BOOK OF ABSTRACTS - Lugos

5 th EST Congress
WHY TRANSLATION STUDIES MATTERS
BOOK OF ABSTRACTS
3 rd -5 th September 2007
University of Ljubljana, Slovenia

Book of Abstracts
EST 2007 Ljubljana
3 rd -5 th September 2007
University of Ljubljana
Editors
Darja Fišer, Iva Jevtič, Nike K. Pokorn
Department of Translation Studies
Faculty of Arts
University of Ljubljana
Printed by
Tiskarna Pleško
Printed in
Ljubljana, Slovenia, 2007
Organization
EST 2007 was organized by the European Society for Translation Studies (http://www.esttranslationstudies.org/)
and Department of Translation Studies, Faculty of Arts, University of Ljubljana
(http://www.prevajalstvo.net/index.asp?LANG=eng). The congress webpage is located at
http://www.est2007.si.
Scientific Committee
Gyde Hansen (chair, Denmark),
Birgitta Englund Dimitrova (Sweden),
Dirk Delabastita (Belgium),
Dorothy Kelly (Spain),
Heidrun Gerzymisch-Arbogast (Germany),
Helle Dam (Denmark),
Nike K. Pokorn (Slovenia)
Organizing Committee
(Department of Translation, Faculty of Arts, University of Ljubljana)
Nike K. Pokorn (chair),
Vojko Gorjanc,
David Limon,
Špela Vintar,
Mojca Schlamberger Brezar,
Irena Kovačič,
Nataša Hirci,
Darja Fišer,
Iva Jevtič,
Urša Vogrinc Javoršek
CIP - Kataložni zapis o publikaciji
Narodna in univerzitetna knjižnica, Ljubljana
81'25(063)(082)
EUROPEAN Society for Translation Studies. Congress (5 ; 2007 ;
Ljubljana)
Why translation studies matter : book of abstracts / 5th EST
Congress, 3rd-5th September 2007 ; [organized by the European
Society for Translation Studies and Department of Translation
Studies, Faculty of Arts, University of Ljubljana ; editors Darja
Fišer, Iva Jevtič, Nike K. Pokorn]. - Ljubljana : Department of
Translation Studies, Faculty of Arts, 2007
1. Gl. stv. nasl. 2. Fišer, Darja, 1978- 3. European Society for
Translation Studies 4. Filozofska fakulteta. Oddelek za
prevajalstvo (Ljubljana)
234302976
2

Table of Contents
Acknowledgements .............................................................................................................................4
Panels ..................................................................................................................................................5
Posters.................................................................................................................................................7
Papers................................................................................................................................................13
3

President of the Scientific Committee
Acknowledgements
This book of abstracts has been prepared as an orientation aid for participants in what will
be a rich Congress with many parallel sessions.
For their help, we are indebted to the members of the Scientific Committee, namely Helle
Dam, Dirk Delabastita, Birgitta Englund Dimitrova, Heidrun Gerzymisch-Arbogast, Daniel
Gile and Dorothy Kelly, and to the members of the Local Organizing Committee, Darja
Fišer and Iva Jevtič.
Gyde Hansen,
chair of the Scientific Committee
Nike K. Pokorn,
chair of the Organizing Committee and
member of the Scientific Committee
4

Panels
Yves GAMBIER
University of Turku, Finland
yves.gambier@utu.fi
Panels
Nike K. POKORN
University of Ljubljana, Slovenia
nike.kocijancic@guest.arnes.si
Allison BEEBY
Departament de Traducció i
d'Interpretació, Universitat Autònoma de
Barcelona
allison.beeby@uab.es
Dorothy KELLY
Universidad de Granada
dkelly@ugr.es
Christiane NORD
University of Applied Sciences,
Magdeburg/Germany
cn@christiane-nord.de
Angelique PETRITS
European Commission
angelique.petrits@cec.eu.int
The Bologna Reform and After?
In the last two decades, different working groups have tried to promote and develop
training in translation (e.g. Memorandum BDÜ (1986)/Posi, Socrates Thematic Network
(1997-1999), Gemersheim Declaration (2004)). The Bologna Declaration (1999) has put
forward several keywords in order to harmonize the different European higher education
systems - keywords such as flexibility, employability, competitiveness, mobility,
comparability, compatibilty. But most of the countries that signed the Declaration have
implemented the reform of the studies within the framework of their legal and
administrative regulations.
- What are today the challenges and consequences of the University reform?
- Can we talk about harmonisation of the curricula in translation while the number of
programmes has dramatically increased here and there? - Are professionnal-oriented
undergraduate studies possible without qualified teachers? Can we plan a European
training of teachers?
- What does the quality control imply as long as there is no accreditation process?
- What are the common requirements for the Master's Degree as long as a selection is
only sometimes taking place?
- Is the European Master's Degree as proposed by the DGT (Directorate-General for
Translation) an
effort to overcome the shortcomings of the reform?
- The third cycle (doctoral level) will be on the European agenda in Spring 2007: would a
dissertation be possible in a 3-year period? Would networks of professors (not necessarily
specialised in TS) be acceptable? Can we develop European Intensive Programmes?
- How can EST anticipate new developments and make recommendations for action
and/or for research in training?
5

6
Panels
Delia CHIARO, Chiara BUCARIA, Rachele ANTONINI
University of Bologna at Forlì, Italy
delia.chiaro@unibo.it, chiara.bucaria2@unibo.it, rachele.antonini@sslmit.unibo.it
In Defence of Empirical Research in Translation and
Interpreting Studies
Towards Research That’s New. Towards Research
That Matters.
The aim of this panel is to argue for more empirically based research within translation
studies. Research is generally understood as original investigation or experimentation
carried out to further knowledge and understanding acquired through diligent exploration
aided by a systematic method of enquiry. The result of research produces not only better
knowledge of situations, events, behaviours, phenomena and laws, but it also revises
accepted theories in the light of new findings. Naturally, the term research can also be
used to describe the collection of information on a particular subject, not to mention the
generation of ideas, inventions and artefacts which can lead to new or improved
materials, products and processes.
The image of a person in a white coat standing in a laboratory surrounded by coloured
liquids bubbling in test tubes or a faded photograph of Albert Einstein scribbling
mathematical formulae on a blackboard are likely to correspond to the collective
imagination of a researcher, a scientist. But what of those working within the humanities,
such as scholars of translation? While not corresponding to any popular image, are we not
also researchers? Are we not also scientists? If so, then presumably we too should be
actively engaged in finding answers to the right questions through methodical analysis.
Recently, Translation Studies (TS) has begun to be referred to in terms of its
interdisciplinarity. However, in reality, the interdisciplinary essence of TS has come to
mean two things. Firstly, by its very nature, the field is inextricably linked to linguistics.
Thus, scholars of translation, who had often been educated in linguistics, would naturally
apply linguistic approaches to TS. By the same score, the application of methodologies
deriving from literary and cultural studies applied to the discipline have also rendered it
interdisciplinary. Secondly, the physical act of translation itself can concern any element
of human knowledge, thus the label of interdisciplinarity is applied because translations
are carried out in every area of human knowledge. But, interdisciplinarity does not only
mean working from the perspective of a closely related discipline, neither does it only
mean translating texts pertaining to different disciplines. Rather than existing between
disciplines, in the sense of being neither here nor there, I would like to argue that an
interdiscipline also works with other disciplines on an equal standing. And not only with
disciplines which are simply close cousins, like literature and linguistics, but also distant
relatives like psychology and sociology, as well as friends of the family such as statistics,
mathematics and cognitive science.
At a time of immense technological change, massive relocation of human beings and
areas of large scale conflict, what can be more relevant than translation, the key to
intercultural communication? Yet much research within the discipline tends still to be
confined to intellectual argument, not to mention the plethora of small scale case studies
frequently carried out by translation scholars.
This panel aims to promote research from within the so called Empirical Scientific
Paradigm exemplifying research actually carried out by the three panellists within the
areas of audiovisual translation, interpreting and child language brokering. Amongst other
things the panel will tackle a whole range of objections frequently raised by researchers
within the Liberal Arts Paradigm.

Posters
Posters
Anna KUZNIK
Departament de Traducció i d'Interpretació, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Spain
annakuznik@catalonia.net
La encuesta en la Traductología
Orígenes, metodología, características (Taller)
La comunicación que nos proponemos presentar versa sobre la encuesta, sus
características y su uso en la Traductología.
Desde finales de los años ochenta, en los Estudios de Traducción, se empezaron a
realizar, en el ámbito académico, los estudios con aplicación de la encuesta. Estos 20
años de experiencia investigadora nos permiten plantear la existencia de la encuesta
como una técnica de investigación válida y común entre los distintos métodos empíricos
de investigación traductológica. Siendo una herramienta foránea a la Traducción,
proveniente de la investigación social y mercantil, ha tenido que pasar por una época de
exploración metodológica y de adaptación. Hoy en día, podemos empezar a resumir la
experiencia de su aplicación durante este casi cuarto de siglo y a afirmar su lugar
particular entre las encuestas realizadas en otros campos y entre otras técnicas empíricas
de investigación. Gracias a sus características compartidas con la encuesta de tipo
sociológico, resulta una técnica pertinente para investigar la realidad social, económica y
laboral del traductor e intérprete, mientras que su principal particularidad -y limitación a
la vez- consiste en un cuerpo conceptual previo aún no suficientemente elaborado y en la
dificultad de obtener muestras estadísticamente representativas. La aplicación de la
encuesta en los estudios empíricos sobre la traducción e interpretación demuestran, por
un lado, la consolidación de un colectivo laboral nuevo -los profesionales de interpretación
y traducción- de mucho interés para los investigadores, y, del otro lado, el acercamiento
de nuestra disciplina, cada vez más consciente y fructífero, a las Ciencias Sociales.
La comunicación constará de tres bloques temáticos generales. A saber: 1) la encuesta en
las Ciencias Sociales, principalmente en la Sociología; 2) la encuesta en la Traductología;
3) comparación entre una encuesta realizada en el campo de Turismo y un estudio por
encuesta proveniente del campo de la Traductología sobre la traducción de folletos
turísticos. Los bloques tienen una estructura paralela: en cada bloque se plantean
sucesivamente los principales aspectos metodológicos de la encuesta, desde el campo de
las Ciencias Sociales primero, luego desde la Traductología y finalmente desde un estudio
comparativo de dos casos de investigaciones por encuesta dentro del mismo ámbito
temático: el turismo. En la presentación de la aplicación de la encuesta en la
Traductología (bloque 2.), se tomarán en cuenta todas las encuestas recopiladas por
nosotros y realizadas en nuestro campo desde finales de los ochenta hasta el año 2005.
Queremos subrayar el aspecto multidisciplinario de la metodología de investigación en
nuestro campo y sugerir posibles maneras de aprovechamiento de los estudios referidos
al mismo campo temático (el turismo) que se hayan llevado en otras áreas de
conocimiento (el Turismo). Ya que comentaremos dos estudios concretos por encuesta, la
comunicación tendrá un fuerte componente práctico (taller). Toda la información
recopilada y las reflexiones que de ello resulten forman parte de nuestra tesis doctoral
que estamos llevado a cabo en el Departamento de Traducción e Interpretación de la
Universidad Autónoma de Barcelona (España), con el soporte de la Generalitat de
Catalunya.
A continuación desglosamos el contenido de cada bloque temático de nuestra
comunicación.
7

Posters
Bloque 1. “La encuesta en las Ciencias Sociales”: definición de las Ciencias Sociales;
orígenes de la encuesta; el uso de la encuesta en distintas disciplinas de las Ciencias
Sociales; características del método y del diseño de investigación con encuesta (método
cuantitativo, trabajo de campo); tipología de encuestas; diferencias entre las encuestas
realizadas en el ámbito mercantil y académico; diseño de investigación con encuesta;
fases de ejecución de la encuesta; la muestra y el cuestionario: dos elementos
fundamentales; puntos comunes y divergencias con otras técnicas empíricas de
investigación.
Bloque 2. “La encuesta en la Traductología”: definición de la Traductología; orígenes del
uso de la encuesta; su aplicación en distintos campos de investigación dentro de la
Traductología (presentación de la recopilación de encuestas en la Traductología; las
encuestas del ámbito mercantil y académico); tipología de las encuestas; diseño de
investigación con encuesta; fases de ejecución de encuestas en la Traductología; la
muestra y el cuestionario; tipos de datos recogidos; tipos de análisis de datos aplicados;
características comunes de las encuestas en nuestro campo; puntos comunes y
divergencias con otras técnicas empíricas.
Bloque 3. “Comparación de dos encuestas”: la temática y el planteamiento del problema
de investigación; el diseño de investigación; el marco teórico/ conceptual; los elementos
básicos de las dos encuestas (la muestra y el cuestionario); tipos de datos recogidos;
modelos de análisis de datos; tipos de conclusiones inferidas.
Para cerrar la comunicación y en términos de conclusiones generales, se presentarán
propuestas de algunos temas en nuestro campo -la Traducción e Interpretación- que se
podrían investigar con éxito, en un futuro, con aplicación de la encuesta y soluciones
metodológicas más apropiadas, a nuestro modo de ver, para este tipo de investigación.
8

Sieglinde POMMER
Posters
McGill University, Canada and University of Vienna, Austria
spommer@post.harvard.edu
How Translation Matters in ECJ Proceedings
This poster’s goal is to achieve a clarifying visualization of the important role translation is
playing in the proceedings before the Court of Justice and the Court of First Instance of
the European Communities. Inspired by her traineeship at the Highest European Court in
Luxembourg in 2005, the author aims at showing how translation is integrated in the
workflow of the legal proceedings and in how far these are influenced by European
multilingualism and the resulting necessity of translation.
Depicting how, from a practical viewpoint, translation matters in the context of European
legal harmonization, this poster highlights the paramount influence of translation on the
European unification project and describes legal translation at the European Court of
Justice as the invisible machinery of the ‘motor of European legal integration’. The
European Union currently has 21 official languages. The Translation Service at the
European Court, shared between the Court of Justice, the Court of First Instance and the
Civil Service Tribunal, exclusively employs so-called ‘lawyer-linguists’ who have completed
a full legal education in one Member State and are required to have thorough knowledge
of at least one other European legal system and language. The working language at the
Court is French. The exact course of events differs according to the type of proceedings
launched, namely preliminary rulings, direct actions, appeals, and procedures before the
Court of First Instance. The language of the case is the one in which the initial request for
a hearing in accordance with the law is registered at the Registry of the Court of Justice in
the language of the national court. Most translations are performed into the language of
the case as well as into the internal working language.
Furthermore, the poster gives an overview of what types of legal texts are translated at
the ECJ and at what time during the proceedings. The first document to be translated
usually is the request for a hearing, followed by the translation of the report of this
hearing in case an oral procedure takes place. In preliminary rulings, the Opinion, which is
drawn up by the Advocate General in his own language, is then translated into the
language of the case and into the internal working language. The judgment must be
delivered in the languages of the case and must also be translated into all official
languages. Similarly, in direct actions the application, the defence, the reply and the
rejoinder are translated into the internal working language. Statements in interventions
lodged by the Member States are not only translated into the internal working language
but also into the language of the case. Furthermore, minor divergences in the procedure
for appeals to the European Court of Justice as well as the one before the Court of First
Instance are addressed and the special tasks (such as additional translations of certain
essential documents for the case-file) of the language divisions whose language is that of
the case are explained.
Finally, this poster analyzes how the steady expansion of the European Union – already in
2007, the admissions of Bulgaria and Romania are expected - and how concomitant
complications and resulting drawbacks, such as delays or lack of translations and the
recent adoption of relay translation systems to cater for the new languages, influence
existing practices.
9

Jelena PRALAS
Posters
Institute for foreign languages, University of Montenegro
pralas@cg.yu
Practical Use of Translation Studies Research Results
in Teaching Translation
Being a small country and using the language similar, or the same as the language of its
much larger neighbours, Montenegro has never been a significant market for translations,
either literary or ‘technical’ (translations in the field of law, economics, technical sciences,
etc.). It usually imported translations from neighbouring countries, which led to the
situation that neither translation practice, nor translation training developed significantly.
Translation Studies has not even been tackled here yet. However, the period of transition,
reforms that are needed and required by international community, the need to harmonize
our laws with European and other international standards, and particularly aspiration
towards European Union along with the increased interest of various foreign investors in
investing in our country led to the increased demand for translation, particularly the
‘technical’ ones, which in its turn generated a demand for translation training (leaving
nevertheless Translation Studies theory and research aside, still non-existent or at their
earliest beginnings).
Having experience in translating, teaching translation and researching in the field of
Translations Studies in Montenegrin context I am of the opinion that Translations Studies
is not only useful but sometimes of vital importance if you teach translation with a view of
producing high quality translators. It makes translators start thinking responsibly about
what they are doing. It makes them be aware of the decisions they are supposed to make
and of the responsibility they are taking.
My paper will try to show and prove this by providing an example of using some of the
results from my research in Translation Studies in teaching translation. The research I am
working on deals with translation of culture-specific items in Julian Barnes’s fiction. Using
the dynamic definition provided by Javier Franco Aixela I am trying not only to identify the
culture specific items in the novels and short stories written by Julian Barnes, but also to
describe various techniques translators used when dealing with them, like conservation
(repetition, orthographic adaptation, linguistic (non-cultural) translation etc.) and
substitution (synonymy, limited universalization, absolute universalization, naturalization,
deletion, autonomous creation). After describing them, my research tries to tackle the
issue of the products produced in the process in which these techniques were used as
well as their effects.
One of the goals is to try to explain why the translators used the techniques they used i.e.
to find a rationale behind the decisions they made. Although my approach in this research
is in no way prescriptive, and although my wish is to remain in the domain of descriptive,
I think that the results of my research can be successfully used in teaching translation.
Not by saying to students that there are certain norms they should apply, but simply by
telling them that there are different techniques, describing how and why they are used,
and most importantly – showing them what the effects of the decisions translators made
in translating J. Barnes were. Seeing that, students of translation start changing their
approach in translation, they start thinking more thoroughly about what they should do
with culture-specific items when translating and about the effects of their decisions. This
does not necessarily have to be applied to literary translation. On the contrary. I used this
in the classroom where I teach translation of legal texts and my paper will provide
examples for that.
10

