 33). Therefore, the first 

step is to comprehend the speech, and then make a summary in L1. Once the 

conversation has been comprehended, it is time to identify the discursive features of the 

L2 speech with especial attention to the oral markers such as pauses, hesitations, 

redundancies, tags … Finally, students could work on a translation into L1 along with a 

reflection of all the problems they encountered and the strategies they used to solve them. 

As a follow-up, it could be beneficial to work on different translations into L2, which 

would encourage students to look up other types of parallel conversational discourses, 

and both to expand and internalize their discursive skills. 

b) Intralingual translations emphasize cognitive processes in order to become 

conscious of genre and register in a given discourse. On one hand, students have to 

consider genre, that is, view the text at the level of discourse (beyond the sentence) to 

determine the type of text they are dealing with. In this sense, Katharina Reiss conceives 

three types of texts linked with their language dimensions: “informative as plain 

21

communication of facts, expressive as creative composition, operative as inducing 

behavioral responses, and audiomedial as films, visual and spoken advertisements which 

supplement the other three functions with visual images” (Munday, 2005, p. 73). 

Depending on each type of text, students would become aware of register, that is, the 

level of formality of the text in order to improve their adequate use of language in 

relation to the context (receiver, intentionality). Therefore, it would be relevant to work 

with different levels of formality through the comparison of L2 texts, as well as to 

translate into L2 in order to practice and internalize those differences. Taking into 

account both genre and register, students could develop a deeper understanding of L2 

variations and collocations. 

c) Intersemiotic translation emphasizes the acquisition of cultural notions. 

Students learn about the L2 culture by the interpretation of authentic materials and the 

study of the format. In this section, the intersemiotic system could involve images, as in 

the translation of advertisements, drawings, as in comics, and the contrast of news and/or 

comic-based news in different L2 newspapers. The translation of these semiotic features 

helps students to become aware of culture-related problems of translation, and help them 

to develop problem-solving strategies. 

In relation to the pedagogical strategies to implement translation-discursive 

activities, Sainz (1991) proposed six different techniques, as follows: 

1. Introduction passages. It consists of comparing the same topic in both the L1 and L2. 

Therefore, comparing news from newspapers and/or magazines facilitates students’ 

awareness of different approaches of presenting news, becoming familiar with the L2 

discourse and format, and acquiring a wider knowledge of current events and its 

22

implications in each culture. Moreover, using authentic materials could encourage 

students to eventually read the news in L2. 

2. Back-translation. It requires students to translate a text into L2, and after having set it 

aside for some period of time, either translate the previous translation back into L1, or to 

compare this previous translation back with the original text in L1. This technique makes 

students realize “how far away are from the original version and how their own 

translations can be misleading even for themselves” (Sainz, 1991, p. 70). 

3. Comparison of students’ translations with published versions. Once students have 

translated a text into L2, they are provided the original text in L1 so they can compare 

their translation with a supposedly higher standard. Then, students become aware of their 

own errors, but also of better problem solving strategies than the original. 

4. Collaborative translation. This consists of students comparing and sharing their own 

translations. The goal is to promote discussion among students. Thus, they could 

eventually see a better translation in each other’s target text, or admit more than one 

option as a valid translation 

5. Oral report. Students would have to choose and read a current event in a L2 

newspaper. Then, they would report to the class about the article content (paraphrasing), 

as well as the format, that is, a brief analysis of the vocabulary used, style, register, 

information structured, … This activity promotes the expansion of cultural knowledge in 

L2 through encouraging reading in L2 and using authentic materials. 

6. Transcription / Paraphrasing / Summarizing and translation. This technique consists 

of listening in L2 to a passage and transcribing / paraphrasing / summarizing it in L2. 

Then, students would translate the passage into L1. 

23

Pedagogical considerations 

The material development presented in this work is intended to be a complement 

for the L2 teaching. The activities proposed will help to deepen and reflect on L2 use 

through the awareness of different pragmatic discourses. Therefore, before implementing 

these activities, students should have been previously introduced to the vocabulary or 

grammar of the chapter, and the analysis of discourse components. For these purposes, I 

have designed a study guide (see Table 1) to show students some examples of the 

different discourse and text analysis components. 

The main goal of using translation in the L2 classroom is to promote the 

comparison of discourses in L1 and L2. The reason is that students must understand first 

the structure of L1 discourse in order to become aware of those cultural, grammatical 

and/or communicative aspects in L2 discourse that might need to be adapted to the target 

culture. By reflecting in the way language is being used, students will eventually 

transmit their thoughts into L2 in a more pragmatically-correct and comprehensive way. 

According to these activities, the introduction of translation in the L2 classroom 

does not only involve the process of translation itself, but also other strategies related to 

Translation Teaching such as summarizing and /or paraphrasing, which let students to 

extend their L2 vocabulary and improve in fluency. Moreover, as all these activities 

involve the use of dictionary, students would finally have the opportunity to learn how to 

use it. 

In addition, all activities presented in this work are based on authentic L2 

materials. Therefore, these activities are professional-oriented, as students could 

eventually face some type of job involving translation in their future carriers. By 

24

ecoming aware of these translation strategies, students will have the resources and 

knowledge to solve problems arising from translation. 

25

Table 1: Introductory explanation about discourse and text analysis. 

COHESION (linguistic competence) 

“Cohesion is realized linguistically by devices and ties that are elements or units of language used to form a 

larger text (spoken or written).” (Celce-Murcia 2000, 126) 

Some linguistic mechanisms according to Halliday and Hasan (1976): 

1. Reference: pronoun that refers back to a noun. 

Ex. Peter bought his first car. He is very excited and cannot wait to drive it! 

2. Ellipsis: omission of old information. 

Ex. What are the appetizer specials? 

(The appetizer specials are) Pizza skins, mozzarella sticks, and buffalo wings. 

3. Substitution: replacement of old information for a shorter version. 

Ex. I am planning to go to Florida for Christmas. If I do, I … 

4. Conjunction: conjunctions or adverbs that link ideas and sentences. 

Ex. It was a really sunny day. Therefore, she went to the beach. 

5. Lexical and verbal cohesion: 

Ex. As soon as they collected enough money, they deposited the cash in the bank. 

Ex. In the mornings, I get up at 8. First, I take a shower, and then, I have breakfast. 

COHERENCE (extratextual knowledge) 

Coherence in the text is created when writer and reader share knowledge and schemata that relate 

information and ideas. 

Example of non-coherent text: 

“A cat is sitting on a fence. A fence is often made of wood. Carpenters work with wood. Wood planks 

can be bought from a lumber store.” (Celce-Murcia 2000, 127) 

Example of coherent text: 

“The picnic was ruined. No one remembered to bring a corkscrew.” (Celce-Murcia 2000, 127) 

INFORMATION STRUCTURE 

1. Topic or theme (old information): “connects one part of the discourse to other parts through continuity 

in given information.” (Celce-Murcia 2000, 9) 

2. Rheme or comment (new information): “what it is said about the topic and that is generally new or 

added information.” (Celce-Murcia 2000, 9) 

Ex. My parents go on vacation every June. They love to go to a tropical island. When they go on 

vacation, they always stop at Miami, to go shopping. 

CONVERSATION ANALYSIS 

It is important to consider conversational turn-taking conventions: opening and closing, “who speaks, when 

and for how long, who can interrupt, how topics get changed, how much time can elapse between turns or 

speakers, whether or not speakers can overlap or not, and whether or not speakers can complete or repair 

each other’s utterances.” (Celce-Murcia 2000, 10) 

Adjacency pair 

- when the utterance of the speaker requires a conventional response from the interlocutor. Ex. Hello, what 

is your name? I’m Mary 

- when the utterance of the speaker requires from the interlocutor two conventional options, either 

affirmative, or negative. Ex. You work at Target? Yes / No. 

CRITICAL DISCOURSE ANALYSIS (CDA) 

“Critical discourse analysis is to deconstruct and expose social inequality as expressed, constituted, and 

legitimized through language use.” (Celce-Murcia 2000, 10). It views language as a form of social 

practice. 

Ex. What are the social and/or political 

factors involved in each pragmatic situation? 

(Crystal, 1997, p. 395) 

Conclusion 

26

In this chapter I have studied the dimension of discourse and text analysis in L2 

along with the main discursive elements that create the text. Then, I have introduced 

translation as a unifying activity that enhances the acquisition of L2 discourse from a 

communicative, cognitive, and semiotic perspective. In the following chapters, I will 

explore each area in depth, consider some applications, and develop materials which 

illustrate these principles. 

CHAPTER 3 

27

TRANSLATION AS A COMMUNICATIVE ACTIVITY 


If we assume that the goal of both learning a L2 and translating into another 

language is to transmit appropriate meaning linguistically, semantically, and 

pragmatically, then learning a L2 should be linked to translation exercises. The purpose 

of this chapter is to study how translation and L2 learning complement each other to 

foster communicative competence. 

According to Schäffner (1995), “translation and interpreting are essentially 

communicative processes that produce texts” (p. 1). However, it frequently happens that 

L2 students transfer meaning literally from L1 into L2, and consequently, they fail to 

produce communicative language. In order to move from literal into communicative 

translation, it is important to reflect on different ways of expressing same ideas. Hatim 

and Mason point out that “translating is a communicative process that takes place within 

a social context” (as cited in Beeby 1996, 37). Therefore, it is crucial to study 

conversational dynamics in L2 within a specific sociocultural framework. The 

acquisition and comprehension of L2 discourses and its comparison with L1 discourses 

could eventually contribute to produce better communicative utterances in L2, as well as 

to gain a deeper understanding of both L1 and L2. 

In this chapter, I will first clarify the concept of interlingual translation. Then, I 

will study translation from a communicative point of view, and I will present the 

similarities of translation and L2 communicative competence. Finally, I will exemplify 

some practical applications, where communication is involved. 

Interlingual Translation 

28

As mentioned in a previous chapter, interlingual translation or “translation proper 

is an interpretation of verbal signs by means of some other language,” that is, translation 

between two languages (Jakobson 2000, p. 113). This type of translation involves 

communicative as well as translation competence in both the source and the target 

languages. 

Following the theoretical framework proposed by Canale and Swain (1980/1983), 

communicative competence in language teaching embraces four competences: 

grammatical (master of the linguistic code), sociolinguistic (use or understanding of 

different contexts), discourse (cohesion in form and cohesion in thought) and strategic 

(verbal and non-verbal communication strategies). According to Beeby (1996), the 

student translator competence includes a grammatical dimension (linguistic rules of 

source and target languages), sociolinguistic dimension (utterances within a situational 

context in source and target languages), discourse dimension (cohesion and coherence in 

source and target languages) and transfer dimesion (“strategies to improve 

communication or to compensate for communication breakdowns”) (p. 102). Comparing 

both competences in L2 learning and translation, it seems that both disciplines do not 

exclude each other. On the contrary, they should be considered as a complement: L2 

learning leads to the ability to translate and vice versa, translation enhances L2 learning. 

Consequently, taking into account that L2 learning and translation share the same 

communicative purposes, how can we achieve a “communicative translation”? Newmark 

differentiates between semantic and communicative translation. On one hand, 

communicative translation is “an attempt to produce the same effect on the reader of the 

translation as that made on the reader of the original” (as cited in Beeby 1996, p. 29). On 

29

the other hand, semantic translation “attempts to render the exact contextual meaning of 

the original, within the limits allowed by the semantic and syntactic structures of the 

second language” (as cited in Beeby, 1996, p. 29). Therefore, students should consider 

this communicative aspect of translation in order to produce coherent discourses. The 

role of L2 teacher is, in summary, to promote communicative translations of thoughts or 

ideas within a communicative L2 framework. 

Translation as a Communicative Activity 

If we consider language to be a communicative activity, then, translation, as the 

conveyance of meaning among two or more languages, should also be considered a 

communicative activity. Following Carbonell (1999), 

“lo que se dice del lenguaje puede decirse de la traducción […] la 

traducción es precisamente una situación de lenguaje en uso en la que se 

dan, por lo menos, las siguientes etapas: entender el mensaje original, 

evaluar la situación comunicativa en el contexto de origen, prever la 

situación comunicativa del contexto de destino y elaborar un nuevo 

mensaje en la lengua terminal” (p. 49). 

Then, how do we know if our production is communicative in the L2? According 

to Schäffner (1995), “the goal of communication can be achieved only when the foreign 

text is no longer inscrutably foreign, but made comprehensible in a distinctively domestic 

form” (p. 9) 

It is true that any type of text, written or oral, should be communicative. 

However, for the purposes of this chapter, I am going to focus on oral discourses and 

written discourses meant to be oral (as interviews or theatre plays). Oral communication 

30

tends to be spontaneous, and requires an immediate interaction. Therefore, L2 speakers 

might have difficulty in expressing communicative utterances due to the short reaction 

time of the oral format. 

Considering discourse analysis, which we categorized in previous chapters as 

spoken language analysis, I am going to focus on an approach called conversation 

analysis. This approach is a type of discourse analysis that conceives spoken language 

from a different perspective. Conversation analysis observes conversations (data-driven), 

and “determines how individuals experience, make sense of and report their interactions” 

(Crystal, 1997, p. 116). However, discourse analysis “views any text (including 

conversations) as a collection of well-formed sentences (grammar-driven)” (Mey, 1993, 

p. 195). Conversation analysis studies natural conversations taken from tapes or videos, 

and then, those conversations are analyzed in relation to their oral properties. Therefore, 

while discourse analysis deals with deductive and quantitative factors, conversational 

analysis tackles empirical and inductive work. 

From the conversational analysis perspective, it would be interesting to study 

turn-taking processes, sequence organization and strategies to repair any message. In 

order to have a successful conversation in L2, students should “adopt a ‘cooperative 

principle’, […] that is, to try to get along with each other by following certain 

conversational maxims that underlie the efficient use of language” (Crystal, 1997, p. 

117). In this sense, Grice (1975) proposed four conversational maxims: 

a) Maxim of quality. It is expected that the speaker is saying the truth, and the speaker 

itself expects the receiver to consider the conversation true. 

31

) Maxim of quantity. It states that the conversation should be pertinent and informative, 

thus one should not talk too little or too much. 

c) Maxim of relevance. The conversation should be related to the purpose of exchange. 

d) Maxim of manner. It states that the conversation should be clear, “avoiding obscurity 

and ambiguity” (Crystal, 1997, p. 117) . 

In summary, students, through the observation of authentic material (like 

conversations), could analyze the different properties of L2 conversational dynamics. 

This reflection would eventually help students to improve their L2 oral production. 

Practical applications 

Below I illustrate these principles through two activities (see Tables 2 and 3) 1 that 

could be implemented in the L2 classroom in order for students to gain communicative 

awareness through different oral discourses. 

The materials for each activity can be found in Appendix A. 

Each activity is presented through a table, where focus, skills, level, duration, 

organization, material, objectives, translation strategies, and structure of the activity are 

outlined. 

1 The format of tables 2 to 9 are inspired by Moreno, C. et al. (1999). Actividades 

lúdicas para la clase de español. Sgel: Madrid. 

32

Table 2: Communicative activity #1 

1. ¿QUÉ VAN A COMER? 

Focus: Communication 

Skills: - oral comprehension 

- written comprehension and 

production 

Duration: 50 minutes 

Material: video 

script 

Translation strategies: 

summary of scene 

analysis and awareness of conversational 

dynamics 

translation into L1 

33 

Level: Intermediate 

Advanced 

Organization: Group work 

Objectives: 

Linguistics 

- To use vocabulary related to food. 

Communicative 

- To become familiar with the pragmatic 

situation of ordering in a restaurant. 

Cultural 

- To become aware of differences between 

ordering in a restaurant in L1 and in L2. 

The study of conversational dynamics seems to be extremely useful for students when traveling 

abroad. A deep understanding of tense uses, appropriate register, and formalisms through turntaking 

contribute to an improvement of oral skills. 

Structure of the activity 

Step 1: Watch video in L2 

Step 2: Summarize video conversation 

Step 3: Analyze discourse through the script 

- What elements of discourse create cohesion and coherence? Take a closer look 

at pronouns, adverbs, connectors, and verb tenses. 

- How is the information structured? (old vs. new) 

- Can you find an example of an adjacency pair? Is the turn-taking predictable? If so, 

explain why. 

Step 4: Translate the whole conversation into L1 and note any differences in relation with your 

culture. 

Step 5: Share problems that arose during the translation process, and explain the strategies you 

used to solve them. 

Step 6: What social values are implied in this discourse? Consider differences in customer 

service, tip, and general cultural conventions. 

Project: choose a different pragmatic setting, and prepare a similar conversation in L2 with your 

group. Do not forget to consider different cultural implications.

Table 3: Communicative activity #2 

2. INTERVIEW WITH ISABEL ALLENDE 

Focus: Communication 



production 


Material: Source text in L1 

Parallel text in L2 



use of parallel texts in L2 

analysis and awareness of conversational 

dynamics 

34 


Advanced 


Objectives: 


- To use all type of grammatical aspects. 

Communicative 

- To become familiar with the pragmatic 

structure of an interview. 

Cultural 

- To become aware of differences between 

interviewing in L1 and in L2. 

The use of parallel texts in translation is crucial for the production of an accurate text in L2. The 

point of this activity is to make students realize the importance of doing research in the topic of 

translation, as well as to become familiar with the terminology needed in L2. 


Step 1 – Pre-analysis: Translate interview into L2 (for in-class activity purposes, there should 

be a selection of paragraphs from the whole interview) 

Step 2 – Analysis: compare your translation with parallel texts in L2. Check if your translation 

has answers for these questions. 






Step 3 – Post-analysis: Reflect on differences between interviewing in L1 and L2, and write 

down your conclusions. What social and/or political values are implied in this discourse? 

Project: According to the model of interview you just analyzed, interview your classmate about 

his/her hobbies.

Conclusion 

In this chapter, I have studied translation as a communicative tool, explaining the 

relation between L2 communicative and translation competences. Then, I have 

introduced the term conversation analysis, as a useful tool for the analysis of natural and 

authentic L2 conversations. At the end of the chapter, I have included two possible 

activities that exemplify the implementation of both communication and conversation 

analysis. 