Posters
Mirna RADIN SABADOŠ
University of Novi Sad
anrim@uns.ns.ac.yu
Translating Nadsat
Language as a Means of Estrangement in a Clockwork
Orange
Translating generic fiction usually involves difficulties arising from areas other than the
language field. One specific case in that respect is Burgess’ novel, A Clockwork Orange.
Its popularity worldwide mostly relied on the commercial and artistic success of the film
by Stanley Kubrick, rather than on the novel’s literary merits. Therefore, its translations
often had been influenced by its visual representation, repeatedly showing disregard for
the idiosyncratic features of its text. Its narrative framework is retrospective first person
narrative, and the novel distinctively belongs to the dystopian genre, which assigns one of
the major functional features to the Nadsat language created by the author.
Presenting an innovation to the genre, Burgess formed this ‘new language’ mainly by
introducing innovated lexical units, which may be seen as blends with either Slavic or
Russian root, or combinations of Slavic roots and English suffixes, into the English
language system. Such a linguistic device, functions within the genre matrix as a means
of estrangement, i.e. it transports the reader to the unspecified point of time in the
future, without introducing any other means of estrangement (time travel machines,
dreams etc.) previously common to the genre. Therefore, maintaining its existence in the
translations would be of crucial importance. A contrast of Slavic or Russian roots and
English lexemes is another distinctive feature of the Nadsat, and its implications may be
assessed in literary analyses placing the novel into the appropriate social and historical
perspective.
The present paper seeks to provide an insight into the problems translators might have
encountered in their attempt to translate Clockwork Orange into Slavic languages,
presenting some of the solutions deployed in Russian translations, and more importantly,
to conduct an in-depth analysis of both the original and the translated text which would
provide explanations and evaluate translators’ choices regarding the three translations of
the novel into Serbian (Paklena pomorandža Zoran Živković 1973, Mirjana Mitić 2000,
Zoran Živković/Aleksandar Nedeljković 2006), and one into Croatian (Paklena naranča by
Marko Fančović 1999). The preliminary analysis indicates that even though the translator
of the first Serbian edition (1973) had recognized the importance of the contrast of Slavic
and “Germanic”, or English components, of Nadsat, he failed to conduct a literary analysis
of the novel, thus completely disregarding its generic structuring. Apart from being a
translation of the abridged American edition, published in the edition dedicated to the
international film festival FEST where Kubrick’s film was first presented to the Yugoslav
audience, the first Serbian version of the translation eliminated Nadsat completely,
substituting it with a version of fairly neutral colloquial language of the urban population
of the time.
The second Serbian translation followed as late as the year 2000, but surprisingly enough,
was also based on the abridged American edition. Nadsat in the 2000 translation received
no due attention either, or received even less attention than in the translation from 1973.
It was transformed into a semi-vulgar youth street talk of the 1990s, therefore no longer
functioning as an estrangement strategy, but quite the opposite, counterfeiting the time
frame and reference.
11

Posters
The third Serbian translation, the one of 2006, is expected by the end of the year. The
Croatian translation of 1999 offers a solution for the Nadsat which is fairly acceptable and
functional within the genre frame, but also lacks proper literary analysis that would
include all the aspects of Nadsat mentioned as distinctive features of the original text.
The investigation is, thus, primarily focused on the potential problems involved in the
translation of the specific linguistic features with multiple functional aspects within a
literary work, and the interlocking of genre analysis and translator’s choices affecting the
generic matrix of the translated text, hoping to provide arguments which would contribute
to the future translation practices.
12

Papers
Kristiina ABDALLAH
University of Tampere
kristiina.abdallah@uta.fi
Papers
The New Science of Networks
Uncovering the Major Principles Affecting the Field of
Professional Translation
Since the 1990’s, the field of professional translation has undergone major structural
changes. As a consequence, many in-house translators are being outsourced and
accordingly, the freelance market has become more competitive. With outsourcing,
translators are less frequently in direct contact with their end client, for they often work
as subcontractors in global production networks which consist of multiple intermediaries.
These new developments have greatly affected the role and status of translators at the
same time posing new challenges to Translation Studies as a discipline. How can we take
stock of what is happening in the field of translation?
This paper will explore the use of networks as a methodological tool to uncover the
underlying principles and forces that affect our field. According to the Hungarian physicist
Albert-Lázsló Barabási (2002), networks are essential tools in grasping complex systems –
and production networks are, by definition, complex systems (Patkai 2004). The paper
sketches an outline of a network analysis of the contemporary translation industry.
Towards this end, I will draw from my empirical ethnographic work that includes
translator interviews between the years of 2005-2006, and then relate this data to the
theory of the self-organizing, scale-free networks proposed by Barabási.
The traditional dyadic model that presents the translator as an expert who is in a direct
contact with the client is being challenged in the current translation market by a new
structure that takes the form of a network. This new structure no longer has the client
and the translator in direct contact, and the emergence of the translation company as a
powerful intermediary between them has changed the dynamics of the field, resulting in a
new configuration. This new configuration has been called a “production network”, which
is “a set of inter-firm relationships that bind a group of firms into a larger economic unit”
(Sturgeon 2001: 2).
Production networks have emerged in the wake of globalisation when lead firms (such as
television channels, companies or institutions) outsource those activities that were
previously performed in-house, and the turn-key suppliers (such as translation
companies) serve these lead firms by providing a full-package of goods and services. But
instead of hiring in-house staff, the turn-key suppliers often subcontract work to
component suppliers, i.e. subcontractors – who may in turn have another layer of
subcontractors for ever smaller units of work. In the emerging networks, these lead firms
often provide instructions and specifications on what to make, whereas the turn-key
suppliers can usually decide how and where the products or services are made. (Sturgeon
2001: 8–9.) The subcontractors have less say in any of this, and they are typically only
linked to the end client via the intermediary supplier. When translators get involved in
such economic networks, they are faced with a different rationality from the familiar
dyadic relations between the client and the translator.
13

Papers
In the contemporary language industry, the turn-key suppliers of documentation,
localization or translations often deal with huge multilingual projects consisting of
thousands of pages, and a subcontracting translator for one part of one language version
is merely one tiny part of a complex system. With network-based production, the
translator’s position and role as the expert of translation seems to have diminished, while
translation companies have firmly established themselves as the intermediary between
the client and the translator. Such a revolutionary development cannot be ignored in
Translation Studies.
A major challenge now is to extract information about the complicated working
environment with its various subsystems and about the relations of its actors. For as
Buzelin aptly notes, translated texts are the expression of the relations between the
various actors who have participated in their production (2004: 729; see also Buzelin
2005). As global production networks have made translating part of a bigger system of
production, the current challenge is to understand the big picture. In this paper, I will
take one step in this direction by applying some of the findings of Barabási’s network
analysis to the field of translation industry.
References:
Barabási, Albert-Lázsló (2002): Linkit. Verkostojen uusi teoria. (Linked: the New Science
of Networks).Translated from English by K. Pietiläinen, Helsinki: Terra Cognita Oy.
Buzelin, Hélène (2004): “La Traductologie, ethnographie et la production des
connaissances”. Meta 49 (4), pp.729–746.
Buzelin, Hélène: 2005. “Unexpected Allies: How Latour’s Network Theory Could
Complement Bourdieusian Analyses in Translation Studies. The Translator. Bourdieu and
the Sociology of Translation and Interpreting (ed.) Moira Inghilleri, Vol. 11, Number 2.
November 2005, pp. 193-218.
Patkai, Bela (2004): An Integrated Methodology for Modelling Complex Adaptive
Production Networks. Doctoral dissertation. Tampere University of Technology.
Department of Mechanical Engineering.
Sturgeon, Timothy J.: 2001. “How Do We Define Value Chains and Production Networks?”
IDS Bulletin, Vol.32, 3. 1-10. URL: www.ids.ac.uk/ids/global/pdfs/vcdefine.pdf > Read
1.3.2005.
14

Papers
Barbara AHRENS*, Eliza KALDERONOVA**, Christoph KRICK, Wolfgang REITH
*University of Applied Sciences Cologne
barbara.ahrens@fh-koeln.de
**University of Mainz / FASK Germersheim
eliza.kalderonova@gmx.net
fMRI for Exploring Simultaneous Interpreting
For centuries, human cognition and its underlying neurophysiological processes have been
fascinating scientists from different disciplines, for example medicine and philosophy. In
the 20th century, also psychology, linguistics and computer science started to deal with
the human mind and the complex tasks it is able to master due to efficiency, adaptability,
expert skills and training. One of the problems faced by empirical research done in these
fields has always been that of introspection. Since state-of-the-art technology, such as
functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI), nowadays allows researchers to have a
look into living and functioning brains, neurophysiological processes have been
approached in a large number of empirical research projects and studies carried out in the
different above-mentioned fields.
Simultaneous interpreting with its underlying cognitive processes is a complex task which
also has been fascinating researchers from different disciplines, since it involves the
simultaneous processing of two languages. Therefore, the bilingual brain with its
neurophysiological characteristics as well as with its cognitive resources and efficiency is
regarded as a valuable object of study. As far as neurophysiological processes in
interpreting are concerned, only a few number of empirical studies have been conducted
so far (cf. Gran/Fabbro 1988, Kraushaar/Lambert 1987, Kurz 1996, Krick et al. 2005). This
might be due to several reasons: on the one hand, suitable technology has emerged only
in the last years, offering more detailed and precise imaging of cerebral activities, on the
other hand, the complexity of the interpreters’ tasks poses a lot of methodological
problems.
The paper presented here deals with a case study using fMRI for gaining insight into
several student interpreters’ brains while they were interpreting! Core questions of the
study that will be discussed are:
- Is it possible to use fMRI for empirical research into simultaneous interpreting?
- What kind of methodological problems have to be faced and how can they be solved?
- Is it possible to observe neurophysiological activities while the interpreter is interpreting?
- If fMRI is applicable to simultaneous interpreting research, would there be differences in
the cerebral activities during interpreting as compared to spontaneous speech production?
The case study with the language combination Spanish into German was carried out in
cooperation with the Department of Neuroradiology of Saarland University Hospital in
Homburg/Saar, Germany.
The paper will discuss the method of fMRI as it was applied to speech production in
simultaneous interpreting and to spontaneous speech production in the case study, the
problems encountered and possible solutions in order to explain how this kind of research
could contribute to a deeper understanding of the interpreters’ brain and the way it
works. Since the test sample comprises a limited number of student interpreters and its
results thus have to be regarded as preliminary, the study presented here considers itself
as a starting point for further studies using fMRI in simultaneous interpreting research.
For this reason, the paper will also deal with the question of future research in the
interdisciplinary context of interpreting studies, medicine and neurophysiology, psychology
and psycholinguistics.
15

Axun AIERBE
University of the Basque Country
axun.aierbe@ehu.es
Papers
Los estudios de traducción en el país Vasco
Español-Vasco / Vasco-Español
Los estudios de traducción son relativamente recientes en el País Vasco. De hecho, los
estudios universitarios se han implantado hace menos de una década (actualmente hay
tres promociones de titulados universitarios), de modo que la investigación en torno a la
práctica traductológica es muy reciente.
En el País Vasco se hablan desde antaño el euskara o la lengua vasca, la española y la
francesa. Actualmente existen realidades políticas y administrativas diferentes en cuanto
al nivel de oficialidad de la lengua vasca. El español es oficial en el País Vasco peninsular
y el francés en el País Vasco continental.
En cuanto a la distribución administrativa se refiere, las provincias vascas situadas en el
País Vasco continental (sudoeste de Francia) conforman junto con el Béarn el
departamento de los Pirineos Atlánticos que se encuentra en la región de Aquitania, pero
no disponen de autonomía política o administrativa dentro del departamento y la lengua
vasca no es oficial.
Las provincias situadas en el País Vasco peninsular (norte de España) se encuentran a su
vez divididas en dos comunidades autónomas: la Comunidad Autónoma del País Vasco y
la Comunidad Foral de Navarra. A partir de 1978, año en que se aprobó la Constitución
Española, la lengua vasca disfruta de distintos niveles de oficialidad. En lo que respecta a
la Comunidad Autónoma del País Vasco, el euskara es lengua co-oficial junto con el
español y se rige su uso a tenor de lo dispuesto en la Ley Básica de Normalización del Uso
del Euskera desde que se aprobara en el año 1982. En lo que se refiere a la Comunidad
Foral de Navarra, existe una zonificación lingüística basada en tres realidades jurídicas
diferentes a tenor de lo dispuesto en la Ley del Vascuence aprobada en 1986.
Esta situación de reciente oficialidad de la lengua vasca y de bilingüismo oficial ha llevado
a realizar una gran cantidad de traducciones principalmente del español a la lengua
vasca, tanto en el ámbito administrativo como en el editorial, audiovisual, literario,
científico-técnico, etc. Sin embargo, la práctica traductológica en sentido contrario (de la
lengua vasca a la española) es muchísimo menor, y los textos traducidos corresponden
principalmente al ámbito literario, donde una buena parte son autotraducciones. En este
sentido, se puede afirmar que los textos literarios en lengua vasca son textos de partida,
por lo que el euskara es una lengua de origen en lo que respecta a este tipo de textos,
pero actualmente la lengua vasca (al tener unos 700 000 hablantes) es una lengua meta
a la que se traducen todo tipo de textos. En este sentido, durante las últimas décadas se
han realizado muchas traducciones, pero la investigación realizada sobre las traducciones
existentes es más escasa y reciente aún, dado que se ha primado la práctica
traductológica a la investigación. Sin embargo, la implantación de los estudios
universitarios de Traducción e Interpretación donde tanto las lenguas vasca como la
española son lenguas de origen y lenguas meta, a su vez, requiere de investigaciones y
estudios traductológicos, que comienzan a aflorar.
Esta comunicación pretende realizar una presentación de la situación actual de los
estudios de traducción en el País Vasco, donde son mucho más abundantes los estudios
sobre las traducciones realizadas del español a la lengua vasca que los estudios sobre las
traducciones realizadas partiendo de la lengua vasca hacia la española.
16

Fabio ALVES
Federal University of Minas Gerais
fabio.ufmg@gmail.com
Papers
Investigating the Impact of Practice and Familiarity in
the Cognitive Performance of Professional Translators
When Using Translation Memory Systems
The ever more recurrent use of translation memory systems (henceforth TMS) in
translation practice has introduced substantial changes in the way professional translators
work. It may be argued that having to adjust to new technologies inevitably brings about
changes in cognitive patterns already consolidated among professional translators. Recent
experimental studies (Dragsted, 2004; O’Brien, 2006) have attempted to investigate the
type of impact that these new technologies may have on the performance of translators.
These works have focused on changes in segmentation patterns and in post-editing
processes resulting from the use of TMS. Dragsted (2004) investigated segmentation in
natural and in translation memory systems contexts in the language pair Danish-English
and found evidence that natural segmentation is affected by the use of a TMS. Dragsted’s
subjects were professional translators with little or no experience in the use of these
recent technological tools. Her results, however, suggest that subjects with greater
experience with TMS could perhaps perform differently.
The present paper builds on Dragsted (2004) and investigates the impact of a TMS on the
natural segmentation patterns of Brazilian professional translators already familiar with
the new technology. Prior to the experiment, two pilot studies were carried out with
Brazilian professional translators to verify the impact of familiarity with TMS as an
independent variable (Pilot Study 1) and to calibrate the instruments and design of the
final experiment (Pilot Study 2). In the experiment, which was carried out in two stages,
12 Brazilian professional translators were selected, 6 of them translating from German
and 6 others translating from English into Brazilian Portuguese. All of them were fully
familiar with Trados, the TMS chosen for the experiment. Two pairs of correlated texts, in
English and German, of approximately 550 words each, were chosen. All subjects were
instructed beforehand about the experimental conditions they were undergoing, signed
consent forms, and, in order to increase the ecological validity of the data collection, were
reimbursed for their professional services at Brazilian market prices. They also received
written instructions about the translation brief in both phases of the experiment. During
the experiment, carried out without time pressure, subjects had access to online
resources as well as to printed forms of documentation. The first two source texts in
English and German, about a blood sugar meter, were translated by the 12 subjects with
the aid of the software Translog developed by Jakobsen & Schou. A log file with a pause
representation protocol was generated and retrospective protocols were recorded with the
aid of Translog’s replay function immediately after the translations were finished.
In the second stage of the experiment, the same 12 subjects were asked to translate the
second pair of correlated source texts an excerpt from a an electric toothbrush manual,
from English and German. At this second stage they worked with Trados and the
onscreen recording software Camtasia was used to keep track of the subjects’ translation
processes in a similar fashion as that provided by Translog. As in stage 1, retrospective
protocols were recorded with the aid of Camtasia`s replay function immediately after the
translation works came to an end. The data generated by the experiment was treated
quantitatively with SPSS and qualitatively with Nud*Ist to account for differences in the
phases of orientation, drafting and end-revision (Jakobsen, 2002) and to contrast
segmentation patterns in both environments -- Translog and Camtasia (Trados) -- with
the segmentation patterns of the Danish professional translators reported by Dragsted
(2004).
17

Papers
The data analysis points out that there were no significant differences in orientation times
in both environments and suggests that the slight variation observed in the Trados
environment may have been caused by the need observed among some of the
professional translators to calibrate the screen to the use of the TMS.
Contrary to what was found by Dragsted (2004), pauses in the drafting phase seemed to
indicate that in long segments beyond clause boundaries cognitive segmentation can be
mapped onto text segmentation (Halliday & Matthiessen, 2004) in units which follow a
pattern centered on Theme since text production progresses through the non-paused
translation of a Rheme and its upcoming Theme. Pauses observed within sentence
boundaries were usually shorter than three seconds, which could be an indication of
operational pauses imposed by the TMS instead of pauses due to cognitive processing.
Finally, differently from the subjects in Dragsted (2004), Brazilian professional translators
were found to have longer revision times in the Trados environment during the endrevision
phase. The differences in results bring further light into the evidence provided by
Dragsted (2004). By replicating her study with a similar methodology, the results
presented in this paper show that, from a complementary perspective, the degree of
familiarity with TMS can play a major role in the impact this new technology has on the
performance of professional translators and open room for a discussion about the role of
deliberate practice (Ericsson, 2002) on the development of expertise in translation
contexts where new technologies are becoming more and more prevalent.
18