35

CHAPTER 4 

TRANSLATION AS A COGNITIVE ACTIVITY 


Many L2 students tend to have a very narrow vision of the L2 per se. As their 

teachers, it is our responsibility to go beyond vocabulary and grammar, so they become 

aware of other important aspects of language, such as variation. The purpose of this 

chapter is to use various situational contexts where the L2 is being used from different 

perspectives. 

Considering that cognitive processes of linguistic communication in L1 are 

complex, when we learn a foreign language, these processes get even more complicated. 

As adults, it is difficult not to filter the L2 through the L1, especially at the early stages of 

the leaning development. Even when a course is taught entirely in the L2, students are 

involuntarily (or not) processing all the information through internal cognitive processes 

in L1. Therefore, in order to take advantage of those higher functions characteristic of 

adults, and to guide the cognitive translational comparisons of both languages, I propose 

to make those processes external, so students can gain a deeper understanding and 

comprehension of the L2. 

In this chapter, I will first study the concept of intralingual translation, as a 

resource to reword different types of variations in language. Then, I will describe the 

cognitive processes that are present in language and translation during the L2 

development. Finally, I will illustrate some examples of activities where both 

intralingual translation and cognitive processes are involved. 

36

Intralingual Translation 

As I already explained in a previous chapter, intralingual translation or 

“rewording is an interpretation of verbal signs by means of other signs of the same 

language” (Jakobson 2000, p. 113). Then, this type of translation involves the translation 

of a message within the same language. 

Considering that any language has many different ways of expressing the same 

idea or message, it is important to make students realize the existence of variation in the 

L2. In general terms, it is possible to talk of at least four different types of variations: 

1. Diachronic, because it refers to a language spoken and/or written at a particular time 

in history. 

2. Regional, because for each language it is possible to find different dialects depending 

on the geographic area. 

3. Social, because it refers to the sociolect or class variation (educated, colloquial, 

vulgar) 

4. Functional, because it refers to the function of the language according to the situation 

(formal, informal, specialized languages, jargon). 

It is important that students are aware of this diversity within the same language, 

so they are able to use the appropriate language according to the situational context. 

Translation as a Cognitive Activity 

The traditional message model of the linguistic communication involves a 

“speaker, acting as a transmitter, the hearer, acting as a receiver and the vocal-auditory 

path (the sound wave) as the channel” (Akmajian, 1995, p. 146). As outlined in the 

37

following description, “communication is successful when the hearer decodes the same 

message that the speaker encodes” (p. 146). 

Figure 1: Model of communication 

SPEAKER / TEXT (encoding) MESSAGE (sounds/words) HEARER (decoding) 

If we compare this model with the cognitive processes of the translation model, 

then we realize that it gets more complex. According to Danks (1997), “written or aural 

input is subjected to processes of comprehension, interpretation, transposition into the 

other language, and expression, none of which, save expression, are directly observable 

in the empirical sense” (p. xi). 

Eugene Nida (1964, as cited in Munday 2001, p. 37) proposes a three-stage 

model of cognitive processes in translation that includes analysis, transfer and 

restructuring (see Figure below). 

Figure 2: Process of translation 

First, the translator must decode the source text or discourse, then s/he transfers 

the source text through encoding the message into the target text. Finally, s/he 

restructures and organizes the meaning accordingly into the target text. 

38

Figure 3: Model of communication with the process of translation 

SPEAKER / TEXT (encoding) MESSAGE (sounds/words) TRANSLATION 

PROCESS (analysis, transfer and restructuring) HEARER (decoding) 

In the L2 classroom, these cognitive processes in translation could be reinforced 

with pre- and post-translation activities, where students could use parallel texts and other 

resources. It is important to emphasize that translation involves more than the encoding- 

decoding of a message, that is, the grammatical or linguistic competence. In this respect, 

the notion of communicative competence, explained in chapter 3, addresses this issue. It 

is also necessary to take into account discourse, sociolinguistic, and strategic 

competences. 

Practical Applications 

Below I illustrate three potential activities (see Tables 4, 5, and 6) that could be 

used in the L2 classroom involving the translation and/or rewording of different 

variations of the L2. 

The materials for each activity can be found in Appendix B. 




39

Table 4: Cognitive activity #1 

3. DIACHRONIC VARIATIONS IN A PASSAGE OF “EL LAZARILLO DE TORMES” 

Focus: Cognition 

Skills: - written comprehension and 

production 


Material: Source text 


summary of listening comprehension 

analysis and awareness of register 

intralingual translation in L2 

paraphrasing 

40 


Advanced 


Objectives: 


- To identify old Spanish use in verbs, 

expressions and words. 

Communicative 

- To produce a communicative adaptation of 

the source text into modern Spanish. 

Cultural 

- To learn about Spanish picaresque 

literature. 

This activity involves an intralingual translation from old Spanish into modern Spanish. Students 

would become aware of the different use in register and genre of old and modern Spanish texts. 


Step 1 – Pre-analysis: Brief introduction to the genre and plot of the work (listening 

comprehension). 

Step 2 – Analysis: read the passage and underline words, verbs or expressions in old 

Spanish. 




Step 3 – Post-analysis: find modern Spanish equivalents for those verbs, expressions 

and verbs in old Spanish. 

Step 4: What social and/or political values are implied in this discourse? 

Project: Paraphrase the passage into modern Spanish considering that your audience would be 

children.


4. IF I HAD A MILLION DOLLARS … 




production 


Material: song 



analysis and awareness of grammar pattern 

and cultural references 

41 


Advanced 


Objectives: 


- To internalize the grammatical structure of 

conditions (if I had – I would) by producing it 

in L2. 

Communicative 

- To create a communicative adaptation of 

the source text into L2. 

Cultural 

- To bring L1 culture into L2 culture through 

a song. 

Students are able to internalize the grammatical structure in L2, by becoming aware of the same 

pattern in L1. It is understood that a previous explanation about this aspect of grammar is 

necessary. This activity helps students to gain a deeper understanding of the grammatical 

structure. 


Step 1 – Listen to the song 

Step 2 – Translate the song into Spanish, then answer these questions. 


at pronouns, adverbs, connectors (well, uh yeah, yeap, ooh), and verb tenses. 


Be careful with: 

- conditional structure in Spanish 

- register and genre 

- cultural references: consider different strategies for those cases where there is no 

shared knowledge between L1 and L2 

Step 3 – Correction, discussion of problems and solving strategies. 

Step 4 – What social and/or political values are implied in the song? 

Project: Look for a Spanish song that uses the same grammatical structure.


5. USE OF VOSEO 




production 


Material: source texts (poem & 

dialogue) 


analysis and awareness of register 

intralingual translation in L2 

paraphrasing 

42 


Advanced 


Objectives: 


- To internalize the dialectal use of voseo by 

analyzing its use in L2. 

Communicative 


the use of voseo into another dialectal form of 

L2. 

Cultural 

- To learn about the Argentinean Spanish. 

Students will reflect on different uses of Spanish according to genre. This activity provides 

students with a broader conceptualization of a particular dialectal use of verbs. 


Step 1 – Pre-analysis: Read both the poem and the dialogue. Underline vos pronouns as 

well as verbs used in voseo form. 

Step 2 – Analysis: Answer the following questions: 






- What makes the use of voseo different in each text? Consider register and genre. 

- Why is the pronoun vos more used in the poem? 

- Why are verbs in vos form preferred in the dialogue? 

- How would you reflect this dialectal variation into L1? 

Step 3 – Translate the poem and dialogue using all verbs in tú form. 

Step 4 – What social and/or political values are implied in both discourses? 

Project: Translate poem for a different audience (children) or genre (letter), or translate the 

dialogue into a different register.

Conclusion 

In this chapter, I have explained the importance of intralingual translation for 

students, as it promotes awareness of different uses of the L2, and therefore, it helps 

learners to expand their L2 communicative competence. Then, I have also studied the 

cognitive processes of translation in comparison with the traditional model of 

communication. Finally, I have included two applications for the L2 classroom that 

consist of activities related to variation in the L2 and translation strategies, such as 

rewording or paraphrasing. 

43

CHAPTER 5 

TRANSLATION AS A CULTURAL ACTIVITY 


It happens many times that students are not able to interpret a L2 text correctly 

due to the cultural gaps and/or unshared assumptions between source and target cultures. 

Therefore, the goal of this chapter is to consider the semiotic dimension of translation in 

order to study the comprehension of cultural implications in depth. 

The first step to face a text in a foreign language is to understand it. However, 

understanding a foreign language goes beyond the pure linguistic dimension of 

understanding those foreign words. As Schäffner (1995) points out, “translation is not a 

matter of words only, but it is a matter of making intelligible a whole culture” (p. 3). 

Moreover, a second step would involve the transferring of that cognitive comprehension, 

as Carbonell (1999) states in the following passage: 

“La traducción es un proceso de comunicación intercultural que tiene 

como base el lenguaje. Por lo tanto, la aproximación a la traducción 

deberá realizarse, necesariamente, a partir de una reflexión sobre la misma 

como actividad lingüística […] Por medio del lenguaje vivimos y damos 

vida a una cultura; por medio de la traducción ponemos en comunicación 

dos culturas y dos mundos” (p. 48). 