Cecilia ALVSTAD
University of Oslo
cecal@isk.liu.se
Papers
Images and Imaginations Constructed and
Reproduced by Translation: Some Reflections about
How Unequal Intercultural Relations Can Be Set in
Motion by Translational Analysis
Within Translation Studies translation is generally conceived of as a complex linguistic,
literary and cultural process in which different kinds of power relations are in play (see
e.g. Bassnett & Lefevere 1998:137). One of the reasons that makes Translation Studies
matter is that it aims at an understanding of such relations across languages and cultures.
Through extensive analysis of the selection of texts that are translated, the people who
translate them, the publishing houses that publish them, the linguistic-textual make-up of
translations and reception, TS furthers our understanding of both source and target
cultures, literatures and languages. In addition to this, research carried out within TS can
enhance reflection about how these intercultural and interlinguistic relations would be
affected if translation, publishing and reviewing of texts were carried out differently.
The objective of this paper is to promote such reflection in relation to a specific literary
field and target culture, namely Swedish translation of literature originating in Latin
America. Together with literature from Africa and Asia literary works from Latin America
constitute a genre of it own within Swedish translation literature. It has its own publishing
houses, its own magazines, its own libraries, its own experts and its own vested interests
and discourse. The fact that literary works from these continents enter the Swedish target
culture as part of the same package is likely to both reproduce and create borders that
are not only, or even predominantly, geographical, linguistic or cultural but also
economical, historical, ideological and political. One could ask if literary works originating
in Latin America, Africa and Asia do have things in common, that make the Swedish
target culture treat them differently than for example literature from North America,
Germany, Hungary or Spain. Maybe literary works originating in these continents do not
have things in common, that makes them different from other literary works, until they
enter the Swedish target system and meet its predominant norms of expectations. In that
case, what do these norms of expectation look like? Is it for example expected in the
Swedish target culture that literary works from Latin America, Africa and Asia answer to
demands of exoticism, authenticity and/or descriptions of the pre-modern.
Translational analysis can lay open not only prejudices of perception (see Herman
1999:95) but also make explicit open and concealed agendas of those who translate, their
commissioners and readers. Herman (1999:95) argues that this is because “translations
construct or produce their originals”. This paper will point at the fact that translations not
only construct their originals, additionally they create and reproduce images and
imaginations of continents and countries, of people and their cultures, literatures and
languages. It will also suggest that stereotyped images of old-fashioned, unequal societies
created in translation can make the Swedish target culture readers feel modern, wealthy,
educated, and more equal when, for example, gender is concerned. TS, by laying bare
images and imaginations of people/continents/cultures/literatures constructed and
reproduced by translation, can enhance different groups of professionals (such as
translators, publishers, reviewers, librarians, teachers of literature, languages, history and
social sciences, students and scholars within the field of humanities,) to approach
translations in more informed and reflexive ways. This in turn can give rise to demands of
other texts to be translated, published and reviewed in other ways.
19

Alexandra ASSIS ROSA
University of Lisbon
a.assis.rosa@netcabo.pt
Papers
Narrator Profile in Translation
Work-In-Progress for A Semi-Automatic Analysis of
Narratorial Dialogistic and Attitudinal Positioning in
Translated Fiction
This paper presents work-in-progress for the development of a semi-automatic
methodology for the analysis of shifts in narrator profile in translated fiction. Such a
methodology is developed for a comparative quantitative analysis of electronic source and
target texts organized in a parallel corpus.
The first part of this paper presents the theoretical motivation for the organization of two
systems of categories focusing on the relationship between the two discursive centres
involved in reported speech – narrator and character (but also quoter and quotee in other
text types). The first system organizes in a cline a set of descriptive categories and
subcategories of reported speech considered expressive of different evaluative positions
towards what the narrator represents as speech by other speakers, and thus of different
types of dialogistic or intertextual positioning; the second system organizes categories
expressive of the narrator’s positive or negative evaluation mainly of characters that
intervene in the story, and thus of attitudinal positioning, also as proposed by Appraisal
Theory (White 2001).
The second part of this paper analyses a selection of examples illustrative of such
categories, and presents and comments the results of the comparative quantitative
analysis of eight European Portuguese versions of Charles Dickens’s Oliver Twist
translated for juvenile and adult readerships. The purpose of developing this methodology
for a semi-automatic quantitative and qualitative analysis of translated narrative fiction is
to help describe the way interlinguistic translation may transform the narrator profile in
terms of dialogistic/intertextual and attitudinal positioning as well as to contribute for the
description of translational regularities, to correlate such regularities with contextual
variables (such as the implied readership) and to formulate translational norms (Toury
1995).
White, Peter R. 2001. Guide to Appraisal.
http://www.grammatics.com/appraisal/AppraisalGuide/Framed/Frame.htm (20 October
2006).
Toury 1995. Descriptive Translation Studies and Beyond. Amsterdam and Philadelphia:
John Benjamins.
van Leuven-Zwart, Kitty M. 1989. "Translation and original: similarities and dissimilarities
I", Target 1:2, pp. 151-181.
van Leuven-Zwart, Kitty M. 1990. "Translation and original: similarities and dissimilarities
II", Target 2:1, pp. 69-95.
20

Louise AUDET
Concordia University; Université de Montréal
louise.audet@umontreal.ca
Papers
Conscience de la création en traduction littéraire
Deux parcours génétiques
Le domaine de la théorie de la traduction est des plus riches : les écoles et les courants
couvrent tous les aspects de cette foisonnante activité, de l’herméneutique (Steiner) à
stylistique contrastive (Vinay et Darbelnet), en passant par les courants philosophiques,
littéraires ou linguistiques (Berman, Meschonnic, Folkart) et interdisciplinaires (faisant
appel à la sociologie, à la psycholinguistique), ce domaine a connu un essor fulgurant. Les
théoriciens se sont également intéressés à l’aspect cognitif de l’activité traduisante. Des
modèles ont été proposés pour décrire les processus mentaux que des analyses
empiriques sont venues confirmer ou infirmer. Ainsi, dans le domaine linguistique, Kintch
(1998) a développé un modèle intégratif de la compréhension. En ce qui concerne la
compréhension des textes littéraires, il émet l’hypothèse que tout - des relations
textuelles aux images, au style, aux émotions suscitées chez le lecteur - concourt à l’effet
de littérarité. En traductologie, Kussmaul (1992) a repris le modèle de la créativité en
quatre phases proposé par Wallas (1926) : la phase préparatoire, l’incubation,
l’illumination, et l’évaluation. Dancette (1995) a illustré la compréhension en traduction
par le schéma de la double hélice qui reproduit les mouvements de la compréhension et
de la reformulation en traduction, du temps 1 au temps n. Tout récemment, elle a élaboré
le concept de la «compréhension créative» (Dancette 2006, à paraître), qu’elle définit
comme « la capacité d’intégrer et de concilier des éléments du sens disparates, voire
incongrus, et d’en faire une production concise (unique) et cohérente». La création dans
le processus traductif a également fait l’objet de travaux. Ce domaine est encore peu
exploré et c’est du point de vue d’une étude génétique que nous l’avons abordé (Audet
2006, thèse de doctorat). Ce poste d’observation privilégié nous a permis de suivre les
parcours de quatre répondantes et d’apporter quelques éléments de réponse à la question
: qui, parmi ces traductrices, est créatrice et en quoi l’est-elle ? Nous avons constaté que
les traductrices créatrices se caractérisent par des stratégies de ré-écriture qui mettent à
contribution leur «résilience», leur acharnement à produire une traduction «aboutie».
Au-delà de la valeur autoformative de l’exercice du raisonnement à voix haute relevée par
Dancette (1992), nous voudrions ici présenter un aspect particulier de la création en
traduction littéraire, celui de la conscience, ce «théâtre cartésien», lieu de présentation
des informations traitées par nos sens. L’analyse des données introspectives nous montre
que le traducteur littéraire créatif a une conscience aiguë de son travail, et que cette
conscience se manifeste par une très grande cohérence du geste traductif, de l’«avanttraduction»
à la «post-
traduction». La capacité évaluative (expression de la satisfaction en regard d’exigences
élevées) et les connaissances d’expert sont également des atouts. Nous illustrerons notre
propos par deux exemples révélateurs de patrons préférentiels de travail, l’un sur l’axe
syntagmatique (celui du rythme, de l’organisation phrastique) et l’autre, sur l’axe
paradigmatique (le jeu connotatif).
21

Brian BAER
Kent State University
bbaer@kent.edu
Papers
Reviewing Translations in The U.S. Popular Press
The Effects of Translation Studies on Translation
Criticism
While Translation Studies has had a significant effect on a variety of academic disciplines,
its influence outside the academy—on general readers and mainstream publishers of
translated literature—has been less evident and very little studied. Reviews of translated
literature that appear in the popular press represent arguably the most widely
disseminated and read form of translation criticism and therefore can be assumed to play
an extremely important role in shaping the general reading public’s views on translation.
However, reviewers of translated literature for the popular press are often monolingual,
which limits their capacity to analyze the decisions taken by the translator in fashioning
the target text and so fosters, perhaps inevitably, an over-reliance on “readability” as a
category of analysis.
The purpose of this paper is two-fold. First, by comparing translation criticism published in
the popular press to criticism published in academic journals and reviews, I attempt to
provide a better understanding of how translation criticism in the popular press shapes
not only the reception of a specific work of translated literature, but, more importantly,
the general public’s understanding of translation in general and literary translation in
particular. Second, I suggest a number of interventions designed to introduce certain
fundamental concepts of Translation Studies into translation criticism written by
monolingual reviewers for a general reading public. Growing out of my involvement with
the forthcoming volume in the Modern Language Association’s series dedicated to
teaching literature, Teaching Literature in Translation, this paper offers a practical guide
to “reviewing literature in translation.”
For the descriptive analysis of translation criticism in the popular press and in scholarly
journals, I examine reviews of three recent English translations of Russian literature, all of
which were widely reviewed: Peter Constantine’s translation of the Complete Works of
Isaac Babel (Norton 2002); Richard Peaver and Larissa Volokhonsky’s translation of Anna
Karenina by Leo Tolstoy (Penguin 2000); and Andrew Bromfield’s translation of Homo
zapiens by Viktor Pelevin (Viking 2002). The fact that the Peaver and Volohonsky
translation of Anna Karenina and most of the Constantine translations of Babel are retranslations
has sparked a lively debate among reviewers, which has raised a number of
important theoretical issues, such as: the necessity and value of re-translation, the
“stability” of a translated text versus a source text or “original,” and the indebtedness of
“re-translators” to their translation forebears. Like the evaluation of the individual
translations themselves, this debate has been treated rather differently in the popular
press and in scholarly journals. For reviews published in the popular press, I focus on
three of the most influential newspapers in the United States: New York Times,
Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, and the Christian Science Monitor. For reviews
published in academic journals, I have selected the most influential journals in the field of
Slavic languages and literatures: Slavic Review, Russian Review, and Slavic and East
European Journal. Particular attention will be paid to instances in which reviews published
in the popular press differ markedly from those offered in scholarly journals.
22

Elena BANDÍN
University of León
dfmebf@unileon.es
Papers
Rewriting Renaissance English Plays for the Spanish
Theatrical System under Franco’s Dictatorship
Findings and Conclusions
In this paper, I present some of the findings and conclusions of my dissertation, which is
framed within the theoretical and methodological aspects of DTS and carried out as part
of the TRACE (TRAnlations CEnsored) project. The aim of this research has been to
establish the effect of the Francoist (self)censorship on the rewritings of classical English
plays for the Spanish theatrical system (Aaltonen 2000) under the dictatorship of Franco,
when theatre texts were subject to a rigid state control. Secondly, I have aimed to
identify the norms of translation underlying the transposition of theatre texts which were
censored and performed on the Spanish stage between 1939 and 1978.
This research relies on the sources found in the A.G.A. (Archivo General de la
Administración), a national archive located in Madrid, where the censorship files as well as
the censored texts are kept. I have carried out a descriptive-comparative analysis of ST’s
and TT’s proceeding from a catalogue (TRACEtci 1939-1985) of “assumed translations”
(Toury 1995) to a textual parallel corpus of selected censored fragments. For the analysis,
I have selected six source texts (Hamlet, The Taming of the Shrew, Othello, Volpone, The
Changeling and ‘Tis Pity She’s a Whore) and 30 different Spanish rewritings of these texts
signed by important playwrights of the period. It is a corpus based study which uses the
réplica (Merino 1994) as the main unit of segmentation and comparison. The procedure of
analysis is dynamic as it takes into account the singularity of theatre texts and the great
dissimilarities that exist between the ST and its different target rewritings. It is based on
the model proposed by Lambert & Van Gorp (1985) and it consists of two components: a
preliminary study and a textual study, at the macro- and microtextual levels. From the
observation of the translation strategies in each case study, I have stepped into the
formulation of the norms of translation that governed the translator’s behaviour in this
particular context. On the one hand, I have reached the conclusion that the main effect of
external censorship had to do mainly with the choice of texts. The playwrights/translators,
as initiators of the process of translation, chose canonical texts, considered safe from the
point of view of censorship. Thus, the playwrights/translators acted “as patrons
themselves and thus exercising power as well as being subject to the power of others”
(Chesterman 1997: 65). The main function of these texts in the target context was to
contribute to create a National Theatre based on notions of culture and prestige. Only in
the seventies did adaptations emerge that could be considered reactionary to the morals
of the Francoist ideology, as it was the case of La nueva fierecilla domada by Juan
Guerrero Zamora. Besides, in this decade, The Changeling and ‘Tis Pity She’s a Whore
were performed for the first time on the Spanish stages, since they could have been
prohibited in previous years. On the other hand, concerning the translation strategies at
the textual level, it may seem that changes due to the requirements of the stage were far
more influential to translation choices than (self)censorship itself.
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Papers
The rewriters use mechanisms of omission, addition and modification in order to
manipulate the text and create an acceptable rewriting of the original play instead of
being faithful to the form of the source text. These manipulations could have been
motivated by a wish to reach a theatre audience and to make the text comprehensible for
the spectators. In that respect, (self)censorship could be regarded as an issue related
with questions of decorum, eliminating sexual and religious references and softening the
indecorous language of the ST. Most of these manipulations are not exclusive of the
Francoist context.
These strategies may imply a continuation of the previous translating tradition through
the appropriation of preceeding translations. From my point of view, the result is not a
source text-bound translation but a stage-bound rewriting. I have observed a functional
and dynamic relation of equivalence between the source texts and the target texts as the
main aim of the translators seems to be to maintain a theatrical equivalence, that is to
say, that the text functions on the stage.
References:
- AALTONEN, S. 2000. Time-sharing on stage: Drama translation in Theatre and Society.
Clevedon: Multilingual Matters LTD.
- CHESTERMAN, A. 1997. Memes of Translation. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
- LAMBERT, J. & VAN GORP, H. 1985. “On describing translations”. En Hermans, T. (ed.),
The manipulation of Literatura. Londres & Sydney: Croom Helm: 42-53.
- MERINO ÁLVAREZ, R. 1994. Traducción, tradición y manipulación. Teatro inglés en
España 1950-1990. León: Universidad de León; Lejona: Universidad del País Vasco.
- TOURY, G. 1995. Descriptive Translation Studies and Beyond. Amsterdam-Philadelphia:
John Benjamins.
24

Papers
Magdalena BARTLOMIEJCZYK
Institute of English, University of Silesia
magdalenabartlomiejczyk@hotmail.com
Effects of Short Intensive Practice on Interpreter
Trainees’ Performance
The aim of this paper is to show how tools used in interpreting research to examine
quality of interpreted texts can contribute to the evaluation of teaching methods in
interpreter training. Our translator and interpreter programme at the Institute of English,
University of Silesia is undergoing constant changes, the goal of which is to prepare our
students for the challenges of the market in an optimal way. Recently, we have
established contact with the UN Office at Vienna and sent a group of our students for a
short interpreting practice in real conference conditions. Ten interpreter trainees, who had
practiced simultaneous interpreting for three terms prior to the practice, participated in
the 49th Session of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs, which took place in March 2006
and lasted five working days, with a 3-hour-long session each morning and each
afternoon. Under the supervision of the researcher, the trainees interpreted from English
into Polish in available spare booths with microphones turned off. The estimated total
interpreting time for each trainee was about 150% of one term’s worth of interpreting
under the normal conditions of our programme, with our students having one
simultaneous interpreting class (90 minutes) per week over six terms. One month before
the practice, the group going to Vienna undertook preparations for the conference, which
included studying conference documentation available on-line, creating and interpreting
during classes texts dealing with the topic of the conference, searching for and studying
Polish texts on the same topic and compiling an English-Polish glossary containing all
terms from the documentation which posed problems.
In order to evaluate the effectiveness of this practice, and, consequently, decide whether
we should regularly send our students to similar practices, an experiment was organised.
Two similar sets of source texts in English were prepared, each of them containing two
texts, one on a general topic and one on the topic of the conference, i.e. illicit drugs.
Directly before going to Vienna, five participants of the practice were asked to interpret
into Polish the source texts from set A, and the other five were asked to do the same with
the source texts from set B. After coming back, the participants were asked to interpret
the set which they had not interpreted before. This second experimental session was
organised one month after the practice, as we were interested in long-term effects rather
than immediate ones. At the moment, the recorded and transcribed material is being
analysed using tools which have already proven to be effective in research on quality of
interpreted texts, i.e. propositional completeness score and error analysis (focusing on
faithfulness to the original message, grammatical correctness and presentation). The
subjective feelings of both the researcher and the trainees concerned are that the practice
was useful in terms of enhancing the trainees’ performance. It is therefore expected that
the interpreting outputs recorded after the practice will prove to be of markedly better
quality (higher completeness scores, less errors of all categories) than the outputs
recorded before the practice, and that this superiority will manifest itself in interpretations
of both general and specialist texts.
The findings of this study will have direct practical implications for our interpreter and
translator training programme. As sending trainees for such practices requires a lot of
organisational effort and is connected with considerable costs for the Institute as well as
trainees themselves, similar practices will be organised in the future only if it is proven
that the performance of participants actually improves as a result of intensive practice in
real conference conditions.
25

Papers
A. BEEBY, M. FERNANDEZ, O. FOX, A. HURTADO, I. KOZLOVA, A. KUZNIK, W. NEUNZIG, P.
RODRIGUEZ, L. ROMERO
Departament de Traduccio i d'Interpretacio. Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona
gr.pacte@uab.es
Validating the Pacte Translation Competence Model
Results of an Experiment
The PACTE Group (Process in the Acquisition of Translation Competence and Evaluation)
has been carrying out experimental research into translation competence and its
acquisition in written translation since 1997. Research is being carried out from two
complementary perspectives:
(1) the translation process: gathering and analyzing data obtained from experimental
studies concerning the mental processes involved in translating and the competences and
abilities required;
(2) the translation product: gathering and analyzing data obtained from the results of the
translation process (translated texts).
Our project is designed in two phases:
(1) a first phase consisting of an empirical study of translation competence, currently in
progress, in which data concerning the knowledge and behaviour of expert translators
(Experimental Group 1) is compared with that of foreign language teachers with no
experience in translation (Experimental Group 2);
(2) a second phase consisting of a longitudinal study of the Acquisition of Translation
Competence in trainee translators.
The study will be carried out in the following language pairs: English-Spanish/Catalan,
French- Spanish/Catalan, German- Spanish/Catalan. After first completing exploratory and
pilot tests to validate different aspects of our research design, we have now carried out
an experiment to determine translation competence in 35 professional translators and 24
foreign language teachers.
This paper presents the variables under study in the experiment (Translation Project,
Identification of Translation Problems; Decision-making; Knowledge of Translation;
Efficacy of the Translation Process), the instruments and indicators of competences used,
and the results obtained.
PACTE is a consolidated research group funded by the Spanish Ministry of Education and
Culture (1997-2000), the Spanish Ministry of Science and Technology (2001-2004), the
Spanish-Brazilian Inter-university Cooperation Agreement (2002- 2006) and the
Government of Catalunya (2002-2005, 2005-2008). The PACTE Group is also affiliated to
the Institute of Neurosciences of the Universidad Autonoma de Barcelona.
26

Yotam BENSHALOM
University of Warwick
benshalom@gmail.com
Papers
The Hermeneutic Uniqueness of Drama Translation
For many years drama has been considered to be one of the three major literary forms
alongside poetry and prose, and, as such, textual in nature. The semiotic shift, affecting
drama research since the 1930's, aided in changing this attitude among scholars,
encouraging them to approach drama as a codifier for theatrical performance rather than
as an independent literary form. The young discipline of translation studies followed this
notion, focusing on issues related to 'performability' of translated drama while neglecting
issues related to dramatic textual form and narrative nature. However, 'dramatic text' and
'theatrical text' are far from being synonyms; drama is still being widely read, taught,
studied and enjoyed in written form.
This paper aims at helping to fill a gap in drama translation studies by concentrating on
the literary aspects of dramatic text. This is done by looking for the differences between
drama translation and other types of literary translation, as experienced from the
translator's point of view. The dramatic genre is defined by typical textual attributes,
some of which are of great significance for the translator. Those attributes, which can be
traced back to Aristotle's Poetics, are further developed in modern day work of
researchers such as Susan Langer and Manfred Pfister: drama takes place in a closed
fictional world while referring to the actual human world; dramatic characters perform
consistent, complete and causal actions with varying degree of self-awareness; and, using
terms coined by John Austin and John Searle, dramatic textual fabric consists mostly of
directive and commissive speech acts. These attributes combined enable drama
translators to focus their efforts on dealing with the reciprocal verbal functioning of the
characters, and disregard the functioning of an author in front of his or her addressees.
Such attitude may have a major impact on the hermeneutic approach of the drama
translator to the source and target texts. It would influence the various types of
equivalence and fidelity which the translator might be striving for, as shown in the works
of Friedrich Schleiermacher, Eugene Nida and others; but more importantly, it would alter
the emotional and psychological processes involved in the act of translation and interrupt
the multi-phased, continuous and balanced relationship between translator and text,
named by the contemporary hermeneutician George Steiner 'the hermeneutic movement'.
A drama translator who is 'trying to become' a fictional character is under a different set
of stresses than his peer, who is 'trying to become' a real, flesh and blood author. The
former's hermeneutic task may become more difficult, since he is being forced to identify
with a colourful character, a representation of an imaginary and usually extraordinary
person going through extreme situations; but it is also less menacing, since he is not
forced into an emotional competition with the real, established author, involving awe,
guilt, rebellion and dedication. Thus, while some hermeneutic aspects of the translation
process are simplified, others become more complex.
The paper also proposes a practical model for 'action oriented translation', relevant for the
translation of drama as well as for the translation of related literary forms, in which the
narrator is dominant and functioning as an active character in the fictional world.
According to this model, the translator prioritises the effective rendering of speech acts
made by the speaking characters. The model is divided into three phases: first, decoding
the action; second, adopting the action; and third – applying it to the translation. The
discussion of each phase is accompanied by the description of typical problems relevant
to it, as well as several potential solutions. This model, applicable (and tested) for
teaching drama translation as well as for practicing it, can serve as an example for the
relevance of theoretical translation studies, even at their most philosophical forms, to real
life situations faced by actual translators.
27

Conceição BRAVO
University of the Algarve
mcbravo@clix.pt
Papers
The Link between TS and FL Teachers and Learners
The linguistic and socio-cultural functions of audiovisual translation, in the form of
subtitles, are regarded by many language practitioners as undeniable aids in the academic
field of foreign-language teaching. Portugal, traditionally a subtitling country, has very
scarce research examining this area of Translation Studies. The two empirical studies
presented here will highlight the relevance of intralingual and interlingual sutitles in
screen translation for learning/ acquiring or maintaining a foreign language.
In the first study I look at a sample of foreign learners of Portuguese, all adults and of
mixed linguistic backgrounds, some from traditionally dubbing countries. They were
exposed to different genres of audiovisual materials, with and without intralingual
subtitles. Findings indicated that the presence of subtitles, in most text types, provided
more comprehensible language input, for both the reading and listening skills, facilitated
effective self-study and oral production and was regarded as a motivating tool to use.
Even the students who initially regarded the activity as distracting and complicated (those
normally used to dubbing policies) had a change of opinion at the end of the course.
The second study was carried out on two groups of Portuguese schoolgoers, aged 14-15,
learners of English as a foreign-language. The students were in their 5th year of English
at school and, on average, were found to be at an intermediate level of proficiency. The
aim was to test the effect of subtitling exposure on their understanding of English as a
foreign-language and its pedagogical usefulness. Aspects such as the vocabulary acquired
by viewers, their understanding of idiomatic expressions and phrasal verbs were given
particular emphasis. Also, the degree of vocabulary retention was also tested, after
several weeks had elapsed. One group was exposed to the condition of English-audio and
Portuguese-subtitles, while the other was exposed to English-soundtrack and Englishsubtitles
(closed captions). Advantages and drawbacks of both conditions will be
highlighted.
In conclusion, we can say that cultural, social and communicative components in subtitles
offer language learners the opportunity of authentic, situationalized and contextualized
language production. This places an added responsibility on the role of the subtitler. Thus,
pedagogical findings, if properly channelled, can lead to better and informed decisions on
subtitling policies, depending on viewer subgroups and their particular linguistic needs
and capacities. These same findings can also serve to make learners aware of how they
can adapt this audiovisual learning resource to their own specific linguistic needs, styles
and learning paces. Audiovisual translation, in the form of subtitles, be they intralingual or
interlingual, can be regarded as ‘titles in-between’, as they mediate linguistic, social and
cultural issues between the source and target communities. Furthermore, they can be
seen as a pedagogical link between TS and the academic community of foreign-language
teachers and learners.
28

Siobhan BROWNLIE
The University of Manchester
s.brownlie@manchester.ac.uk
Papers
Reaching Other Academic Communities
Ideas, concepts, theories and methods spread within and across disciplines, communities,
countries and traditions. Richard Dawkins has suggested that memes (units of cultural
transmission) are in competition for survival, and that in some situations of stability it is
difficult for a new meme to invade. My interest is in ideas, concepts and methods in
academia, and the fact that these memes have more or less difficulty in spreading. They
encounter more or less resistance in jumping boundaries, whether those boundaries are
disciplinary or boundaries constituted by national research traditions.
The aim of my paper is to discuss such situations of resistance and non-resistance, taking
examples from Translation Research, and to suggest through those examples how
resistance may be overcome. I shall discuss three cases of boundary-crossing research
projects. The first case study concerns the novel, Instruments des Ténèbres by Nancy
Huston. This novel consists of two stories in two different historical periods and in
countries of two different languages. It is argued that there is mutual ‘translation’
between the two stories, such that aspects of each story influence and infiltrate the other.
In the study of Huston’s novel ‘translation’ is thus taken in a metaphorical sense in order
to elucidate relationships between the two stories and characters. This research was
presented at a Literary Studies conference, where no other person was from the field of
Translation Studies nor presented anything related to translation in any sense. The paper
was accepted without hesitation, as was its proposed publication. There was no resistance
at all. It can be concluded that when translation is used metaphorically in a field outside
of Translation Studies, it is not likely to occasion resistance towards the piece of research.
This is probably due to the fact that ‘translation’ has long been used metaphorically across
many disciplines in the humanities, social sciences, and the natural sciences. In fact it
could be argued that ‘translation’ is being used more and more widely in a range of
metaphorical senses (cf. the upcoming conference at Bogazici University, Instanbul, on
this topic).
The second case study concerns a novel Vivre l’Orange/To Live the Orange by Hélène
Cixous, written as a parallel bilingual text. Prior to the study in question, the text had
been much discussed but only from a Literary Studies perspective. The researcher of our
case study applied a Descriptive Translation Studies approach to the text inspired by Kitty
van Leuven-Zwart’s principles. A close micro-level comparison of source text and target
text revealed significant shifts with regard to gender. The researcher argued that this had
a major impact on the macro-levels of interpersonal relations and themes; in fact it could
be said that the translation contradicted the message of the original. This article was sent
to a Literary Studies journal, and encountered considerable resistance. The resistance
stemmed from the fact that methodology unfamiliar to the Literary Studies audience was
used, and furthermore, the methodology had produced a result which was unexpected
and even disagreeable to some Literary Studies experts on the text in question: these
scholars had always treated the parallel texts as if they were exactly the same. In order
for the article to be acceptable for publication it had to be rewritten quite significantly. A
much simplified, more fully explained, more clearly organized and thus more forceful
exposition of the method and findings were made for the benefit of the audience
unfamiliar with Translation Studies, and the article then became acceptable to the
readers. For the third case study, a somewhat similar scenario arose.
29

Papers
In this study the researcher used the concepts of semantic prosody and semantic
preference from Corpus Linguistics, and applied them in the study of the translation of a
literary text, Zola’s Nana. The paper was submitted to a Translation Studies journal in
France whose editorial readers had difficulty in comprehending the basic concepts in the
article.
This was for two reasons: the readers were from a Literary Translation background, and
were not familiar with Corpus Linguistics. Furthermore, Corpus Linguistics has not been
well developed in France, and there were even basic difficulties at the level of terminology
given that the paper was written in French.
The resistance to the research stemmed thus from the fact that it was crossing a
disciplinary boundary (bringing Corpus Linguistics into Literary Translation Studies), as
well as crossing the boundary of a national research tradition (Corpus Linguistics was not
well developed in France). As for the second case study, before it could be accepted for
publication, the article had to undergo significant rewriting. In particular the basic
concepts from Corpus Linguistics had to be clarified and explained in detail with the help
of representative examples, and the unfamiliar approach was supplemented by a more
traditional (and familiar) type of linguistic and literary analysis. It is interesting and
enriching to do research which crosses boundaries, but the second and third case studies
show that there may be problems when it comes to publication. Dan Sperber has
suggested that for interdisciplinary research one solution is to produce different versions
of papers for the different disciplines and disciplinary journals concerned. This is
recognition of the sometimes vast differences in disciplinary conventions and expectations
with respect to the presentation of research. Leah Ceccarelli has pointed out how
important choices of linguistic expression can be: she proposes that the reason why
Edward Wilson’s book on consilience (the synthesis of knowledge from different
specialized fields) garnered limited support, was that his language and style antagonized
the parties concerned.
In conclusion, it is salutary to see that the studies where resistance was encountered
were not rejected by journal editors. This is no doubt due to the value accorded to
originality and novelty in academia, and the recognition that new approaches can bring
new and enriching perspectives on an object of study. However, it is important to note
that in order for the research to cross boundaries successfully and be published, close
attention had to be paid to the way the research was written up. Rhetoric is thus vital in
overcoming resistance.
30

Lilit BRUTIAN
Yerevan State University
leonid@liberty.r.am
Papers
On the Analysis of the Conditional Meaning in
Shakespeare’s “Hamlet” (In the Text of the Original
and Its Translations)
The aim of the research is to reveal the interdisciplinary nature of Translation Studies,
namely to show its close relationship with text linguistics, logical analysis of natural
languages and related fields.
1. In the proposed paper the problem of a text is considered in its connection with the
problem of implicit and explicit meanings. The implicitness of a text is the result of the
asymmetry of a language sign, which leads to the possible homonymy of structural
models of a sentence from the semantic point of view, that is to cases when there exist
different semantic models of a sentence with the absence of corresponding structures, on
the one hand, and on the other hand, to the expression of one and the same semantic
model by means of different structural forms. To reveal the precise implicit meanings of a
text, it is useful to compare the implicit constructions with the semantically identical
explicit ones. Even more, interesting results can be achieved when the comparative
analysis of several languages is conducted from this angle. Such a comparative analysis
can reveal and explain the specific explicit-implicit tendencies in different languages. It
should be mentioned that any text can be adequately interpreted only when implicit and
explicit meanings are considered simultaneously, without giving any preference to either
of them.
2. One of the most essential features of any text is its integrity which is based on
coherence. Among very important text-forming means which lead to its coherence and
adequate interpretation are link-words, particularly, conjunctions. A specific conjunction is
the conjunction “implication” (“if-then”). If considered as a logical conjunction in its
interrelation with corresponding language correlates, it can be stated that the latter
express the meaning of the logical conjunction “if-then” in a more differentiated way.
Besides, it can be stated that the correlation between the logical “if-then” and its
language expressions is the problem or correlation between invariant meaning (inherent
in all languages) and the meanings of varied expressions in different languages.
3. In the light of what has been said, the problems mentioned above can be considered
as translation problems. In particular, it is rather perspective and interesting to make a
comparative analysis of one and the same unit of a text in the original and corresponding
translations in different languages, as well as in various translations within one language.
For these purposes the comparative analysis of implicative (conditional) sentences taken
from Shakespeare’s “Hamlet” and corresponding translations into Armenian and Russian
(17 translations) was made.
The comparative analysis of the original with cross-language and intra-language
translations supported by a statistical analysis has led to the following conclusions:
1) the means expressing condition are various, though conjunctions prevail;
2) the indicators of conditional meaning are in some cases expressed in the original and in
different translations identically, but in the majority of cases synonymously;
3) finally, it can be concluded that in some cases the implicit meanings of the original are
explicated in the corresponding translations and vice versa, which proves the
effectiveness of the suggested method of the comparison of cross-language and intralanguage
translations with the original.
31

Lara BURAZER
University of Ljubljana
lara.burazer@guest.arnes.si
32
Papers
The Place of Translation Studies among the Hard
Sciences
The issues raised at the EST colloquium in Ljubljana (September 2006) focused mainly on
the divergence arising between the two fundamental research paradigms – the ESP and
the LAP. The underlying desire of this debate in TS seems to be that TS become more
scientific. Looking through the prism of Victor H. Yngve’s theoretical scope of Hard
Science or Human Linguistics (‘From Grammar to Science’, 1996), we might be able to
offer a solution to the ever puzzling question, and one pertaining to the whole of
linguistics, of how to make the soft science Translation Studies more hard scientific.
The author takes a closer look at the object of study as defined in translation studies and
proposes a hard science human linguistics approach focusing on the physical domain realworld
objects rather than on logical domain concepts. Entering the realm of the hard
sciences requires the shift from the logical into the physical domain. This also requires
that the scientist observe the basic assumptions and criteria employed in the hard
sciences which have in its past 400-year tradition proven to stand on firm ground. Many
traditional linguistic approaches have without question taken over various assumptions
based in the philosophy of language and built theories of language and meaning on them.
Human linguistics, on the other hand, having built its theory on the two standard criteria
and the four basic assumptions of science alone, rejects this practice by observing only
the criteria and assumptions of standard science: The standard criteria of science are
those relating to acceptance of theory and acceptance of observations. These relate to
predictions made in the theories which can be tested through observations and
experiments conducted in the real world. This is consistent with the second criterion,
which applies to the matter of reproducibility or replicability of results of these
observations and experiments.
The four basic assumptions in the hard sciences are the ontological, the regularity, the
rationality and the causality assumption. These relate to the facts such as there being a
real world out there to be studied (the ontological assumption), which is coherent,
therefore we have a chance of finding out something about it (regularity), make valid
conclusions by reasoning form valid premises (rationality) and, finally, that observed
effects flow from immediate real-world causes (causality). Observing these criteria and
assumptions is not a choice or an option in science, but a requirement. It thus follows
that if the TS is to be made a part of the hard scientific community, it has to adhere to
the criteria and assumptions presented above.
In practice this would mean distancing of the researcher from the logical domain concepts
such as language with its units (sentence, phrase, word, morpheme, and even text), for it
is not these logical domain concepts that carry meaning or have any power whatsoever. It
is people who endow texts with power by either making something out of them or not. It
is people who have by means of convention created the phenomenon called language and
have reached agreements about its regularity. Therefore it follows that what we need to
study in TS in order to enter the realm of the hard sciences are the real-world entities – in
our case these are the human beings. We need to study the translators as human beings,
their relevant linguistic properties and relating contexts in which these have been formed.
By studying people rather than language we will be able to find out what people actually
do in the course of their communicative activities, part of which is represented by
translation, and perhaps take a step closer towards discovering the mysteries of the
black-box activities in translators. Revealing these mysteries would contribute a great deal
to the translator competence development strategies employed in translator training.