In this chapter, I will first briefly explain the notion of intersemiotic translation. 

Second, I will study the relation between culture and translation. Finally, I will 

illustrate this theoretical framework with some practical applications for the L2 

44

classroom, where both the semiotic and cultural aspects are involved in the 

process of translation. 

Semiotic translation 

The field of semiotics “investigates the structure of all possible sign systems, and 

the role these play in the way we create and perceive patterns (or ‘meanings’) in 

sociocultural behavior” (Crystal, 1997, p. 403). 

Semiotics owes a lot of the research to the American philosopher Charles Sanders 

Peirce (1839-1914) (Hatim, 1990). Unlike Saussure (1857-1913), the starting point for 

Peirce is the non-linguistic signs (such as social etiquette), so we can then identify the 

status of language in them. He proposes a triadic relation consisting of an initiator (ex. a 

marketing company), an object (ex. product being advertised) and an interpretant (ex. 

the audience and the expected effect). On the other hand, Saussure conceives linguistics 

as a model semiotic system, where the sign is divided into signifier (sound image) and 

signified (mental image or concept). According to Lotman (as cited in Hatim 1990, 105), 

“culture is the functional correlation of different sign systems.” “These 

different sign systems operate both within and between cultures, and 

semiotics deals with the processing and exchange of information both 

within and across cultural boundaries. Translation can now be envisaged 

as the process which transforms one semiotic entity into another, under 

certain equivalence conditions to do with semiotic codes, pragmatic action 

and general communicative requirements.” 

As mentioned in a previous chapter, Jakobson (2000) understands semiotic 

translation or transmutation as an interpretation of verbal signs by means of signs 

45

of nonverbal sign systems” (p. 113). The conception of translation as a semiotic 

activity is not new. According to Bassnett (2002), semiotics can explain the 

process of translation. Therefore, we have to accept that “although translation has 

a central core of linguistic activity, it belongs more properly to semiotics, the 

science that studies sign systems or structures, sign processes and sign functions” 

(Beeby, 1996, p. 37). Then, Hatim and Mason distinguish three dimensions in the 

process of translation: communicative, pragmatic (which “regulates 

intentionality”), and semiotic (“which regulates the relation of texts to each other 

as Signs”) (as cited in Beeby, 1996, p. 37). 

According to Hatim and Mason (1990) semiotic translation involves the translator 

in four processes: 

1. Identification of a semiotic entity in the source text. 

2. Information, that is, identification of an informational core in order to find a 

denotational equivalent for the cultural sign. 

3. Explication. If “the denotational equivalent is not self-sufficient”, an explication is 

added through synonymy, expansion, paraphrase … 

4. Transformation. It consists of considering any missing connotations in “intentionality 

and status of the sign” in the target text (p. 105-106). 

Considering that semiotics also involves syntactic, semantic and pragmatic 

features of the sign, Hatim and Mason (1990) conceive three types of relations: 

a) syntactic, when one sign is related to other signs that belong to the same syntactic 

category. 

b) semantic, when one sign is related to entities that refer to the real world. 

46

c) pragmatic, when one sign is related to its users (senders or receivers). 

In order for students to improve communication in their L2, and to fill 

appropriately those cultural gaps, it is important to become aware of these semiotic 

features. 

Translation as a Cultural Activity 

It seems that construction of meaning in any language always carries cultural 

implications. Therefore, studying a foreign language will always lead to explicit and/or 

implicit cultural implications. As Nida affirms “language is part of culture, and in fact, it 

is the most complex set of habits that any culture exhibits. Language reflects the culture, 

provides access to the culture, and in many respects constitutes a model of the culture.” 

(as cited in Schäffner, 1995, p. 1) 

It is important that students not only identify those cultural features in the text, but 

also think of different strategies to transfer them correctly into the target language. When 

these cultural features fail to be communicative, then other undesirable implications 

might arise in the target text, and create false stereotypes. As Schäffner (1995) explains 

“translations wield enormous power in constructing representations of foreign cultures. 

Translation can create stereotypes for foreign countries that reflect domestic cultural and 

political values and they can be instrumental in shaping domestic attitudes towards 

foreign languages.” (p. 2) 

Practical Applications 

Below I illustrate three activities (see Tables 7, 8, and 9) that could be 

implemented in the L2 classroom in order for students to gain semiotic and cultural 

awareness of the foreign language. 

47

The materials for each activity can be found in Appendix C. 




48

Table 7: Cultural activity #1 

6. SMOKING 

Focus: Culture 

Skills: - oral production 


production 


Material: news A and B 


summary of news in L2 

analysis and awareness of journalistic 

discourse 

intersemiotic translation into L1 

49 


Advanced 


Objectives: 


- To understand journalism discourse in L2. 

Communicative 

- To think of a hypothetical communicative 

translation of the source text into L1. 

Cultural 

- To find differences between journalism 

discourse in L2 and L1. 

Students will analyze journalism discourse in L2, and face problems and possible solutions to the 

translation of pictures linked to specific topics. This activity will encourage students to read from 

authentic L2 materials, such as newspapers and magazines, as well as to understand better the 

specific discourse dynamics of this genre. 


Step 1 – Pre-analysis: Read your piece of news, and write down a summary in L2. 

Step 2 – Analysis: 




- How would you transfer the picture into L1? Consider if the picture involves 

shared information or not. 

Step 3 – Post-analysis: translate one piece of news into L1. Then, share your problems and 

strategies if you were to publish them in a L1 newspaper. 

Step 4 – What social and/or political values are implied in the news? 

Project: Look for news in L1 about smoking, and translate them into L2. Use L2 in-class news as 

parallel texts.


7. GAZPACHO 




production 


Material: video 

parallel text 


summary of scene 

use of parallel texts in L2 

analysis and awareness of recipe discourse 

intersemiotic translation in L2 

50 


Advanced 


Objectives: 


- To become familiar with the recipe 

discourse in L2 (verb tense, words). 

Communicative 

- To create a communicative recipe in L2 

following the parallel text given. 

Cultural 

- To understand differences between recipe 

discourse in L1 and L2. 

Students will become familiar with the cooking discourse in L2. By using a parallel text, they 

will be able to analyze its structure, and they will produce a similar recipe in L2. This process of 

recognition contributes to a deeper and long-term understanding of L2 discourse. 


Step 1 – Watch a video about how to prepare gazpacho. Take notes of ingredients and 

preparation during the second time. 

Step 2 – With the information you gathered from the video, write a recipe of gazpacho. Use the 

parallel text to help you formatting your text. Then, answer the following questions: 




- Would you include step-by-step pictures or a final picture of the recipe? 


Step 4 – What social and/or political values are implied in the recipe? 

Project: Write a recipe in Spanish of your favorite American dish.


8. A PRINTED ADVERTISEMENT 


Skills: - written comprehension and 

production 


Material: Advertisement 


Translation 

Adaptation, if necessary 

51 


Advanced 


Objectives: 


- To develop linguistic strategies in order to 

keep picture and text related. 

Communicative 


the source text into L2. 

Cultural 

- To bridge cultural norms between both 

languages. 

The translation of advertisements always involves a double challenge: the translation of text 

keeping in mind its relation with the picture or image. Students will develop different strategies 

in order to maintain the essence of the advertisement. 


Step 1 – Take a look at the ad, and make a list of all the predictable problems. 

Step 2 – Translate the ad into L2, and answer the following questions: 




- How did you connect text and image? 


Step 4 – What social and/or political values are implied in the ad? How do you reflect those 

values in L2? 

Project: Choose a different advertisement in L1, and following the same process as above, 

translate it into L2.

Conclusion 

In this chapter, I have studied the concept of semiotic translation and its 

implications in the recognition of cultural differences. At the end of the chapter, I have 

proposed three different activities that involve the interpreting of different types of signs 

(images and text) and culture. 

52

CHAPTER 6 

CONCLUSIONS 

In this work I have been discussing the usefulness of translation exercises in the 

L2 classroom, as a complement to the L2 teaching. I have focused on the study of 

discourse and text analysis from three different perspectives, which promotes the 

comparison of the L1 and L2. First, from a communicative point of view, students learn 

conversational dynamics through interlingual translation of oral discourses like 

interviews, and dialogues. Second, from a cognitive point of view, students become 

aware of dialect, register and social variations of L2 through intralingual translation of 

texts. Finally, from a cultural point of view, students learn more in depth about the 

cultural implications of the L2 through intersemiotic translation of texts. 

The incorporation of translation in the L2 teaching could contribute to a broader 

and better acquisition of L2. The use of translation helps students, as mentioned in the 

first chapter, a) to verify comprehension and accuracy, b) to build up passive and active 

vocabulary, c) to deepen comprehension, d) to improve writing skills, e) to ease the 

retention of sentence structure, f) to contribute to a better communication and expression, 

and g) to facilitate problem solving – take decisions. 

It is important to point out that practice of L2 discourses and texts through 

translation could be crucial for the development and acquisition of the L2. However, this 

translation techniques and resources to study the L2 should eventually fade away as the 

student’s abilities in the L2 are internalized. Therefore, the use of translation in the end 

would not impede to a student’s gradually development of thinking in L2, characteristic 

53

of almost bilingual speakers. Even at this level, we can talk about a cognitive translation 

process; however, the difference is that the process has become unconscious or 

automatic. 