Carmen CAMUS
Departamento de Filología
camusc@unican.es
Papers
Censorship in the Pseudatranslations of the West
State censorship was a practice that pervaded all Spanish literary production during the
Franco regime. Popular literature was a realm of Spanish literary production in which, in
spite of Spain’s economic status, sales soared during the forties, fifties and sixties, to
levels never achieved either before or after that period. During the Franco era, Spain was
a country which was isolated from the rest of the world, with an economy devastated by
a civil war and suffering the consequences of World War II.
Within this context, censorship was a measure used by the state not only to control every
minute detail of cultural activity that took place in the country but also acted as a brake
on creative literary production. What then made it possible for a genre like the popular
literature of the west to flourish and gain the favour of the public? Toury considers
translations as products used to fill a void that has emerged in a given culture at a
particular historical time. Pseudotranslations, works produced in the country where the
need has been created, are imitation models of the original or source texts needed at a
particular time in history in the host culture. These texts produced in the target culture
are then regarded as translations of putative original texts written in the source culture.
In Spain the soaring popularity of the narrative of the west in a country where food was
scarce and rationed is a paradox. Did these texts receive special favour from the officials
in charge of the censorship files?. Did Franco’s government somehow promote the
emergence of this type of narrative?. Why were some writers of Republican ideology
allowed to write and publish in this kind of genre?
To address these questions, our analysis was based on the censorship files of western
narrative at the Administration General Archive, AGA, which is where all the files opened
during Franco’s regime are kept. A catalogue of 730 censorship files was created by
selecting the files for western narrative contained in one of every fifty AGA boxes (the
container used to keep the files), thus guaranteeing the representativity of the genre in
the total amount of files kept at the Archive for literary production generated in Spain
during the period studied. These files contained information not only on the author’s
names, any pseudonyms used and editorial affilation and characteristics but also and
more importantly the details concerning the censor’s review and decision. This
information was transferred to a specially created data base in electronic format to
facilitate subsequent analysis in relation to sociopolitical data and official documentation
on state censorship.
This paper examines from a descriptive point of view the effects of Franco’s censorship on
the pseudotranslations of the west for the period that spans between 1939 and 1975, and
attempts to identify what governmental, political and economic measures made possible
the flourishing and splendour of this popular narrative genre.
33

Larisa CERCEL
University of Freiburg, Germany
larisacercel@web.de
Papers
Die Bedeutung der Übersetzungswissenschaft für die
philosophische Hermeneutik
Die Problematik des Übersetzens nimmt eine bevorzugte Stellung innerhalb der
philosophischen Hermeneutik des 20. Jahrhunderts ein. Sie stellt einen wichtigen Topos
im Werk von prominenten Vertretern dieser Disziplin (Martin Heidegger, Hans-Georg
Gadamer, Paul Ricoeur) dar. Die Topik der Übersetzung wird in den Texten Heideggers
vor allem seit 1935 im Kontext seiner Beschäftigung mit Hölderlin angeschlagen, sie geht
vollends 1942-43 in seiner Vorlesung über Parmenides auf und wird ausführlich diskutiert
in drei späteren Texten: in der Abhandlung "Der Spruch des Anaximander" (1946) aus
den "Holzwegen", in der zweiten Vorlesung "Was heißt Denken?" aus dem
Sommersemester 1952 und in der Vorlesung "Der Satz vom Grund" aus dem
Wintersemester 1955/56. Bei Gadamer wird das Problem des Übersetzens sowohl in
"Wahrheit und Methode" (1960) als auch in anderen Texten, insbesondere in den Bänden
2, 3, 8, 9 und 10 seiner "Gesammelten Werke" diskutiert und fast immer als
exemplarische Manifestation des Verstehens herangezogen. Ricoeur hat sein letztes Buch
"Sur la traduction" (2004) ebenfalls diesem Thema gewidmet. Von der Bedeutung dieses
Forschungsfeldes für die philosophische Hermeneutik zeugt etwa das von Heidegger in
der Vorlesung "Hölderlins Hymne „Der Ister“" vom Sommersemester 1942 geprägte
Diktum: „Sage mir, was du vom Übersetzen hältst, und ich sage dir, wer du bist.“ Im
Ausgang von der philosophischen Hermeneutik – und insbesondere von den Schriften
Gadamers – entwickelte sich in den 70er Jahren in der Übersetzungswissenchaft eine
besondere Forschungsrichtung, die unter dem Namen „hermeneutischer Ansatz“ bekannt
wurde. Fritz Paepcke verdankt die Übersetzungswissenschaft den Anschluss an diese von
Heidegger durch seine frühen Freiburger Vorlesungen eingeleitete und von Gadamer und
Ricoeur weiter entwickelte hermeneutische Wende im Denken des 20. Jahrhunderts.
Paepcke hat das Verdienst, Grundthesen des hermeneutischen Denkens auf das
Übersetzen angewandt zu haben. Sein Ziel war die Erschließung eines
handlungsorientierten hermeneutischen Zugangs zum Übersetzen, ohne jedoch dieses
Vorhaben systematisch und methodisch ausgearbeitet zu haben. Seine
übersetzungshermeneutische Sicht- und Arbeitsweise ist schwer in seinen Aufsätzen zu
verfolgen. Die Aufgabe einer systematischen Darstellung hermeneutischer Gedanken in
ihrer Anwendung auf übersetzerische Fragestellungen hat seine Schülerin Radegundis
Stolze insbesondere im 2003 erschienenen Band "Hermeneutik und Translation" auf sich
genommen. Weitere Vertreter des hermeneutischen Ansatzes in der
Übersetzungswissenschaft – Sigrid Kupsch-Losereit, Ortega E. Arjonilla, Bernd Stefanink
und Ioana Bălăcescu – vertiefen den einen oder anderen Aspekt des
übersetzungshermeneutischen Denkens und versuchen neuerdings, es mit den neuesten
Ergebnissen der kognitionswissenschaftlichen Forschungen über das Übersetzen in
Verbindung zu bringen.
Die Bedeutung der hermeneutischen Übersetzungswissenschaft für die philosophische
Hermeneutik besteht darin, dass sie neue Dimensionen eines in der Philosophie initiierten
Gesprächs über das Übersetzen aufschließen könnte. Der dabei verwendete
hermeneutische Übersetzungsbegriff entstammt nicht dem Zusammenhang der konkreten
Übersetzungsarbeit, sondern wird vielmehr aus ontologischer Sicht thematisiert. Für
Autoren wie Heidegger oder Gadamer heißt ja existieren, sich durch Verstehensentwürfe
die Welt zu übersetzen. Das konkrete Übersetzen stellt für sie lediglich eine derivative
Form des Übersetzens dar.
34

Papers
Die hermeneutische Übersetzungswissenschaft stellt dagegen diese Diskussion unter
Einbezug der wichtigsten philosophischen Gedanken und Begriffe auf eine konkrete Basis.
Der vorliegende Beitrag möchte die wichtigsten übersetzungsbezogenen Begriffe wie
Verstehen, Interpretieren, hermeneutische Intuition, hermeneutischen Zirkel,
Wirkungsgeschichte, Horizontverschmelzung aus der philosophischen Hermeneutik auf
ihrem Weg zur Übersetzungswissenschaft und zurück begleiten. Mein Ziel ist es
darzulegen, wie diese ursprünglich philosophischen Begriffe im hermeneutischen Ansatz
übernommen und transformiert wurden und wie diese Transformation nun die
gegenwärtige philosophische Diskussion über das Übersetzen bereichen kann. Das
philosophische Interesse am Übersetzen hat nicht mit den genannten „Klassikern“ der
philosophischen Hermeneutik aufgehört, sondern es wird immer wieder in neueren
Beiträgen – siehe etwa die Aufsätze von Jean Grondin, Axel Bühler, Hans-Dieter Gondek
u.a. – angesprochen. Die im übersetzungshermeneutischen Ansatz erzielten
Forschungsergebnisse können den philosophischen Überlegungen über das Übersetzen
neue Perspektiven eröffnen.
35

Anna CETERA
36
Papers
Institute of English Studies, Warsaw University, Poland
a.cetera@uw.edu.pl
Translating the Translated
The Evergreen Classics Storm the Publishing Market
Again
The paper aims to discuss both the reasons and the corollaries of the newly emergent
tendencies in the publishing market based on retranslations of well-acknowledged literary
masterpieces. In particular, the paper points to the increasing number of publishing series
and individual translations heralded as ‘re-discovered’ classics, and associated phenomena
such as: the advertising policies focused almost entirely on the properties of the new
rewritings, the increasing focus on a literary translator whose novel and experimental
propensity frequently overshadows the status of the original text, and the specificity of
adopted (meta) translation strategies which ostensibly reveal the arbitrariness of the
translation by e.g. deliberately subverting earlier translations, interpolating interpretive
hints, and provokingly revealing the presence of a translator as a self-conscious agent and
mediator of meaning. Such tendencies are to a certain extent resulting from the specificity
of the advanced stages of literary reception (i.e. well-digested canons of foreign
literature) where the translation strategy is influenced neither by the peripheral position of
the author, nor by the strength of literary conventions of the hosting culture. On the
contrary, it is the high status of the translated text, e.g. Shakespeare’s plays, which
increases the temptation to tamper with the acknowledged originals and reveal the
linguistic riddles lingering in the Elizabethan playscript. Another reason is the
unprecedented growth of the publishing market which allows for greater plurality of
approaches, and frequently goes for controversy to enhance sale figures. Finally, the
changes should be also ascribed to the overall emancipation of Translation Studies as a
discipline which by intensifying critical debates has deepened the awareness of translation
issues and incited interest and experiment.
Due to the mixture of literary and economic reasons, the retranslations of the classics
pertain in particular to drama, eminent works of prose featuring in the reading lists of
educational institutions, and children’s literature. The urge to re-translate plays naturally
coincides with theatrical tendencies where subversion has been a recurrent facet of
contemporary productions of old masterpieces. Moreover, the specific communicative
aspect of performances as if encourages constant efforts to update languages and strip it
of superfluous or obscure rhetoric. In turn the tendency to retranslate major prose works
(e.g. Joseph Conrad, Fyodor Dostoevsky) finds a sound justification both in the tempting
prestige of the translator’s challenge, and in the plausibly high number of copies
consistently devoured by the educational system. Finally, the frequent retranslation of
children’s literature results both from the radical expectations of the small readers who
cannot cope with outdated stylistics and vocabulary, as well as from the interest of the
targeted mature audiences who eagerly discover the hidden ironies and paradoxes,
habitually suppressed in the ‘sweetened’ translations from the beginning of the 20th
century (e.g. Winnie the Pooh, Peter and Wendy, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland).
The examples featuring in the paper refer specifically to the Polish publishing market at
the turn of the millennium. However, they are also indicative of other countries where the
share of translated literature is relatively high. The paper emphasizes also the role of
Translation Studies in moderating the surprisingly heated debates stirred by the
publication of new translations, often (mis)judged against arbitrarily chosen and inflexibly
upheld equivalence criteria. Finally, special attention is given to the increasing necessity of
inscribing the mercantile interests of publishers into literary translation theory.

Ya-mei CHEN
Papers
Department of English, National Taipei University of Technology
mei227@yahoo.com.tw
Towards a Training Model for News Trans-Editing
An Interdisciplinary Approach
This paper aims to propose a workable translation-oriented news discourse model with
which translator trainers can systematically investigate ideology-related norms in news
trans-editing and apply those norms to translator training. Translator trainers can also
adopt this model as a bottom-up approach to teach trainees how to gain a better
understanding of the ideological stances imprinted in the source news texts as well as the
relationship between the ideologies and the text design, and then use the model again as
a top-down approach to teach them how to produce suitable and acceptable trans-edited
news texts. 'Trans-editing', as defined by Karen Stetting (1989: 371), is a combination of
translating and editing. In trans-editing, the processes of editing and translating are not
only equally important but also closely intertwined. It follows that news trans-editing is an
interdisciplinary social practice, integrating both news translation and news production.
News trans-editing is widely employed to incorporate into the target news texts the
receiving perspective and the target audience’s needs and interests to maximize
communicative efficiency.
Studies on news trans-editing started to emerge in the 1980s. Their research emphases
are always on only one of the following aspects: practical strategies, contextual factors, or
the gate-keeping function. Due to their own chosen focuses, all these existing studies
have only partially explored news trans-editing, and no thorough account has yet been
provided. To address such deficiency, this paper will bring together all the above research
focuses and develop a translation-oriented news discourse model to offer translator
trainers a more comprehensive and systematic tool. The translation-oriented news
discourse model at issue will be particularly designed to investigate ideology-related
norms and to explore the relationship between the news organization’s ideologies and the
text design. The main reason is as follows. News accounts are far from being ‘pure’ and
‘impartial’ reflections of ‘reality’ and ‘facts’. Since news organizations are socially,
economically, and politically situated, news items are inevitably produced from certain
perspectives, that is, from news organizations’ own distinct ideologies, be they social,
cultural, or political. It stands to reason that ideologies play a rather significant role in
news trans-editing, which is embedded in the system of news production in general.
In this paper, the ideologies held by the news organization are tripartite: (1) socio-cultural
or socio-political ideologies towards the news event under consideration, (2) ideological
assumptions about the audience’s needs, interests and backgrounds, and (3) ideological
presumptions regarding the acceptability of news texts.
Given the multi-faceted nature of news trans-editing, an interdisciplinary approach will be
adopted to develop the translation-oriented news discourse model, with insights drawn
from discourse-oriented and functionalist approaches to translation-studies, and from
research on news discourse within Critical Linguistics, Critical Discourse Analysis and
journalism. It is hoped that the translation-oriented news discourse model to be
formulated in this paper can assist translator trainers in familiarizing trainee translators
with relevant ideology-related norms or ideological stances prevailing in a given target
news organization. In this way, trainee translators who would like to embark upon a
career as a news trans-editor may save much time on a trial and error process.
37

Agnieszka CHMIEL
Papers
Department of Translation Studies, Adam Mickiewicz University
mol@poczta.icpnet.pl
Interpreting Studies and Psycholinguistics
A Possible Synergy Effect
Cognitive information processing has long been an area of interest for Interpreting
Studies scholars. The research by Gerver, Moser-Mercer, Gile and others has shed more
light on the intricacies of cognitive processes in interpreting and led to new models
(focusing on skills and efforts). This paper will discuss the interdisciplinary relation
between Interpreting Studies and psycholinguistics as a source of a possible synergy
effect. In other words, it will be shown that not only the former but also the latter can
benefit from the cognition-oriented line of research within IS. First, the most crucial
contributions of IS and psycholinguistics to interdisciplinary studies will be identified. This
will be followed by an analysis of possible benefits and a review of the latest research
results in the area (including Christoffels and de Groot 2006). Finally, a progress report on
an ongoing longitudinal cognitive study of interpreter trainees will be presented.
One of the most relevant contributions of psycholinguistics to cognitive IS is its
methodology. An array of experimental tasks (including digit span, reading span and list
recall for working memory research and a lexical decision task, verbal fluency, word
completion and priming for mental lexicon studies) offers hard data comparable across
populations. The results are measurable, reliable and devoid of subjective bias or
ecological validity issues characteristic for some other IS research methods –
introspection-based interviews or field observations. Despite some limitations, this
experimental methodology enables identification and manipulation of variables and lends
itself easily to statistical analysis.
Interpreting Studies offers very interesting subjects for psycholinguistic experiments.
Conference interpreting is a unique case of bilingual/multilingual use of languages with
more frequent code switching and greater inhibitory demands as compared to noninterpreting
use of language. Additionally, interpreting trainees are interpreters in the
making, which means that specific cognitive skills can be observed as gradually
developed.
The results of psycholinguistic studies focusing on working memory and mental lexicon
with professional interpreters and trainees as subjects can provide more insight into
cognitive skills and processes in interpreting and can have pedagogical applications. If
such factors as verbal fluency, digit span and reading span serve as predictors of better
interpreting performance they could be included in aptitude tests. Additionally, more
precise information on the development and use of lexical and conceptual links in the
mental lexicon of an interpreter could lead to better course design with increased
contrastive vocabulary components in later stages of training.
Not only interpreting trainers, but also psycholinguistics can benefit from interdisciplinary
research. They can obtain information on effective activation and inhibition of languages
by multilingual experts, which is applicable both to aphasia studies and to second
language acquisition. The study of bidirectional (A to B, B to A) and unidirectional (B to A)
interpreters can also shed more light on the strength of links in the mental lexicon with
directionality as a factor.
38

Papers
To leverage the synergy effect of psycholinguistics and IS, a longitudinal cognitive study
with interpreter trainees was designed. The project is currently underway so the
methodology and progress rather than final results will be reported. Conference
interpreting trainees undergo the same experimental procedure three times: at the
beginning of their training, after the first year and at the end of their two-year training
programme. Digit span, word list recall and semantic verbal fluency are examined as
potential predictors of success in conference interpreting. The mental lexicon structure
and word retrieval processes are studied through word translation tasks and crosslanguage
semantic priming. The longitudinal results of these tasks should provide more
insight into the development of strengths of interlingual lexical links. Intuitively, direct
lexical links should develop with interpreting practice although it is usually conceptual
links that strengthen with increasing language proficiency.
39

Tina Paulsen CHRISTENSEN
Aarhus School of Business
tpc@asb.dk
Papers
An All-Encompassing Study of an Authentic Court
Setting
What Do the Different Users Expect from the
Interpreter and What Are the Expectations of the
Interpreter Regarding the Different User’s
Expectations, and - Last But Not Least – Do They Get
What They Expect?
Most professional interpreters and interpreting researchers probably see quality or
”professionalism” as the main goal of interpreting in general, but still there is no
agreement within the interpreting community of how to define interpreting quality. Facing
the fact that interpreting can not only be seen as a text-processing task, this study will
focus on interpreting as a process of communicative interaction where quality means
successful communication in a particular communicative situation. The consequence of
focusing on interpreting as a service is that the degree of success must necessarily be
judged from a particular (subjective) perspective on the communicative event.
In this paper I shall address the issue of interpreting quality in an all-encompassing
perspective on an authentic Danish courtroom setting. The aim of the empirical casebased
survey is unlike that of most existing studies which generally have taken either one
particular perspective - that of interpreters, clients or users - or been experimental in
nature – to investigate to which extent different users (judge, defence counsel,
prosecutor and non-majority-language speaking user) in a specific courtroom setting
share the same expectations about courtroom interpreting. Thus, this paper discusses the
practicability of user expectations as quality criteria which generally have been regarded
as being of less practical use due to the fact that user expectations generally have been
determined as everything else but homogeneous.
Several empirical studies, which have been carried out on this subject, have shown that
different user groups have different expectations about the interpreted communicative
event, which ceteris paribus means that user expectations are heterogeneous. The
question is, whether the heterogeneity of user expectations is also predominant in court
interpreting characterized by courtroom settings for which in most jurisdictions so-called
“interpreting guidelines” exist which in one form or another define the expected role of
the court interpreter. It is my hypothesis that the expectations of both professional users
(judges and lawyers) and non-majority-language-speaking users (e.g. the defendant or
the witness) and, not least, the court interpreter’s own expectations regarding the
expectations towards the interpreter by different users are influenced and to some extent
homogenized by these guidelines, which are to be considered as expectancy norms
projected and recommended by the specific legal system. In order to be able to answer
this question, a questionnaire-based survey on specific quality criteria has been conducted
within an authentic interpreter-mediated court setting, because, according to Angelelli
(2004: 83), the setting is the key component in defining the role of the interpreter.
40