The activities presented in this work are intended to be for intermediate and/or 

advanced students. However, this fact does not exclude the adaptation of these and other 

activities for a beginner level. 

This thesis is a first approach for future investigation. Research on the 

implementation of these activities in the L2 classroom should be conducted to evaluate 

their effectiveness in relation to the student’s performance through comparisons with 

other classrooms that do not implement translation exercises as a means for promoting L2 

competence. 

54

APPENDIX A: MATERIALS FOR TRANSLATION AS 

1. ¿QUÉ VAN A COMER?: SCRIPT 

A COMMUNICATIVE ACTIVITY 

- Hola, buenas. 

Hola, buenos días ¿Qué hay? 

Vamos a ver … 

- ¿Qué tiene hoy, por favor? 

Hoy hay de primero lentejas, muy buenas, estofadas, ricas. 

Hay gazpacho o ensalada. 

Después hay pescado o filete, 

fruta, pan y vino por mil cien. 

- ¿Qué pescado tiene? 

De pescado tienes calamares fritos, si quieren ustedes … 

Tienen emperador a la plancha 

O sepia. Sepia no sé si queda aún. Me parece que se ha acabado. 

Y el filete de ternera bueno. 

- ¿Con patatas fritas? 

Sí, claro, con patatas fritas. 

Está rico. 

- Pues, yo, algo frío prefiero. 

- ¿Algo frío? 

- Sí, la ensalada ¿de qué es? 

¿La ensalada? Lechuga, tomate … 

- Pues voy a probar el gazpacho, mejor. 

- Gazpacho. 

Un gazpacho. 

- Yo una ensalada. 

- Y yo quiero gazpacho también, y de segundo yo voy a tomar emperador a la 

plancha, por favor. 

- Pues yo también emperador. 

- Y yo, si hay sepia, sepia, y si no emperador. 

- ¿Va con guarnición de ensalada el emperador? 

No. 

- Y para beber, ¿qué queréis? ¿Vino? 

- Yo agua. 

- Agua. 

¿Todos agua? 

- Yo vino con casera. 

¿Vino y gaseosa? 

- Sí, gracias. 

Vale. 

55

2. INTERVIEW WITH ISABEL ALLENDE 

A) SOURCE TEXT 

Interview with Isabel Allende 

Laura Flanders - Working Assets Radio 

06.08.03 - "This is what happened in Germany, with the Nazis... and people thought that 

they could stand it. Okay, they could just tolerate it because it didn't affect their personal 

lives. 

We have to stop it. We have to stop it now, before it gets out of hand. This government is 

doing things that are not allowed in our constitution. So we have to react. What are 

people waiting for God's sake?" -- Isabel Allende. 

Chilean author Isabel Allende has lived through a dictatorship once and she's not about to 

sit by and watch democracy stolen a second time. 

In her latest memoir, My Invented Country: A Nostalgic Journey through Chile, she 

explores her recollections of her homeland, the lessons of its history, and her 

understanding of what it means to be Chilean, and now, an American. 

Allende was interviewed by Laura Flanders and by the audience of Working Assets 

Radio, a call-in program heard Monday-Friday on KALW-91.7 fm in San Francisco and 

on www.workingassetsradio.com. The interview took place on May 29, 2003. 

LF: The coup of September 11, 1973 in Chile, which overthrew your cousin Salvador 

Allende, and the attacks on the same date in the United States. You say these two 

September 11ths, separated by almost thirty years have come to make all the difference in 

your life and that the attacks on the United States shifted your relationship both to Chile 

and to this country your home, now, for many years. Can you explain? 

IA: Well. On a Tuesday, September 11, 1973, we had a military coup in Chile. It was a 

terrorist attack on a democracy sponsored by the CIA. Many years later, we had a 

terrorist attack on this democracy, on the United States, where I am living. I think that in 

my mind, both events have a great meaning because in the first one, I lost my country. I 

had to leave, and I lived in exile for many, many years. And the second event made me 

feel I belonged -- I gained a country. And the feeling came for the first time; I felt that I 

could relate to the vulnerability that people were feeling. 

56

When I came to the United States 16 years ago, one of the things that I told my husband 

was that this was a very arrogant country. It was a sort of childish optimism and childish 

arrogance that, nothing could happen here, that everybody was safe and we would 

prosper indefinitely and that everything would always be better and better. And that's not 

how life is in the rest of the world. So I always felt very alien. And then, for the first 

time, on September 11, 2001, I think that people realized how life is for the rest of the 

world and I could relate to that. 

LF: Now, when you go to Chile in your writings here in the latest book, My Invented 

Country, the majority of the book is about the pre-1973 period, in which, as you describe 

it, Chileans, certainly of the class to which you belonged, had some of the same denial, at 

least as you describe it. You say: "We Chileans had no idea what a military coup 

entailed, because we had a long and solid democratic tradition." You write: "No, that 

would never happen to us, we proclaimed, [pointing at "Banana Republics" elsewhere] 

because in Chile even the soldiers believed in Democracy. No one would dare violate 

our constitution." 

IA: Well, it was violated. In 24 hours, everything changed. And it can happen anywhere. 

It happened in Italy in Spain in Germany, it has happened everywhere in world. So no 

one is immune to something like that. And I think that it is important to remember that. 

That we only appreciate what we have when we lose it. And that can happen with health 

or that can happen with democracy. And it did happen that way in Chile. 

LF: Were you aware, immediately, of the change that had just happened in your life? 

IA: No. It was very sudden. It happened in a day, but we were not aware because there 

was censorship. All the media was censored and there was now news, only rumors. Also, 

because we had this long tradition in democracy, we thought that the soldiers would go 

back to their barracks in a week and they would call elections again. We never -- I think 

that not even the military -- expected it to last 17 years and have the brutal characteristics 

that id had. It was a surprise. 

LF: Now, many of the Allende family -- the closer family, perhaps, left, right after the 

coup. I think you said before; there was a plane sent, or a boat from Mexico on which 

people were able to leave. You didn't. You stayed, you continued to do work of a kind... 

at what point did you realize you have to get out and you went to Venezuela? 

IA: I think it was like a year later. I realized... slowly I realized that I had been involved 

in things that were... that you could lose your life for -- like hiding people and smuggling 

information out of the country and trying to put people in embassies to find asylum and 

that sort of thing. I got more and more scared. I felt that the circle of repression was 

closing around my neck and there was a point at which I just couldn't take it anymore. 

There were several signs that I was in a "black list." All this was, as I have said before, 

just rumors. Nothing was ever confirmed. The rules changed all the time. The 

repression became more and more efficient, more effective. And that happened rapidly, 

but in stages. 

57

You know, it is something very strange: You learn to live with things. For example, 

something is taken away, like let's say, the freedom of the press or... yeah, let's say that 

you're telephones are tapped so you say "Okay, I can live with that" and then the next day 

something else, and then you say, "Okay, I will have to live with that too," and so forth. 

And then after a few months, you realize that you have lost everything. But, you got sort 

of used to it. And then there's a point when you're talking torture at breakfast time with 

you kids. And all of a sudden you have this epiphany or this revelation in which you 

realize what kind of life you are having... and then there is a point where I left. 

LF: Ultimately, Pinochet was tripped up on his own legal shenanigans, leaving open the 

cases of the many, many, many disappeared and thus leaving the legal case open enough 

to prosecute. When he was indicted, there was an excitement throughout Latin America 

in particular, that finally, justice would be served -- that finally, there would be an end of 

this culture of impunity. What's happened to that feelingnow? 

AI: Well, I think we know that there is impunity, but there is impunity in the world. 

Look at the horrible things that other people have done -- the United States to begin with 

-- and there is impunity. People who should have been punished for their crimes have 

not. And people who have not committed crimes go to the electric chair. So the world is 

a very unjust, unfair place and we have to live with that. Historically, there is impunity 

for most crimes. 

LF: Do you think Americans generally have the sense of there being a "Culture of 

Impunity" right here? 

IA: No. Not at all. I think that we have, in the United States, that we are the best country 

in the world, that we have the best democracy, that justice is always served, that the bad 

guys always pay, that the good guys are always rewarded, etc. The Hollywood thing. 

But when we analyze our history and our country, we realize that a lot of things go 

wrong, very wrong. 

LF: You comment about 9/11 that in a sense it gave you a different mission, a new 

mission… how would you describe the difference? 

IA: When I came to this country, I came because I fell in love or in lust with a guy. I was 

not following the American Dream. I did not know that the American Dream existed, 

and I came here with the idea that I would get this guy out of my system in a week and I 

would go back. And that was 16 years ago, he's still in my system, and I have become 

American. 

I love this country and I want to change the things that I don't like, and I think that I 

belong and I have a mission. My mission is to be a bridge between two cultures. 

I speak English and Spanish. I write in Spanish, my books are published in English. I 

find myself with a microphone, addressing audiences all the time. So, I am in a position 

58

to tell them the things that I see abroad and people don't know here. They're misinformed 

or they don't care, because they don't know, really, what's happening. 

LF: What is the top of your list of things to tell? 

IA: Peace. Peace is the top of the list, because we think that we can go into another 

country and invade another country and we have the right to do so. And we invent all 

kinds of excuses to do it and now are inventing excuses to invade Iran or Syria or 

whatever. And that is not something we can do w/ impunity. Sooner or later, we pay for 

that. And I think that people should know that. 

CALLER: Keith in Fairfax -- Will the US apologize? 

IA: No, the United States will not apologize and that's not the point. The point is that we 

don't commit the same thing again and again. Because, the same thing was done in 

Nicaragua, in Guatemala. We supported the Contras, we supported Noriega in Panama. 

We have supported all the worst dictatorships in all of Latin America. We have 

destroyed democratic governments to install tyrants -- the kind of government that we 

will never tolerate in this country. 

So, that is what needs to be changed. Have a vision of the world. When September 11 

happened, people asked for the first time the question, "Why do they hate us?" 

They had never asked the question before, and they were not even aware of what was 

going on abroad. 

The world starts to exist, for Americans, when we are in conflict with a place. And then 

all of a sudden, Afghanistan pops up on the TV screen and it becomes a place. And it 

exists for three weeks and then it disappears into thin air. And then Iraq pops up, and 

then we forget about Iraq again and now we focus on something else. Our span of 

attention is really short. 

CALLER: David, talking about The House of the Spirits and how the end upset him 

[reconciliation] -- 

IA: The intention of the ending was reconciliation. It says very clearly in the book: not 

everybody who needs to be punished will be punished. And it says that we have to get 

over… we cannot pay back with violence. We have to… Never forget, butforgive. And 

keep on with our lives. And I think that that has happened in Chile. 

That ending of the book was really attacked everywhere when the book came out. And 

time has proved that that was the only way we could go on and recover democracy. We 

had to let go. And we had to let go of the idea... sometimes even of the idea of justice 

just to keep on looking at the future. 

59

You know, this was thirty years ago. I've met innumerable people who were victims of 

the dictatorship. I never have met anybody who says: "I want to rape the rapist, I want to 

torture the torturer, I want to kill the murderer. Never. People don't want to do that 

because they're different, they're better. They just want the truth to be known, the dead to 

be honored, and to go on w/ their lives. 

LF: You clearly don't forget, do you forgive the United States for what they did in Chile? 

IA: The United States as a country didn't even know what was going on in Chile. It was 

the government. And you cannot blame the population of the United States for what 

Kissinger and Nixon did... or the CIA. The same way that you cannot blame the United 

States today for what's going on in Iraq. Because, most people don't even know, what we 

see on TV is a video game. We don't really know what's going on in there. Now, we 

have the obligation as educated people to get the information, but not everybody does 

that. 

LF: The story that has grabbed my attention this week is the news from Guantanamo Bay, 

where we're being told that US officials are essentially planning to turn the place into a 

death camp -- with its own death row, it's own execution chamber. We've already been 

told that this is a place where 680 detainees can be kept without trial, there will be 

tribunals without juries and appeals. Now there is talk of even a death sentence being 

imposed. At what point do we say, here in the United States, do you, with your 

experience in Chile say: this is just too familiar? We must call this by its name, and what 

is it? 

IA: Well, this is what happened in Germany, with the Nazis. Slowly but surely, the 

concentration camps and the death camps appeared all over the country and in other 

countries too. And people thought that they could stand it. Okay, they could just tolerate 

it because it didn't affect their personal lives. 

We have to stop it. We have to stop it now, before it gets out of hand. This government 

is doing things that are not allowed in our constitution. So we have to react. What are 

people waiting for God's sake? 

(c) 2003, Working Assets Radio 

URL: http://www.workingforchange.com/article.cfm?ItemID=15119 

60

B) TRANSLATION 

Entrevista de Laura Flanders/ 

Radio Working Assets/ San Francisco CA 

WorkingForChange.com 

Junio 9, 2003 

Traducido del inglés por Ana Ugalde 

Radio Internacional Feminista 

Radio Internacional Feminista/ Julio 2003 

Una clase de Historia con Isabel Allende 

"Esto es lo que sucedió con los nazis en 

Alemania… y la gente creyó que lo podía 

soportar. Si, lo podían tolerar siempre y 

cuando no afectara su vida personal. 

Tenemos que parar esto ahora. 

Tenemos que detenerlo porque se nos está 

saliendo de las manos. 

Este gobierno está haciendo cosas que no son 

permitidas por nuestra Constitución. Por eso 

tenemos que reaccionar. 

Por Dios, ¿qué es lo que la gente está 

esperando? Isabel Allende. 

A la autora chilena Isabel Allende le tocó vivir una dictadura y ella no es de las que se va 

a sentar y mirar por segunda vez cómo se roban una democracia. 

En su última autobiografía, “Mi país inventado: un paseo nostálgico por Chile”, ella 

explora los recuerdos de su tierra natal, las lecciones de su propia historia y sus 

interpretaciones de lo que significa ser chilena, y ahora estadounidense. 

Isabel Allende fue entrevistada por Laura Flanders y por la audiencia de Radio 

Working Assets, un programa radial con llamadas, transmitido de lunes a viernes en 

KALW-91.7 fm en San Francisco y en www.workingassetsradio.com. La entrevista se 

llevó a cabo el 29 de mayo, 2003. 

Laura Flanders: Nos referimos al golpe de estado del 11 de septiembre de 1973 en 

Chile, que derrocó a su primo Salvador Allende y los ataques en esa misma fecha en 

los Estados Unidos. Usted dice que esas dos fechas, con una diferencia de casi 30 

años entre uno y otro, han venido a representar toda una diferencia en su vida y 

61

que los ataques a los EEUU cambiaron su relación tanto con Chile como con este 

país, que es desde hace muchos años su hogar. ¿Puede explicarse? 

Isabel Allende: Bueno. Un martes 11 de septiembre de 1973, tuvimos un golpe militar 

en Chile. Fue un ataque terrorista a una democracia, patrocinado por la CIA. Muchos 

años después, tuvimos un ataque terrorista en esta democracia, los EEUU, donde ahora 

vivo. Pienso que en mi mente, ambos eventos tienen un gran significado porque en el 

primero perdí mi país. Tuve que salir y viví en el exilio por muchos, muchos años. Y 

el segundo evento me hizo sentir que yo tenía – había ganado un país. Por primera vez 

afloró ese sentimiento; sentí que me podía relacionar con la vulnerabilidad que la gente 

estaba sintiendo. 

Cuando vine a los EEUU hace 16 años, una de las cosas que le dije a mi esposo fue que 

este era un país muy arrogante. Consistía en una especie de optimismo infantil, una 

arrogancia infantil de que aquí no podía suceder nada, que todo el mundo estaba seguro. 

que podíamos prosperar indefinidamente y que todo sería cada vez mejor y mejor. Así 

no es como es la vida en el resto del mundo. Por eso siempre me sentía muy alienada. 

El 11 de septiembre del 2001, pienso que la gente por primera vez se dio cuenta cómo es 

la vida en el resto del mundo y entonces supe que con ese sentimiento yo sí me podía 

relacionar. 

Laura Flanders: Cuando usted se traslada a Chile en los escritos de "Mi País 

Inventado", la mayoría del libro trata del período anterior a 1973, en el cual, como 

usted lo describe, los chilenos, por lo menos los de su clase, adolecían de la misma 

negación, según lo describe usted: “ Nosotros los chilenos no teníamos ni idea de lo 

que significaba un golpe militar, pues contábamos con una larga y sólida tradición 

democrática”. 

Y continúa diciendo: “No, eso nunca nos pasaría a nosotros, proclamábamos 

(señalando a las “repúblicas bananeras” de otras partes) que en Chile hasta los 

soldados creían en la democracia. Nadie se atrevería a violar nuestra 

Constitución." 

Isabel Allende: Pues sí, fue violada. En 24 horas, todo cambió. Puede suceder en 

cualquier parte. Sucedió en Italia, en España, en Alemania, ha sucedido en todas partes 

del mundo. Así que nadie es inmune a algo así. Pienso que es importante recordarlo. 

Que solo apreciamos las cosas cuando las perdemos. Eso puede suceder con la salud, 

puede suceder con la democracia. Eso es lo que pasó en Chile. 

Laura Flanders: Tuvo usted conciencia, de manera inmediata, del cambio que 

había sucedido en su vida? 

62

Isabel Allende: No. Todo sucedió tan rápido. Sucedió en un día, pero no nos dimos 

cuenta porque había censura. Todos los medios fueron censurados y no había noticias, 

solo rumores. Como teníamos una larga tradición democrática, pensamos que los 

soldados regresarían a sus barracas en una semana y que convocarían a elecciones de 

nuevo. Nosotros nunca pensamos – pienso que ni siquiera los militares – que pasarían 

17 años y que tendrían las brutales características que tuvo. Fue una sorpresa. 

Laura Flanders: Mucha de la familia de Allende – la más cercana, tal vez, salió 

inmediatamente después del golpe. Creo que usted lo mencionó antes; les enviaron 

un avión o un bote de México para que la gente se fuera. Usted no lo hizo. Se 

quedó, continuó haciendo cierto tipo de trabajo… ¿cuándo fue que se dio cuenta 

que tenía que salir y partió hacia Venezuela? 