Papers
The survey includes a questionnaire for the end-users and a questionnaire for the
participating court interpreter which means that the conducted survey combines user
expectations and interpreter perception of role including the notion of interpreter
expectations about end-user expectations in a specific legal encounter. An ulterior object
of the study is to introduce an evaluative perspective according to which it is possible to
measure actually obtained interpreting quality in the specific court setting. This means
that the questionnaire used also deals with the question if and to which extent the
expectations of both the professional and the non-professional users were actually met.
Finally, the study investigates to which extent the prescriptive expectancy norms
projected and recommended by the Danish legal system in the shape of “Guidelines for
interpreting in Danish court proceedings” correspond with the user and interpreter
expectations in courtroom practice. The article should be seen as an attempt to improve
the quality of the services rendered by professional interpreters as well as students of
court interpreting by offering an empirical framework on which to base their daily
interpreting choices rather than on intuition.
41

Isabel CHUMBO
Polytechnic Institute Bragança Portugal
ischumbo@ipb.pt
Papers
Translators Censoring Propaganda
A Case Study on the Translation of Salazar’s Speeches
into English
This paper aims at analyzing the role of translators in Portuguese external propaganda
during the dictatorial regime of António Oliveira Salazar (1932-68), with particular
emphasis in the 1930s and 1940s when many of the foundations of the regime were laid
down.
Translation was viewed as a support for Propaganda, through a specific institution which
housed translators and produced many of the works on the regime which came to be
known outside Portugal. From tourism brochures to political intervention in the form of
booklets and books of speeches, the Secretariado de Propaganda Nacional (SPN)
produced translations with the main objective of improving the image of the country in
Europe, mainly the United Kingdom and the U.S.
The existence and role of the official Propaganda Office (SPN) is not ignored by
Portuguese historians. Nevertheless their focus is mainly on the actions undertaken by the
Office as an organ of control and repression and hardly ever on the Office as a center of
production or industry of translation.
Translation from within the regime was very important and constituted a real industry.
Contact with other countries and the need to amplify international support originates
several approaches. Different works on the guidelines and main objectives of the regime
were therefore translated into English, French, Spanish, Italian and German.
This paper will attempt to prove the relevance Salazar’s regime attributed to translation
providing examples from relevant documents.
Unfortunately not much research has been done on translation in periods of censorship
from within the regime. This paper looks at this relationship and on how translators tried
to overcome censorship, especially if they used specific translation procedures in certain
situations while working for the state itself.
The amount of translations produced in a time when censorship and dictatorship went
hand in hand is also addressed and this apparently contradictory phenomenon exists to
show that in periods of repression translation is of utmost importance.
This paper focuses on a research developed in two parts. First it investigates the
importance Salazar’s regime attributed to translation, mainly from Portuguese into
English. Second it analyzes a set of translated speeches by Salazar in order to understand
how translators influenced the image of the country abroad, due to the changes
introduced mainly through omissions and additions. These translation procedures
contributed to an ideological shift in the final text.
Due to the constraints of living and working in a censorship, translators behaved like
censors. Both activities monitor what comes in and goes out, creating specific norms in a
specific context.
Translators had to keep in mind that there was a double audience to please. On one hand
Salazar, who wanted his speeches in good English, on the other the English reading
audience in itself. As a result the notion of acceptability poses a problem which needs to
be solved. For whom do the translations need to be acceptable? For the dictator or the
final reader?
42

Heloísa CINTRÃO
University of São Paulo, Brazil
helocint@usp.br
Papers
Acercar la lupa, transcrear el mapa
Los conocimientos declarativos y el desarrollo de la
competencia traductora
En 2000, la tesis doctoral de Orozco, defendida en la Universidad Autónoma de Barcelona,
España, concluía que los datos de su estudio sobre el desarrollo de la competencia
traductora (CT) no habían mostrado una correlación necesaria entre los conocimientos
teóricos sobre traducción, analizados en las respuestas de los sujetos a un cuestionario, y
la calidad del producto alcanzada por esos mismos sujetos en las tareas de traducción
que habían realizado. Quizá éste haya sido un importante motivo para que, hasta su
versión de 2003, los modelos de CT del grupo PACTE, desarrollados en aquella misma
Universidad, resaltaran que la CT es un conocimiento predominantemente procedimental,
aun presentándola como un tipo de conocimiento experto que, como tal, se caracteriza
por reunir conocimientos declarativos (¿teóricos?) y procedimentales (¿prácticos?).
Dialogando con la investigadora líder del grupo PACTE durante el curso que impartió en la
Universidad Federal de Minas Gerais, Brasil, en agosto de 2004, argumenté que, en vez
de posicionarse en favor de una “predominancia” de los conocimientos procedimentales o
de los declarativos dentro de este conocimiento experto que es la CT, podría ser más
relevante para la formación de traductores concentrar esfuerzos en entender cómo
diferentes tipos de conocimientos declarativos interactúan con los conocimientos
procedimentales en el proceso de desarrollo de la CT y, especialmente, tratar de alcanzar
una mayor claridad sobre los posibles impactos que pueden tener los conocimientos
declarativos sobre los procedimentales en la actuación de un traductor y en el proceso de
desarrollo de la CT. De hecho, el papel de la reflexión teórica y de los Estudios de
Traducción en la formación del traductor fue una preocupación crucial de mi investigación
de doctorado, desde sus primeras versiones de proyecto redactadas en 2000 y 2002,
hasta su conclusión en 2006, en la Universidad de São Paulo.
En esta ponencia se presentarán algunas reflexiones y conclusiones al respecto de este
tema, a las que llegué en dicha investigación, un estudio teórico y empírico-experimental
sobre la CT y su desarrollo. La explicitación de conceptos y principios de traducción
―tomados principalmente de los enfoques funcionalistas, discursivos y cognitivos―, y el
procedimiento de vincular estos conceptos y principios a una actividad práctica que los
mostrara en funcionamiento, evidenciando su relevancia, tuvieron efectos muy positivos
en la capacidad de detección de problemas y en la calidad de soluciones dadas a
problemas por sujetos sometidos a un curso-taller que se valió de este procedimiento,
muy especialmente en lo que a problemas funcionales se refiere. Para discutir estos
resultados, consideraremos las propuestas de Toury (1986; 1995), Chesterman (2000) y
Shreve (1997) sobre el desarrollo de la CT.
Partiendo de estos autores, sostendremos que una serie de factores importantes para la
detección y la resolución de problemas y para la toma de decisiones en traducción pueden
no ser captados “espontáneamente” a partir de la pura experiencia práctica, si no se los
hace más evidentes a la percepción consciente de un sujeto por medio de la explicitación
de conceptos, reglas y principios de traducción y de la observación de los procesos,
criterios y recursos que uno pone en funcionamiento al traducir.
43

Papers
Así, la explicitación conceptual, el conocimiento teórico, el conocimiento declarativo y la
metarreflexión pueden funcionar en el desarrollo de la CT como una especie de “lupa”
que permitirá al aprendiz ver lo que, sin un trabajo conceptual y metacognitivo, podría
pasársele inadvertido indefinidamente. A su vez, la percepción de factores cruciales para
la detección y la resolución de problemas y para la toma de decisiones favorecerá la
“transcreación de mapas”, o sea, que esquemas mentales simplistas sobre qué es traducir
se conviertan en esquemas más complejos, amplios y refinados, en una competencia más
flexible para enfrentar diferentes tipos de problemas y para encontrar soluciones más
adecuadas a las exigencias funcionales de variados encargos de traducción.
44

Georgina COLLINS
Warwick University
georgina.collins@warwick.ac.uk
Papers
The Role of Linguistic Heredity in Translation Studies
Francophone Senegalese Women’s Poetry and a
Translation Methodology Steeped in the Source
Culture and Study of the Native African Language of
Wolof
Francophone African women’s poetry is under-researched, and even more so, undertranslated.
According to Nicki Hitchcott, the most commonly cited reason for this is “the
inferior quality of their work” (Hitchcott 2), but this research will reveal that there is
nothing inferior about their work, and the distinct nature of Francophone African women’s
poetry gives it a unique appeal that can survive the journey of translation. By making
Senegalese women’s poetry the focus of this paper, these formerly-snubbed female
writers are becoming the subjects of current and future study, rather than the objects of
past neglect. This paper will look at how the continually developing discipline of
Translation Studies matters in the creative rewriting of Francophone African women’s
poetry. It will examine the role of the native African language in postcolonial translation
and how this can assist in translating the Francophone text, also demonstrating how the
interdisciplinary nature of Translation Studies can ease the complexity of poetry
translation and contribute to research into African languages. By stretching the
boundaries of culture, this paper will examine the native African language of Wolof,
spoken by over 40 % of the population in Senegal, to see how the language of the people
may have influenced the language of the colonisers. According to Christopher Miller,
“Senegal is dominated culturally by the Wolof,” and he describes the impact of history,
social structure, and the traditional caste system (252). Of course, these are significant
areas for analysis during the interdisciplinary study of translation – but what about
language? Women’s use of native African languages is very different to that of men.
Pushed aside within the colonial education system, often at home with friends and
relatives, women were more inclined to use the language of their ancestors rather than
that of the colonisers. This paper will look at traditional Wolof literature and the distinct
areas of orature that were dominated by women, examining the linguistic qualities that
may have influenced the postcolonial text and therefore French to English translation
methodologies. Using Senegalese poets such as Annette Mbaye D’Erneville and Mame
Seck Mbacké as case studies, my research will analyse the advantages and limitations of
the Western poem, and whether it is better than prose at representing African culture and
native languages due to its association with orature and its rhythmic qualities.
A comparative analysis of poets will be made, contrasting those women who choose to
write in French with others who use Wolof. I will show how translation studies is a key
element in the analysis of Francophone African Women’s poetry, highlighting the
interdisciplinary nature of this field of study, where religious and traditional gender
barriers merge with colonial ideology, linguistic and cultural hurdles (Hitchcott 154). This
research will make an original contribution to knowledge by demonstrating the
importance of continued interdisciplinary development in Translation Studies. By
considering the native and pre-colonial language of Wolof, the remit of translation studies
is taken beyond the basics of skopos and text type theory and even the more recent
cultural turn, to analyse the domain of linguistic heredity and its role in translation
studies.
45

Papers
Anne Adams Graves reflected that it is vital to correct the faulty vision through which
African women in literature have been seen (xi), but are we doing these women justice by
ignoring such a large part of their inheritance – their native language? Translation Studies
matters for those whose works we are translating, if we are to create honest and
authentic translations that consider all cultural and linguistic elements of the source text.
Constant development and metamorphosis of Translation Studies is therefore of great
importance to African society at large, by showing what a large impact translation-related
phenomena may have on the literature of a fast-developing country. Further, Translation
Studies provides a framework for thorough and comprehensive study, by accentuating the
depth to which research into translation should be taken. Translation Studies can affect
the whole perception of a culture and a language, and I will argue that the analysis of the
native language is a necessity in postcolonial translation. Translation Studies matters
because it is willing to progress as quickly as the world around it.
References
Adams Graves, Anne. “Preface.” Ngambika: Studies of Women in African Literature. Eds.
Carole Boyce Davies and Anne Adams Grave. Trenton: Africa World Press, 1986. vii-xi.
Hitchcott, Nicki. Women Writers in Francophone Africa. Oxford: Berg, 2000.
Miller, Christopher L. Theories of Africans: Francophone Literature and Anthropology in
Africa. Chicago: Chicago UP, 1990.
46

Helle DAM, Karen KORNING ZETHSEN
Aarhus School of Business
hd@asb.dk
kkz@asb.dk
Papers
The Status of the Professional Translator
The Staff Translator
The past decades have seen an overwhelming increase in publications within the field of
translation studies. Much has been written about translation though not so much about
the translator and certainly next to nothing about translator status. At the same time
translator status is often commented on implicitly or in stray sentences in the TS literature
and in professional journals and always in a negative way. But is translator status as low
as often implied and how do we measure status? Is it only a question of salary?
In this paper we intend to explore the notion of status as well as the present status of the
(non-literary) professional translator. By means of introduction, we shall discuss the
concept of status and how to define it for our present purposes. Furthermore, we shall
give a brief overview of what has been written explicitly on the subject and what is
implied in translation literature and in a professional context. Central to our paper, we
shall report on the first step of a comprehensive empirical project aimed at investigating
the status of professional translators in the world of today. Clearly, translation is a
diversified profession, and translators work in a number of different contexts (in public
and private companies, international organisations, translation agencies, publishing
houses, etc.), they translate a variety of texts and genres (ranging from literary to
technical texts with numerous subdivisions), and they are employed in different ways
(e.g. as freelance or staff translators).
All these parameters – along with several others, such as the country in which the
translators work – are likely to influence our object of study: translators’ status. However,
in this first study we shall focus on a group of translators which we consider to be at the
strong end of the translator-status continuum, namely full- time staff translators whose
educational background is an MA in translation. At the time of writing, we are still in the
process of collecting data, but the investigation is planned as a large-scale study involving
as many private Danish companies with more than three full-time staff translators as
possible.
Our analysis is based on questionnaires aimed at charting out the status of the translators
as perceived by different groups of employees in the companies. Respondents are the
staff translators themselves, a group of HR employees and a group of the core employees
of the companies in question (that is the type of employee which is central to the main
purpose of the company, such as e.g. engineers in a technical production company). In
our paper we shall elaborate on the nature of our study and the methods used, and we
shall of course report specifically on the results obtained. Finally, we shall argue that this
type of sociological study matters, because it sheds light on a real and much decried
problem in translation: low translator status.
47

Christophe DECLERCQ
Papers
Imperial College London; University College Antwerp
c.declercq@imperial.ac.uk
Translation Studies and Practical Idealism
A Visit to Utopia?
With common welfare versus private interest as one of its main themes, Thomas More’s
1515 Utopia described an imaginary but ideal world. The key to the utopian society is
whether or not one views this idealism in a positive or negative way, i.e. whether one
views the efforts to create a better or perhaps perfect society as realistic or not. Efforts in
trying to make translation studies matter for practitioners and the other way around,
seeking practitioners’ contributions to academic communities, have not been easy. In a
practical visit to a translational utopia, this paper covers some of the topics involved in
bridging translation studies and translation practice and this because of the author’s
academic background and practical experience in both fields.
The paper also holds at its main location focus both London and Antwerp, by coincidence
the hometown of More and the setting of Utopia. Whether or not TS really adds value to
practitioners is a question that requires further specification and this on a basis of a broad
text type classification, because subfields of translation require different approaches. The
literary field is definitely more in toch with TS than translation of technical documentation.
A second line of thinking takes this even further as in an ideal translational world,
electronic literacy would come by birth and TS departments could focus again on the
cross-linguistic and cross-cultural aspects only. Related is the fact that TS in itself is very
difficult to define in practice. Thirdly, a virtual world is being created in Antwerp again,
nearly 500 years after More’s classic, as the city holds a peculiar situation on the level of
translation education on the one hand and community and practice translation on the
other hand. Finally, the most utopian part of the paper looks at sustainable translation
and how an ideal translational world could add to a better and environmentally friendly
world.
48

Kathelijne DENTURCK, Sofie MNIEMEGEERS
Papers
Hogeschool Gent - Departement Vertaalkunde
kathelijne.denturck@hogent.be, sofie.niemegeers@hogent.be
Modal Particles and Connectors in Translated Dutch
and French
A Translational and Linguistic Corpus Research
The present paper aims at showing work in progress, in which two sets of parallel and
comparable corpora of different text types have been developed. The aim is to study the
translational process, in particular, the choices the translator makes as to expressing
modal and cohesive meanings. To investigate connector choices, a parallel corpus
consisting of French and Dutch texts aligned in both translational directions and a
comparable French corpus are used. The enquiry on modal particles will rely on the
second corpus that consists of Dutch source texts aligned to their English translations,
English source texts and their Dutch translations, and a comparable Dutch corpus.
The corpora are balanced and representative: the quantitative distribution of texts reflects
a large differentiation of both text types and writers/translators, whose gender and origin
types have been taken into account. The texts have been given annotations on the
textual as well as the linguistic level, including information regarding the authors, the
translators and the publishers. The sentences containing modal particles and connectors
get annotations regarding the type of speech act or whether they occur in a dialogue or a
monologue. Both the modal particles and the connectors (and their translational
equivalents) have also been given their own relevant annotations. A computer program,
called Kwalitan, has been used to make all of this coding easy and usable.
Through the translators' choices we arrive at a better insight into the translation process.
To test the explicitation hypothesis (Olohan, 2004), a quantitative comparison is made
between Dutch translations and their English source texts regarding the use of modal
particles and between French translations and their Dutch source texts for the use of
connectors. For this purpose, the parallel part of the corpora will be used, comparing the
Dutch/French source texts to the Dutch/French translated texts. The paper will further
indicate to what extent different variables influence translators' choices: text type,
relational structures (of either the characters in the fictional texts or of speaker-hearer
relations in the non-fictional texts), origin and gender of the author or translator, norms in
Flemish publishing houses versus those from the Netherlands and others.
In addition, the paper will illustrate the importance of the research on modal particles for
both a contrastive linguistic and a translation studies point of view: modal particles are
predominantly present in Dutch but underrepresented in English. Therefore, other (more
lexical) means have to be used in English to express the pragmatic content of these
particles, their function of intersubjective positioning or modification of the relationship
between speaker and hearer.
Finally, following Granger (2003a and 2003b), it will be pointed out how both corpora and
research questions allow the combination of a contrastive linguistic approach with a
translation study, two complementary and inseparable approaches.
49