Isabel Allende:: Creo que fue como un año después. Me di cuenta… poco a poco, que 

había estado involucrada en cosas ... por las que se podía perder la vida... como 

esconder a gente, pasar información fuera del país, tratar de llevar a algunas personas a 

embajadas para buscar asilo y ese tipo de cosas. Me fue dando más y más miedo. Sentí 

que el círculo de represión se acercaba cada vez más a mi cuello y hubo un momento en 

el que no lo pude tolerar más. Hubo señales de que me tenían en la "lista negra." Todo 

eso eran, como dije, rumores. Nunca se pudo confirmar nada. Las reglas cambiaban 

todo el tiempo. La represión se fue haciendo cada vez más y más eficiente, más efectiva. 

Eso sucedió de manera rápida, pero por etapas. 

Sabes, es algo muy extraño: se aprende a vivir con las cosas. Por ejemplo, si te quitan 

algo, digamos la libertad de prensa o... si, digamos que tu teléfono es intervenido y dices 

“Bueno, yo puedo vivir con eso” y al día siguiente te pasa otra cosa, y dice "Bueno, 

tendré que vivir con eso también” y así sigue la cosa. Y entonces después de muchos 

meses, te das cuenta que lo has perdido todo. Pero como que te has acostumbrado a eso. 

Y entonces llega un momento en el que estás hablando de tortura en el desayuno con tus 

hijos. Y de pronto estás ante esta epifanía o revelación en la que tomas conciencia de la 

clase de vida que estás viviendo.. . ese es el punto donde yo salí. 

Laura Flanders: Al final, Pinochet sufrió las zancadillas de sus propios artilugios 

legales, dejando abierto el caso de los tantos, tantos y tantos desaparecidos; lo 

suficientemente abierto como para ser procesado. Cuando fue acusado, en América 

Latina particularmente, la expectativa era que la justicia por fin sería cumplida--- y 

que finalmente se pondría un fin a esta cultura de impunidad. ¿Qué pasó con ese 

sentimiento? 

Isabel Allende:: Bueno, yo pienso que sabemos que hay impunidad, pero hay impunidad 

en el mundo. Mire las cosas horribles que otra gente ha hecho – para empezar los 

Estados Unidos – , existe impunidad. Los que deberían ser castigados por sus crímenes 

no lo son. Y los que no han cometido crímenes van a la silla eléctrica. Así que el 

63

mundo es un lugar muy injusto y tenemos que vivir con eso. Históricamente, ha habido 

impunidad para la mayoría de los crímenes 

Laura Flanders: Piensa usted que los estadounidenses en general sienten que existe, 

aquí mismo, una “cultura de la impunidad”? 

Isabel Allende: No. Para nada. En los EEUU creemos que somos los mejores del 

mundo, que tenemos la mejor democracia del mundo, que la justicia siempre se cumple, 

que los malos siempre lo pagan, que los buenos siempre son recompensados, etc. Estilo 

Hollywood. Pero cuando analizamos la historia de nuestro país, nos damos cuenta que 

la mayoría de las cosas salen mal, muy mal. 

Laura Flanders: Comenta usted que el 11de septiembre de cierta manera le dio a 

usted una misión diferente, una nueva misión... ¿en qué radica la diferencia? 

Isabel Allende: Cuando llegué a este país, vine porque me enamoré o caí en redes 

lujuriosas de un tipo. No vine porque estuviera siguiendo el Sueño Americano. Ni 

sabía que existía el Sueño Americano; vine aquí con la idea de que en una semana se me 

pasaría el enamoramiento y entonces regresaría. Eso fue hace 16 años, él todavía sigue 

en mis adentros y yo me hice norteamericana. 

Amo este país y me gustaría cambiar las cosas que no me gustan; pienso que tengo 

pertenencia y que tengo una misión. Mi misión es servir de puente entre dos culturas. 

Hablo inglés y español. Escribo en español, mis libros son publicados en inglés. Todo 

el tiempo estoy con un micrófono, dirigiéndome a las audiencias. Por ello, tengo la 

posibilidad de hablarles sobre lo que yo veo en otras partes y que la gente de aquí ignora. 

Están desinformados o no les importa, porque no saben realmente lo que está pasando. 

Laura Flanders: ¿Qué es lo más importante en la lista de cosas que quieres decir? 

Isabel Allende: La paz. La paz está de primero en la lista, porque pienso que podemos 

ir a otro país e invadirlo y tenemos el derecho de hacerlo. Inventamos toda clase de 

excusas para hacerlo y ahora estamos inventando excusas para invadir Irán o Siria o lo 

que sea. Eso no es algo que podamos hacer con impunidad. Tarde o temprano 

pagaremos por eso. Y la gente tiene que saber eso. 

Pregunta por teléfono: 

Keith de Fairfax – ¿Se disculparán los EEUU? 

Isabel Allende: No, los EEUU no pedirá disculpas y no se trata de eso. El punto es que 

no cometamos el mismo error una y otra vez. Porque lo mismo se hizo en Nicaragua y 

en Guatemala. Apoyamos a los "contras", apoyamos a Noriega en Panamá. Hemos 

apoyado a los peores dictadores de América Latina. Hemos destruido gobiernos 

democráticos para instalar tiranos – la clase de gobierno que nunca toleraríamos en este 

país. 

Eso es lo que necesitamos cambiar. Cuando sucedió lo del 11 de septiembre, por 

primera vez la gente se empezó a cuestionar "¿Por qué nos odian?" 

64

Nunca se habían hecho esa pregunta, ni siquiera se daban cuenta de lo que pasaba fuera 

de aquí. 

Para los estadounidenses, el mundo existe cuando estamos en conflicto con algún lugar. 

Y de pronto, Afganistán salta en la pantalla de TV y se convierte en un lugar. Y existe 

por tres semanas para luego desaparecer en la neblina. Luego emerge Irak para de nuevo 

olvidarlo y después nos enfocamos en otra cosa. Nuestro horizonte de atención es 

realmente pequeño. 

Pregunta por teléfono: 

David, hablando de La Casa de los Espíritus y cómo el fin lo desconcertó a él 

(reconciliación] 

Isabel Allende: La intención de ese fin fue la reconciliación. Lo dice claramente el 

libro: no todo aquel que debiera ser castigado lo es. Y también dice que debemos 

sobreponernos... no podemos pagar con violencia. Debemos… nunca olvidar, y 

perdonar. Continuar con nuestras vidas. Pienso que eso ha pasado en Chile. 

El final del libro fue realmente atacado cuando salió el libro. El tiempo ha demostrado 

que esa era la única manera de seguir adelante y de recobrar la democracia. Teníamos 

que dejar ir la idea... a veces hasta la idea de la justicia con el fin de mantener la visión 

en el futuro. 

Sabe, esto fue hace 30 años. Me he encontrado con innumerables personas que habían 

sido víctimas de la dictadura. Nunca me he encontrado con alguien que diga: "Quiero 

violar al violador, quiero torturar al torturador, matar al asesino". Nunca. La gente no 

quiere hacer eso porque son diferentes, son mejores. Lo único que quieren es que se diga 

la verdad, que los muertos sean honrados y seguir adelante con sus vidas. 

Laura Flanders: Usted por lo visto no olvida. ¿Perdona usted a los EEUU por lo 

que hizo en Chile? 

Isabel Allende Los EEUU como país ni siquiera sabía lo que estaba pasando en Chile. 

Fue el gobierno. No se puede culpar al pueblo de los EEUU por lo que hicieron 

Kissinger y Nixon ... o la CIA. Tampoco se puede culpar hoy a los EEUU por lo que 

está pasando en Irak. Porque la mayoría de la gente ni siquiera saben que lo que ven en la 

TV es un juego de video. 

No sabemos verdaderamente lo que está pasando allá. Como gente educada, tenemos la 

obligación de conseguir la información, pero no todo el mundo lo hace. 

Laura Flanders: La noticia que me ha llamado la atención esta semana es la de 

Bahía Guantánamo, donde dicen que los oficiales de EEUU están básicamente 

planeando convertir el lugar en un campo de la muerte – con su propia línea de 

fuego (death row? ), su propia cámara de ejecución. 

Se nos ha dicho que este es un lugar para 680 detenidos sin juicio, donde habrá 

tribunales sin jurados ni apelaciones. Inclusive hasta se habla de la imposición de 

una pena de muerte. 

65

Según su experiencia con lo que pasó en Chile, ¿cuándo será que digamos, aquí en 

los EEUU, esto es muy parecido,? Tenemos que llamar a esto por su nombre, y 

¿cuál es ese nombre? 

Isabel Allende: Bueno, eso es lo que pasó en Alemania con los nazis. Poco a poco, sin 

duda, fueron apareciendo los campos de concentración y los campos de muerte por todo 

el país y otros países también. La gente creyó que lo podía soportar. Lo podían tolerar 

porque no afectaba sus vidas personales. 

Tenemos que detener esto. Tenemos que pararlo antes de que se nos salga de las manos. 

Este gobierno está haciendo cosas que no están permitidas por nuestra Constitución. Por 

eso podemos reaccionar. Por Dios, ¿qué está esperando la gente? 

66

APPENDIX B: MATERIALS FOR TRANSLATION AS 

3. “EL LAZARILLO DE TORMES” 

A COGNITIVE ACTIVITY 

Acaeció que llegando a un lugar que llaman Almorox, al tiempo que 

cogían las uvas, un vendimiador le dio un racimo dellas en limosna, y 

como suelen ir los cestos maltratados y también porque la uva en aquel 

tiempo esta muy madura, desgranábasele el racimo en la mano; para 

echarlo en el fardel tornábase mosto, y lo que a él se llegaba. Acordó de 

hacer un banquete, ansí por no lo poder llevar como por contentarme, que 

aquel día me había dado muchos rodillazos y golpes. Sentámonos en un 

valladar y dijo: 

"Agora quiero yo usar contigo de una liberalidad, y es que ambos 

comamos este racimo de uvas, y que hayas del tanta parte como yo. 

Partillo hemos desta manera: 

Tú picaras una vez y yo otra; con tal que me prometas no tomar cada vez 

más de una uva, yo haré lo mesmo hasta que lo acabemos, y desta suerte 

no habrá engaño." 

Hecho ansí el concierto, comenzamos; mas luego al segundo lance; el 

traidor mudó de propósito y comenzó a tomar de dos en dos, considerando 

que yo debería hacer lo mismo. Como vi que él quebraba la postura, no 

me contenté ir a la par con él, mas aun pasaba adelante: dos a dos, y tres a 

tres, y como podía las comía. 

Acabado el racimo, estuvo un poco con el escobajo en la mano y 

meneando la cabeza dijo: 

"Lázaro, engañado me has: jurare yo a Dios que has tu comido las uvas 

tres a tres.""No comí -dije yo- más ¿por qué sospecháis eso?"Respondió el 

sagacisimo ciego: 

"¿Sabes en que veo que las comiste tres a tres? En que comía yo dos a dos 

y callabas," a lo cual yo no respondí. 

67

4. SONG 

If I Had A Million Dollars by Barenaked Ladies 

If I had a million dollars (If I had a million dollars) 

I'd buy you a house (I would buy you a house) 


I'd buy you furniture for your house (Maybe a nice chesterfield or an ottoman) 

And if I had a million dollars (If I had a million dollars) 

Well, I'd buy you a K-Car (A nice Reliant automobile) 

If I had a million dollars I'd buy your love 

If I had a million dollars 

I'd build a tree fort in our yard 

If I had million dollars 

You could help, it wouldn't be that hard 

If I had million dollars 

Maybe we could put like a little tiny fridge in there somewhere 

You know, we could just go up there and hang out 

Like open the fridge and stuff 

There would already be laid out foods for us 

Like little pre-wrapped sausages and things 

They have pre-wrapped sausages but they don't have pre-wrapped bacon 

Well, can you blame 'em 

Uh, yeah 


Well, I'd buy you a fur coat 

(But not a real fur coat that's cruel) 

And if I had a million dollars (If I had a million dollars) 

Well, I'd buy you an exotic pet 

(Yep, like a llama or an emu) 

And if I had a million dollars (If I had a a million dollars) 

Well, I'd buy you John Merrick's remains 

(Ooh, all them crazy elephant bones) 

And If I had a million dollars I'd buy your love […] 

68

5. VOSEO IN A POEM OF CORTÁZAR AND IN A CONVERSATION 

UNA CARTA DE AMOR 

Todo lo que de vos quisiera 

es tan poco en el fondo 

porque en el fondo es todo, 

como un perro que pasa, una colina, 

esas cosas de nada, cotidianas, 

espiga y cabellera y dos terrones, 

el olor de tu cuerpo, 

lo que decís de cualquier cosa, 

conmigo o contra mía, 

todo eso es tan poco, 

yo lo quiero de vos porque te quiero. 

Que mires más allá de mí, 

que me ames con violenta prescindencia 

del mañana, que el grito 

de tu entrega se estrelle 

en la cara de un jefe de oficina, 

y que el placer que juntos inventamos 

sea otro signo de la libertad. 

Mario: Hola, ¿de dónde sos vos? 

Sean: Soy de los Estados Unidos, ¿y tú? 

Mario: Soy de Buenos Aires. ¿Conocés Argentina? 

Sean: Muy poco. Pero me gustaría visitar tu país. 

Mario: Ah! Si viajás a Argentina, tenés que visitar a Mar del Plata. Es un 

balneario turístico muy famoso. Es fácil ir … Cuando llegás a Buenos 

Aires, tomás el autobús, y en un par de horas, llegás a Mar del Plata. 

Sean: Gracias por el consejo. 

Mario: ¿Qué hacés? ¿Estudiás o trabajás? 

Sean: Estudio biología. Y tú, ¿qué haces? 

Mario: Yo estudio ingeniería civil. ¿Querés tomar un café? 

Sean: Sí, como no, encantado. 

69

6. a) NEWS 1 

APPENDIX C: MATERIALS FOR TRANSLATION AS 

A CULTURAL ACTIVITY 

NUEVA LEY ANTITABACO 

Aumenta la demanda de tratamientos para dejar de fumar. La principal distribuidora de 

fármacos incrementa el suministro de fármacos sustitutivos de la nicotina. 

MARÍA SAINZ 

La entrada en vigor de la ley antitabaco ha provocado un aumento de las peticiones de 

ayuda para dejar de fumar. Más de 3.400 personas se han registrado en tres días en la 

página www.vidasintabaco.com, un programa creado por el hospital Carlos III de 

Madrid, que habitualmente trata unos 1.200 fumadores en todo un año. Cofares, la 

principal empresa de distribución farmacéutica, ha incrementado el suministro de 

tratamientos sustitutivos de la nicotina. 

Las farmacias están recibiendo una mayor afluencia de clientes en busca de ayuda para 

suspender el consumo de tabaco. Según informa la agencia Servimedia, Cofares 

suministró un 12% más de estos productos el pasado diciembre. En el último mes de 

2005, la compañía facturó 593.000 euros en 17.900 medicamentos (parches, chicles y 

otros fármacos); unas cifras que se espera que también aumenten en enero. 

"En las últimas semanas estamos vendiendo más fármacos sustitutivos de la nicotina, 

sobre todo chicles. Nuestro local está situado cerca de algunas oficinas y creemos que 

muchos trabajadores están comprando estos productos", indica a elmundo.es un 

empleado de una farmacia de Madrid. En este sentido, algunos farmacéuticos aclaran 

que el incremento en las ventas ya se nota desde mediados de 2005. "No es por la ley 

sino porque la gente está más concienciada sobre lo que provoca el tabaco", afirma un 

trabajador de una farmacia de Alcorcón (Madrid). 

"Desde finales de diciembre hemos visto que los clientes nos preguntan más sobre las 

alternativas que existen, los precios... Pero no se los llevan más", matiza otra 

farmacéutica madrileña. 

Lunes, 2 de enero de 2006. www.elmundo.es 

70

6. b) NEWS 2 

EL 31% DE LOS ADULTOS, FUMA 

El 19% de los trabajadores que no fuma se siente agraviado porque los fumadores pueden 

salir a la calle a echarse un pitillo 

20minutos.es. 10.04.2006 - 18:19h 

Tres meses después de que entrara en vigor la nueva ley antitabaco, un 31% de los 

adultos sigue fumando, según una encuesta realizado por la empresa Análisis 

Sociológicos, Económicos y Políticos (ASEP). 

De acuerdo con el estudio, la prohibición de fumar en los centros de trabajo no ha 

causado enfrentamientos entre los trabajadores. Sin embargo, un 19% asegura que en su 

empresa se cuestiona el tiempo que los fumadores emplean para fumarse un pitillo. 

Tres meses después de que comenzara aplicarse la Ley Antitabaco, el 31% de los adultos 

en España sigue fumando, frente a un 21% que se declara ex-fumador. 

Respecto a la prohibición de fumar en el centro de trabajo, un 75% de los encuestados 

niega que esto hubiera provocado rencillas o confrontaciones entre trabajadores por las 

pausas que realizan los fumadores para echarse un pitillo. 

Sólo el 19% reconoce que en su empresa algunos compañeros protestan por estas pausas, 

de las cuales los no fumadores no disfrutan. 

Tolerancia hacia los fumadores 

La actitud hacia los fumadores es, por lo general, de tolerancia, y el 62% de los 

encuestados afirma que "es totalmente justo que los fumadores salgan a la calle para 

fumar". 

Otra de las conclusiones que se desprenden del estudio es que la empresa debe adoptar 

medida para mantener la calidad del aire dentro del centro de trabajo. 

Los últimos estudios señalan que el aire dentro de los edificios es de menor calidad que el 

que se respira en el exterior . 

Lunes, 10 de abril de 2006. www.20minutos.es 

71

7. PARALELL TEXT: A RECIPE 

72

8. AN ADVERTISEMENT 

73

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PEDAGOGICAL APPLICATION RESOURCES 

I. FORMAT OF TABLES (2-9) 

Moreno, C. et al. (1999). Actividades lúdicas para la clase de español. Sgel: Madrid. 

II. APPENDIX A 

Sans, N. (Director) (2002). Gente de la calle. Documentos de la vida cotidiana (2) 

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III. APPENDIX B 

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77

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