Louise DENVER
Copenhagen Business School
ld.first@cbs.dk
Papers
The Translation of the Tricky Danish Connector 'Ellers'
('Else')
An Empirical Study of Product and Process
The Danish lexicon contains an item 'ellers' ('else') which can be tricky to translate. There
is no one to one relation between 'ellers' and any of the equivalents in the Spanish
lexicon. Danish-Spanish dictionaries offer an array of adverbial expressions which do not
cover the various meanings of the logical-semantic relation signalled by 'ellers'. They
typically contain items which can be used to translate 'ellers' when used in initial position
after a full stop to signal alternate, disjunctive or conditional meaning. However, when
found in Danish texts, not initially, but in the position of sentence adverbials, the
interpretation of the relation can be less transparent and the equivalents proposed by the
dictionaries may seen less appropriate, e.g. 'På skrivebordet findes også en bil-brochure
fra BMW - det foretrukne transportmiddel for danske ministre. "Jeg cykler eller gerne",
siger Pia Gjellerup.'('On the desk there is also a BMW car brochure - the means of
transport preferred by Danish ministers. "I like ('ellers') to use my bike", says Pia
Gjellerup'). The relation could be paraphrased as follows: You see a car brochure lying on
my desk. Please do not draw the wrong conclusion. I don't go by car very often. I prefer
to go by bike.' In the following sequence in Spanish, the semantic relation between the
two sentences is not signalled by means of a connector: 'Los daneses rechazaron ayer
integrar su moneda en el euro... Cuando el primer ministro Poul Nyrup convocó la
consulta en marzo, el sí parecía asegurado. ('Yesterday, the Danish population refused to
integrate Danish currency into the euro zone... When, in March, Prime Minister Poul Nyrup
Rasmussen decided to hold a referendum, the outcome seemed to be a yes.'). While the
Spanish lexicon offers no obvious cohesive device to mark the relation of contrast
between the expected outcome (a yes) and the actual outcome (a no), the obvious choice
of marking in Danish would be 'ellers'. This study focuses on the problems involved in the
translation of the types of logical-semantic relations which can be marked by the Danish
'ellers' when found in the position of sentence adverbials. It is hypothesised that in
translations from Danish into Spanish an explicit marking of the relation will sometimes be
omitted due to the lack of a 'suitable' equivalent. Conversely, it is assumed that, in
translations from Spanish into Danish, the semantic relation will far from always be made
explicit. If it is, it is likely that it will be done by means of 'ellers'. These assumptions will
be tested in an exploratory study of the translations of a number of Spanish and Danish
source texts. The product analyses will be supplemented by studies of the translation
process by means of think aloud-protocols and retrospective interviews to find out to
what extent the unit is considered a problematical unit which requires conscious mental
processing, and in order to shed light on the strategic decision-making involved in the
translation of the relation.
50

Lucile DESBLACHE, Jorge DÍAZ-CINTAS
Roehampton University, London
Papers
l.desblache@roehampton.ac.uk, j.diaz-cintas@roehampton.ac.uk
Accessibility and/in Translation Training
The notion of accessibility has become very prominent in recent years, in education in
general as well as in the more specific area of Translation Studies. In this joint paper, we
would like to explore accessibility both as a teaching topic and as a concept which is at
the heart of our teaching practice.
In the first half of the paper, we shall look at how our teaching ethos is driven by ways in
which we can value and favour difference. How can we use the wide range of our
students' social, cultural and linguistic backgrounds and abilities? How does a more acute
awareness of diversity lead us to favour certain strategies? Student-centred approaches,
non-prescriptive methods, the use of an interdisciplinary expertise network, both in our
own institution and externally, and the development of strong links with the translation
industry will be investigated as key features in answer to this question.
The second half of the paper will be devoted to accessibility as a teaching subject. On our
postgraduate course in audiovisual translation, audio description and subtitling for the
deaf and hard of hearing are increasingly offered on translation studies curricula. They
are extremely popular with our students who frequently choose them in preference to
more traditional translation modules such as dubbing and translation tools. Can we now
consider accessibility to the media an essential part of Translation Studies? What impact
does this new presence have on our visions of translation as a topic? We shall attempt to
open the debate and propose some answers to these topical questions.
51

Rodica DIMITRIU
Papers
Universitatea "Al. I. Cuza" Iasi, Romania, Department of English
rodica.dimi@gmail.com
The Translators’ Prefaces and Translation Studies
A Mutually Enriching Relationship
The history of Translation Studies shows that, for a long time, the translators’ prefaces to
canonic literary and philosophical works were an inextricable part of the theoretical corpus
of writings on translation that formed the traditional translation theory. This state of
affairs considerably changed with the emergence of Translation Studies, an interdiscipline
that makes use of more complex, more refined and frequently more ‘scientific’ tools of
investigation. Translators’ prefaces have become rarer and their relative scarcity has
contributed to the still widening gap between theorists and practitioners. As Jeremy
Munday (2001) pertinently notices, because of this relative lack of prefaces, much of the
work that goes into producing a translation, i. e. the translator’s own background and
research as well as the actual process of translation composition, are lost.
The purpose of this paper is twofold. First, it aims to reconsider the functions that these
meta-texts fulfil in the receiving culture. This reconsideration draws on the examination of
a corpus of such materials, which came out in Romania between 1940 and 2002, and
which, for reasons of conciseness, I refer to as prefaces. By investigating these texts from
a Translation Studies perspective, I find that the main functions that they fulfil are
explanatory, normative/prescriptive and informative/descriptive. The explanatory
dimension of prefaces is achieved, on the one hand, through the translators’ attempts to
describe the personal and/or the socio-cultural context that accounted for their choice of
a particular text for translation. On the other hand, this function refers to the translators’
comments on the strategies they used when confronted with linguistic and cultural
translation problems. Texts fulfilling an explanatory function are, therefore, related to the
preliminary and operational norms (cf. Toury 1995) translators submit to.
Normative/prescriptive prefaces act as guidelines to be followed by other practitioners.
The crucial issue at this level is that of fidelity/loyalty that goes either to the source or to
the target text, thus bringing Toury’s initial norm into discussion. Other “translation tips”
that occur in the corpus have in view the issue of what is called “poetic synonymy” (i. e.
finding, in the target culture, a writer that stylistically shares in common with the source
text author), or problems related to inter-textual cohesion, translating poetry, secondary
translations, and the “ideal” translator’s profile. The informative/descriptive function refers
to those translators’ prefaces that provide translation-oriented source text analyses, trying
to highlight the author’s originality and focusing on areas of translation difficulties.
Sometimes the translators’ analyses comprise the description of the context of source text
production and/or of target text reception, thus sharing in common with literary criticism.
The second purpose of this paper derives from the first one. The analyses of the
translators’ prefaces are ultimately meant to reveal, on the one hand, their potential as
research resources for translation scholars, on the other, the ways in which the
translators themselves could benefit from on-going research in Translation Studies. As
such, the paper is an(other) attempt to narrow the gap between theorists and
practitioners. Thus, it is suggested that translation scholars could use translators’ prefaces
to a larger extent in order to check the validity of theories through the case studies that
are presented in each preface, detect the ideology behind the translators’ prefaces (hence
possible instances of manipulation), or make inferences about the translation process
itself. Conversely, when writing prefaces translators could resort to acquisitions in
Translation Studies and thus develop a more “professional” meta-language that would
allow them to present their enterprise in a more precise and less impressionistic manner.
This could also have a share in raising the translators’ status in society.
52

Papers
Lise DUBOIS, Matthieu LEBLANC, Sonya MALABORZA
Université de Moncton
duboisl@umoncton.ca, leblanmt@umoncton.ca, smalaborza@yahoo.ca
Translation Studies: A Gateway to Understanding
Language Ideologies and Social Categorization
This paper concerns a study conducted in a large translation firm operating outside of the
larger Canadian cities, in what is commonly called a minority setting. This firm uses the
most recent technological tools, work flow systems, translation memories, integrated term
banks, formatting systems, etc., and is currently seeking to branch out in international
markets. The research’s perspective is an ethno-sociolinguistic one based on a
constructivist and interpretive approach to language practices, which, in this case,
encompass translation practices. Our three-pronged methodology includes ethnographic
observation of translation processes, in-depth interviews with translators and managers,
and analysis of various company documents. Translators and the translation processes
are at the center of our investigation, based on the following questions: who translates?
For whom? How? Who legitimizes the final result?
Why do research projects on translation in a large firm matter? First, research reveals
important information on the translator’s changing status within large globalized
organizations. Indeed, the optimal use of modern-day tools and technology in translation
is transforming the translator and his task. We have found that these tools have
important consequences on work flow and rhythm; transform the relationship between
translator and text because the work is divided up in small units with no beginning and no
end; change the working relationship between translators who can now visualize each
other’s work during the translation process; subordinate the translator’s creativity and
autonomy to existing translations produced by others; and transform the relationship
between translator and client whose expectations are immediate. Are these tools
contributing to the deprofessionalization of the translator? How do translators perceive
this?
Secondly, these investigations matter because they also tell us about dominant language
ideologies. In a world where languages are the gateway to expanding markets, it is
important to understand how translation is viewed by the major players in the market,
how it is being provided, and in what conditions. What effects on smaller languages will
translation have when its quality is deemed “good enough” for the local markets? Who
determines what is good enough and for what purpose? This brings us to another central
question in our study: what role do linguistic skills play in globalized markets? What
linguistic skills are required to be a translator? Who determines what they are and how
they are evaluated?
Finally, in the particular setting under study, a minority setting where minority speakers’
linguistic skills are a commodity for the first time in history, the translation company
becomes a milieu for various intercultural contacts. Linguistic and translation practices
become the terrain where social differences and barriers are (de) and (re)constructed.
What role do translation skills play in social categorization processes?
We will be looking at these three aspects of translation in a globalized market-driven
world and attempting to provide answers to the questions asked. Furthermore, we will be
broaching the question of methodology in translation studies as it relates to fieldwork.
53

Friedel DUBSLAFF ,Bodil MARTINSEN
Aarhus School of Business, Denmark
fd@asb.dk, brm@asb.dk
Papers
Investigating Deviations from Norms in Court
Interpreting
Since Shlesinger (1989) discussed the applicability of translational norms to the field of
interpreting, a number of scholars have advocated the use of this concept as a frame of
reference in interpreting research (e.g. Harris 1990, Schjoldager 1994, 1995, Jansen
1995, Gile 1999, Garzone 2002). Due to the flexibility of the concept of norms, it lends
itself excellently to inquiries into interpreting, i.e. to an object of study which may be said
to be characterized by an even higher degree of variability than translation. The present
study forms part of a comprehensive research project on court interpreting in Denmark,
which involves three researchers affiliated to the same institution (Aarhus School of
Business), and includes French, German and Arabic. Apart from recordings of (parts of)
authentic courtroom proceedings, the empirical data include questionnaires filled in by the
interpreters and most – and, in some cases, all – professional users involved (judges,
lawyers, prosecutors). As far as the non-Danish speaking users are concerned, it has, with
one notable exception, unfortunately not been possible to obtain data from this group via
questionnaires. As this type of data, however, is important for the study, we intend to
conduct interviews instead.
The purpose of the study is to investigate deviations from translational norms in court
interpreting. More specifically, we aim to:
- identify and describe instances of deviant behaviour on the part of the interpreters
- discuss signs of possible deviant behaviour
- explore why the deviations in question occur
- find out what happens if deviations are perceived as such by the other participants
involved in the interpreted event.
We will reconstruct the norms in question by examining interpreters’ and (mainly)
professional users’ behaviour in the course of the interpreted events and by drawing on
responses to the questionnaires and comments provided by these two groups. The explicit
instructions issued by the Danish Court Administration (Guidelines for court interpreting)
will serve as point of departure for the investigation of deviations from the prevailing
norms. Depending on the character of the deviant behaviour, the potency of the norms in
question, extratextual sociocultural factors such as the interpreter’s status in society, and
many other factors, a broad range of sanctions is conceivable. However, we do not expect
to find an obvious connection between deviations and sanctions in every case. By way of
example: Several judges, who had given their consent to recordings of authentic data in
connection with the research project, reported that they had experienced problems with
insufficient language proficiency on the part of untrained interpreters speaking minority
languages in Denmark, such as Arabic (comments in the questionnaires show, that this is
a shared concern among the professional users). However, dissatisfaction with these
interpreters does not necessarily lead to actual negative sanctions because there is a
shortage of trained interpreters speaking these languages. This example does not
immediately indicate that Translation Studies might be able to contribute to, for example,
an improvement of the training situation for the group of court interpreters mentioned
above. However, in our opinion, there is reason to believe that TS can make a difference
in the long run. We shall conclude this paper by discussing what makes us think so.
54

Thérèse ENG
Växjö University
therese.eng@vxu.se
Papers
La variation diastratique dans les sous-titres français
de films suédois
En 1989, Lambert a constaté qu’:
Une des options bien connues du roman, la tendance à individualiser les personnages par
leur langage […] est assez systématiquement sacrifiée à d’autres objectifs: le sous-titreur
recherche la standardisation plutôt que l’idiosyncrasie. L’opposition entre le langage du
narrateur et le langage des personnages est ainsi souvent émoussé, et l’impact d’une
certaine langue écrite standard redevient manifeste. […] Le langage conventionnel des
sous-titres se donne des objectifs didactiques et moraux plutôt qu’artistique et
mimétiques, contrairement à ce qui est le cas de la plupart des dialogues romanesques.
(Lambert, 1989 : « La traduction, les langues et la communication de masse : les
ambiguïtés du discours international », Target 1989, 1 : 2, p. 233.).
Environ dix ans plus tard, nous avons pu constater, à partir de l’analyse d’un corpus de
long métrages suédois, datant du début du XXIe siècle, sous-titrés en français, que les
sous-titreurs de ces films ne sont pas insensibles aux aspects dramatiques, notamment
ceux résultant de la confrontation de deux mondes sociaux opposés, voire en conflit.
Nous avons remarqué qu’il y a une évolution stylistique qui tend vers un usage plus
systématique des caractéristiques orales dans la traduction sous-titrale des films suédois
en France.
Marquer les différences sociales propres à la langue semble même être un devoir de ces
traducteurs. C’est ainsi que les sous-titreurs, Duault et Sjöberg, ont dû, dans les films où
les différences sociales sont marquantes entre les personnages principaux, renforcer ces
différences par le truchement de procédés linguistiques : en surchargeant le texte de
signes visant à rappeler une langue plus familière, voire vulgaire, chaque fois que c’est un
personnage d’un niveau social plus bas qui parle, ou, inversement, en traduisant par une
langue convenue, voire dénotant une forme de préciosité administrative, les répliques des
personnages mieux placés dans l’échelle sociale.
Dans nos études sur la variation diastratique des films, nous avons donc vu que les
traducteurs cherchent à établir dans les sous-titres, un plus grand écart langagier entre
les personnages principaux que celui qui existe dans leurs répliques originales : ils
emploient plus de renforcements stylistiques, et moins d’omissions, pour sous-titrer les
expressions vulgaires et argotiques des interventions des personnages issus de la
catégorie sociale défavorisée, qu’ils ne le font pour celles des protagonistes de la
catégorie sociale plutôt bourgeoise.
Ces baisses du niveau de style chez certains personnages, sont avant tout remarquables
quant il s’agit de traductions d’expressions argotiques. Il est également à relever qu’en
général les sous-titreurs adaptent ses choix de traduction d’après la situation dans
laquelle les personnages se trouvent : on tend à omettre et à atténuer plus d’expressions
vulgaires dans les sous-titres des répliques d’un personnage qui s’adresse à une pu
plusieurs personnes issue(s) d’une catégorie sociale plus élevée que dans les
conversations réunissant des personnages de la même catégorie sociale.
Cette intervention des sous-titreurs est peut-être liée soit au fait qu’on considère qu’un
public non suédois a besoin d’aide pour interpréter et comprendre plus rapidement le
système hiérarchique en place, et le jeu qu’il implique entre les personnages. Par les
images, les spectateurs suédois saisissent tout de suite à quel milieu appartiennent les
personnages, en repérant par exemple les signes distinctifs de commodité de logement,
ou inversement de gêne ou de dénuement économique.
55

Papers
Comment l’oralité va-t-elle se développer dans l’avenir dans les sous-titres ? Verrons-nous
plus de ces phénomènes ? Bien évidemment, la réponse dépendra de la nature des films
qui seront traduits. Il n’est pas interdit de penser que de nouvelles formes intermédiaires
d’écrits influencées par les conditions et dispositions de l’échange oral (les constructions
et enchaînement plus simples, etc..) et affranchies des contraintes grammaticales et
orthographiques sont appelées à se développer.
56

Dorrit FABER, Mette HJORT-PEDERSEN
Copenhagen Business School
df.eng@cbs.dk, df.eng@cbs.dk
Papers
Explicitation and Implicitation in Legal Translation
Explicitation, i.e. instances where implicit information contained in a source text is made
explicit in a target text, has been described by various scholars as a universal of
translation. Others regard explicitation as a phenomenon occurring in translations
produced by non-professional rather than professional translators, cf. e.g. Toury (1980),
Laviosa-Braithwaite (1996) and Dimitrova (2005). Implicitation, i.e. the strategy of making
explicit source text information implicit in a target text, is apparently a less frequent
procedure (Dimitrova 2005).
The focus of this paper is to explore aspects of explicitation and implicitation in a
particular field of LSP translation, namely legal translation performed by LSP trainee
translators. It is obvious that in legal translation explicitation and implicitation may follow
from both syntactic and semantic differences between source and target language as well
as from differences in culture- and system-bound entities, etc. However, from a legal
point of view, adding or subtracting information is a high risk procedure because of the
potential change of legal meaning or effect of the target text, and therefore it is
reasonable to assume that explicitation and implication will be a relatively rare
phenomenon in legal translation. From a cognitive point of view, on the other hand, the
assumption may be quite the opposite. Legal texts are notoriously difficult to understand
for non-legal experts because of their high complexity both at the linguistic and the
conceptual levels. Thus, legal texts describe legal scenarios that are to a greater or lesser
extent unfamiliar to lay readers, and the language used to describe these scenarios
frequently contain various ‘blurring’ features. These features may be nominal and passive
constructions, script roles and specialised legal terminology, all of which may hamper the
identification of who the actants are, what acts are performed, and the time and place of
such acts. On this basis, it might therefore conversely be assumed that the effort involved
in this kind of mental processing will leave traces in the target text in the form of linguistic
explication and/or implicitation.
In this paper, setting aside instances of explicitation and implicitation that are
necessitated by syntactic and semantic differences between source and target language,
we want to explore the extent to which explicitation and implicitation occur in legal
translations produced by Danish LSP trainee translators and discuss potential reasons for
the choices made. This analysis and discussion forms part of an on-going research
product, where we want to compare legal translations produced by trainees and
professional translators, respectively.
The overall aim of this project is to shed light on differences, if any, in types of
explicitation and implicitation chosen as strategies by trainees and professionals in legal
translation. Using think-aloud protocols, computer logging, eye tracking and retrospective
interviews as methodology, we further aim to investigate when in the understanding and
translation process the decision to make any information explicit or implicit is taken, and
the underlying reasons for the choices actually made.
57

Ilse FEINAUER
University of Stellenbosch
aef@sun.ac.za
Papers
Novels as Culture-Bound Linguistic Signs
The Application of Translation Studies
There is a growing tendency among Afrikaans writers to seek new readers and larger
markets by rendering previously published work into English for both the English-
speaking South African as the international reader. Nowadays it would happen quite often
that the original Afrikaans version is launched together with the English version and that
the latter would outsell the original by far. Without translation English first-language
readers would have been deprived of South African classics by amongst others Marlene
van Niekerk, Etienne van Heerden and Ingrid Winterbach. Translation from English into
Afrikaans is mostly restricted to romantic novels, devotional literature, motivational
literature, DIY-books, as well as children’s literature. Afrikaans readers interested in
reading literary works would read the original English versions. Translators, authors and
publishers did not until recently acknowledge or take heed of translation studies. Some
literary translators are openly hostile to translation studies (and those who teach them).
In this paper I would like to focus on how translation studies could enhance the
translation skills of literary translators and perhaps even enhancing their status in society.
Existing and aspiring literary translators trained in translation studies and translation
products will be used as experimental subjects. In the first instance the work of a literary
translator without any training will be compared to that of a literary translator with
training in translation studies; the former translating mainly from Dutch into Afrikaans and
the latter from Afrikaans into English and from English into Afrikaans. The reception of
both their target products in South Africa will also be discussed. I would then like to
discuss the work of two aspiring literary translators both trained in translation studies and
their translations of respectively Alexander McCall Smith’s The No.1 Ladies’ Detective
Agency and Cornelia Funke’s Tintenherz into Afrikaans. Both works are cultural minefields
in that McCall Smith is a Scot situating his novel in Africa whereas Funke’s text is not
situated as such in a specific European country mainly to accommodate the translation
process for the European market. How did translation studies enhance the skills of both
South African translators in order to adapt these texts for the Afrikaans reader? The
following problem statements will be addressed:
- It is feasible to teach someone literary translation skills by means of translation studies
in order to produce a superior product
- Translation studies could help the translator to think systematically about the translation
process in order to improve the translation product
- Translation studies could help the translator take decisions and to consistently carry
through these decisions
- Translation studies could help the translator motivate her/his decision
According to Schäffner translation studies is not a homogeneous discipline: different
approaches exist side by side, using specific concepts and methodologies. Each approach
contributes valuable insight to the complex phenomenon of translation. The translator
does not need to know all these approaches; for a literary translator the following would
already be constructive: Skopos theory, Steiner’s hermeneutic movement and
Schleiermacher’s/Venuti’s domesticating versus foreignising approaches.
58

Papers
Literary translators should also be taught that all translation is in essence a culture-bound
act and therefore determined by the communicative situation in which they serve to
convey a message (Nord 1991). The translator should always recognize the cultural
differences regarding behaviour and communicative situations to facilitate the reception of
this foreign source text in the target culture.
The problems that the translator will have to deal with depend inter alia upon the cultural
and linguistic distance between the two language groups. The translator is always in the
text, for the text always has to pass through the translator who is ever present as the
constraining and enabling filter (Holman & Boase-Beier 1999:8-9). Translators in South
Africa translating from Afrikaans into English has an even more challenging task: both
English-speaking South Africans knowing the culture as well as international English
readers who could find the South African situation totally alienating should consider the
translated product adequate as a literary work. This sometimes results in producing two
translated versions: one for the local and one for the international market.
59

Darja FIŠER
University of Ljubljana
darja.fiser1@guest.arnes.si
Papers
CAT Tools in the Classroom and Beyond
In the recent past, the latest communication technologies, ever-faster turn-around times
in documentation production cycles and highly competitive and global project bids have
drastically changed the translation workflow. In addition to that, translation tools in its
widest sense have become popular and reliable off-the-shelf products, accessible to most
translation departments, translation companies, translation agencies as well as free-lance
translators. The field of professional translation has had so much to gain from electronic
dictionaries, translation memories, terminology management software and corpora, and
giving them an important role in most large-scale translation projects that it is safe to say
they are here to stay (cf. Fišer, Vintar 2004).
My previous study (Fišer 2005) examined the translation job market in Slovenia where the
needs and requirements of prospective employees were taken into account and compared
against the competences of professional translators, pointing out the direction of
development of the near-future translators’ working environments, therefore unveiling the
needs of the job market for competent users of translation technologies. The results of
the analysis show that university syllabi at translation departments need to be revised in
terms of their employment prospects and relevance for the information society era, which
is also at the core of the Bologna process.
This paper is a follow-up of this study. In it, the previous findings are put in action by
trying to secure translation tools a place in the translation curriculum in a modern and
efficient way that is also appealing to the students. The one-semester course in
translation tools has been taught to second-year students since the very beginning of our
translation department but within this study blended learning techniques will be used and
evaluated.
The teaching scenario is going to be as follows: all second-year students will be given a
30-hour course in translation tools, ranging from basic ITC skills to topics on electronic
dictionaries, corpora, machine translation, translation memories and terminology
management software. The groups will be relatively small (20 students per group) and
the work will be problem-oriented and hands-on (2 students per workstation). After each
session, a group of volunteer students will complete an on-line course on the same topic
on their own time and at their own speed. The on-line courses have been developed
within an on-going international Leonardo da Vinci project called eCoLoTrain. Volunteer
students will also fill out a questionnaire for each on-line course which will give us
feedback about the quality and suitability of the course for this teaching mode. At the end
of the semester, all students will be tested in the skills and competences obtained during
the course, and the results of the group taking the university course only will be
compared against the results of the group of volunteers taking on-line courses as well.
It is expected that students will benefit from the blended learning approach, thus
achieving better results and confirming the advantages of the adopted teaching method
which has been successfully implemented in various teaching scenarios in the past but
has not been extensively tested in the field of translation tools due to lack of available
course materials as well as software accessibility issues.
60

Papers
A side result of the study will be the data collected from the filled-out questionnaires
which will give the developers of the on-line courses much needed feedback on their
work. It is hoped that the insights obtained from the students’ opinions about the courses
will be a valuable contribution towards improving the existing on-line courses as well as
designing better ones in the future. All the courses will be made available to the public,
accompanied by the didactic guidelines to course materials for teachers who might wish
to use them in their courses.
References:
Fišer, Darja. “Jezikovne tehnologije od študija do zaposlitve. (Language tools from
university to employment)” Jezik in slovstvo, 50/I (Jan.-Feb. 2005), pp 101-116.
Fišer, Darja; Vintar, Špela (2004): “Uvajanje prevajalskega namizja Trados v delovno
okolje prevajalske agencije. (Introduction of Trados workbench in the work environment
of a translation agency)” Proceedings of the 4th Slovenian conference on language
technologies, LTC'04, 09th - 15th October 2004, Ljubljana, Slovenia.
61

Sage FITZ-GERALD
Universidad Pablo de Olavide
sfitger@upo.es
Papers
Lost in Translation?
Negotiating the Borders of Bilingual Creation from the
Perspective of Linguistic Globalization
…trying to be South in the South, North in the North,
South in the North and North in the South.
(Rubén Martinez, The Other Side: Fault Lines, Guerrilla Saints, and the True Heart of Rock
’n’ Roll)
Academics and researchers immersed in new currents of translation theory have found in
“the border” – as metaphor, semiosphere and geo-linguistic reality – a fluid, hybrid,
multidisciplinary area for further research. The exploration of this liminal zone has inspired
new incursions into old questions of identity and cultural transfer, alterity and
subalternity, mestizaje and transculturalization, among others. For the inhabitants of this
“region”, however, the border is not only a metaphor but a negotiated existence. In an
interview just before her recent, premature death, the Chicano writer Gloria Anzaldúa
reflected on the subject of negotiation between cultural transfer and the reception of her
work Borderlands/La Frontera: "White critics and teachers often [...] take the passages in
which I talk about mestizaje and borderlands because they can more easily apply them to
their own experiences. The angrier parts of Borderlands are often ignored… I think you
could call this selective critical interpretation a kind of racism. If the work is not
interesting or entertaining enough, forget it. So I have to keep all these different issues
regarding the reception of my work in mind and try to compromise. If I had made
Borderlands too inaccessible to you by putting in too many Chicano terms, too many
Spanish words [...] you would have been very frustrated. There are different traditions in
the different genres – autobiography, fiction, poetry, theory, criticism – certain standards
you have to follow." (Borderlands/La Frontera, 175) Building from the premise that the
translation, like the original, is subject to discourse substrates – perceived or intuited
ideological and social standards – that determine what is admissible in the target culture,
we will analyse how societal restrictions on discourse affect the selection of works to be
translated. Ways in which such restrictions affect changes undergone by the source text
during the decoding-recoding process as well as final reception by the readers will also be
examined. Through studying the translation of fringe works into and from English we are
afforded privileged insight as to how the foreign text is assimilated, allowing us to
compare the original with its translation and thus reveal the modifications demanded by
the target culture/market.
The current historical moment in the United States is marked by a search on the part of
Chicano creators for a socio-cultural identity of their own, in which the mixing or alternate
use of English and Spanish (code switching) clearly mirrors the ‘border’ experience, and
ultimately leads to shared albeit conflictive relations – confrontation and collaboration –
between the language of tradition and that of globalisation. These linguistic transgressors
recreate themselves in a bilingual wordplay from which new ideology-discourse paradigms
are born into hand-
to-hand combat with both the model of national identities protected by unsurmountable
borders on the one hand, and the homogenizing force of globalisation on the other. As a
result of this move towards a celebration of transcultural realities based on sociolinguistic
transgression, the thin red line between English and Spanish – and therefore between
creation and translation – is becoming increasingly blurred.
62

Anna FOCHI
University of Glasgow
anna.fochi@gmail.com
Papers
Chronicle of a Provocative Encounter Foretold
The Examplary Case of the First Publication in English
of G.G.Marquez's "Cronica De Una Muerte Anunciada"
Translation has always been relevant for comparative research, but its role is actually
seen as central for cultural studies. Since translation implies establishing a contact
between cultures, and thus leads to an ‘experience of the other’, the possibility of
developing different types of ‘encounters’ inevitably brings ideological implications with it
(cultural hegemony and assimilation, or, on the other hand, dialogue between cultures
and mutual interpretation). If the notion of translatability is in itself conceived as in
opposition to cultural hegemony and as an instrument for mutual interpretation (Wolfang
Iser), translation comes to be closely linked to the strategic distinction between
multicultural communication (the mere meeting of cultures), intercultural dialogue ( the
interaction of cultures) and transcultural discourse (a higher level of interaction, with the
single cultures abandoning their specific frames of reference and creating new ones).
It is a stimulating perspective for translation studies, and the aim of this paper is to apply
it to a concrete context, to verify if and how it is relevant to translation analysis. Besides
Lawrence Venuti’s well-known views and Dick Delabastita’s contributions, a promising
direction can be found in Peèter Torop’s writings, and specifically in his invitation to focus
on translatability parameters for cultural translation and to match them with a range of
available translation strategies. Thus, by mostly referring to Torop’s table “Cultural
Translation”, the paper focuses on the first publishing of the English translation of Gabriel
Garciá Márquez’s Crónica de una muerte anunciada in the pages of Vanity Fair. On the
one hand, there is a complex source text, particularly rich in cultural components, like all
the writings by the Colombian writer; on the other hand, there is a translator, Gregory
Rabassa, whose precept is that, in order to preserve “whatever slim shards of the
culture”, it is necessary “to acculturate our English”, and who therefore produces a target
text which succeeds in not ‘hiding’ the ST, through a creative manipulation of the target
language, rather than through a more superficial attention to the macroscopic cultural
elements of the ST, such as, for example the realia or the other terms referring to a
specific geographic space.
This is not all, however. There is also the unmistakable hand of Gabriel García Márquez’s
fellow Colombian, Fernando Botero, whose illustrations accompany Rabassa’s translation
and clearly ring a disquieting note of exaggeration and distortion in his renowned
‘Botheromorth’ style, and immediately convey the message that what is offered is a
striking text, and not just one of those “quaint Latin American novels that were in vogue”
in the previous years (Dona M.Kercher). Finally, to make the case more relevant, there is
the fact that Rabassa’s translation appears in the most improbable setting, the highly
polished pages of Vanity Fair, with their note of quintessential Western consumerism, also
because of obtrusive advertisements interrupting the flowing of narration, and alternating
to Botero’s illustrations. The contrast with the cultural atmosphere evoked by the TT could
not be more emphasized. New tensions and dimensions are introduced by such an
editorial operation, which sets a clear dynamics of mutual interaction going well beyond
the normal link between a source and a target text, and including different semiotic codes
and contexts. The question is therefore if this is a case which comes to confirm the view
of those who advocate a widening of translation criticism crossing the borders of mere
cross-linguistic translation.
63

Papers
Isabel GARCÍA IZQUIERDO, Vicent MONTALT RESSURRRECCIÓ, Pilar EZPELETA PIORNO
Universitat Jaume I (Castellón, Spain)
igarcia@trad.uji.es
montalt@trad.uji.es
ezpeleta@trad.uji.es
El desarrollo de la competencia comunicativa y textual
a través del concepto de género
En los últimos años, el concepto de competencia traductora ha ido tomando carta de
naturaleza hasta convertirse en el centro del debate en torno a la formación de
traductores. Los trabajos de. Hurtado en el grupo PACTE (2001) o de Kelly (2002, 2005,
2006) son buena muestra de ello. La competencia traductora es un concepto complejo y
poliédrico en el que confluyen aspectos muy diferentes. Son muchos los trabajos que,
tomando la tradición de los estudios literarios centrada en el género, la han adaptado
tanto al campo de la lingüística y la enseñanza de lenguas (Swales, 1990 y Bhatia, 1993,
entre otros) como al de la traducción (Hatim y Mason, 1990; o los trabajos del equipo
Gentt, en especial I. García Izquierdo, 2005, entre otros). En este trabajo retomamos la
utilidad del concepto de género textual, entendido como forma convencionalizada de
texto (Kress, 1985), dinámica e híbrida, que representa una interfaz entre el texto y el
contexto y entre el texto original y el texto meta (Montalt, 2003; Gentt, 2005) en la
formación del traductor (y, por tanto, en la configuración de la competencia traductora) y
en la investigación sobre traducción. El presente trabajo pretende ir un paso más allá en
la reflexión y ahondar en la relación entre el género y la competencia traductora, en
general, y la subcompetencia comunicativa y textual (Kelly, 2006), en particular. En
efecto, en trabajos anteriores (Montalt, 2003; Montalt, Ezpeleta y García de Toro, 2005;
Ezpeleta, 2005; o García Izquierdo, 2005) se ha abordado la utilidad del concepto de
género textual en la adquisición de la competencia traductora. Ahora bien, como
decíamos arriba, la competencia traductora es un concepto poliédrico ya que son muchas
las subcompetencias que la conforman y pensamos que es posible delimitar con mayor
detalle cuáles de las subcompetencias traductoras podrían adquirirse específicamente
mediante el género textual como artefacto pedagógico. En concreto, la hipótesis principal
que intentaremos ilustrar en este trabajo es que este concepto sería especialmente
relevante para la adquisición de la llamada competencia comunicativa y textual. La
adquisición de la competencia traductora es un proceso gradual, en el que influye de
manera significativa el grado de complejidad de los textos/géneros objeto de trabajo.
Cuanta mayor complejidad textual, mayor será el nivel de competencia exigible. De ahí
que la relación entre los géneros textuales y la subcompetencia comunicativa y textual
esté también mediada por el nivel de complejidad y/o especialidad de los textos a los que
se enfrente el traductor. Así pues, siguiendo la línea del equipo de investigación Gentt
(www.gentt.uji.es), nos centraremos en el análisis de algunos géneros de los ámbitos de
especialidad (géneros médico-sanitarios y del ámbito de la técnica, fundamentalmente)
para intentar mostrar que la relación entre género textual y subcompetencia comunicativa
y textual puede resultar muy productiva.
64

Laura GAVIOLI, Claudio BARALDI
University of Modena and Reggio Emilia
lgavioli@unimore.it, cbaraldi@unimore.it
Papers
Interpreters as Talk Coordinators
Different Spaces, Different Opportunities
Studies in dialogue interpreting have shown that interpreters are active participants in the
interaction. Wadensjö, in particular, suggested that interpreters’ contributions can be
observed as “activity-oriented” (1998: 21-3) in the interaction. Interpreters’ activityoriented
contributions focus on the achievement of turn-taking and, in this way,
interpreters can play a role of coordinators of talk. A possibly interesting development of
this approach concerns the different ways in which interpreters’ choices can influence the
achievement of interactional turn-taking. We looked at a series of recorded and
transcribed interpreter-mediated conversations involving Italian and English as an
international language and taking place in three main settings, healthcare settings,
immigration offices and business exhibitions. We suggest that there are three main forms
of actions contributed by interpreters which influence the achievement of interactions:
a. providing zero translation or minimum linguistic help,
b. providing translation on a rough turn-by-turn basis,
c. providing summarized or expanded translation of stretches of talk by one or the other
participant.
The choice of the one or the other of these actions involves different systems of turntaking
and may have different consequences on distributions and forms of participation in
the interaction. Providing zero translation or minimal linguistic help provides turn slots for
the main participants and reduces those of the interpreter, a turn-by turn translation
provides all the participants with short turn slots, and summarized translation provides
some participants with longer turn-slots. The different slots that are achieved through
these different turn-taking organizations provide the participants with different spaces and
opportunities to express their personal positions and cultural views, and interpreters can
act in order to promote space for themselves and other participants. On the basis of this
observation, we look at the intercultural consequences of interpreters’ different forms of
action and the interpreters’ responsibility in promoting either intercultural dialogue and/or
cultural filters.
Reference:
Wadensjö, C. 1998. Interpreting as interaction. London: Longman.
65

Cristina GóMEZ
University of Leon
dfmcgc@unileon.es
Papers
The Study Of Translation-Related Activities During
Franco’s Dictatorship
Translation Studies Matters
During the almost forty years spanned by Franco’s dictatorship (1939-1975) Spain
exercised a policy of cultural protectionism that implied the adaptation of all native and
foreign information to the cultural requirements of the dominant regime. A system of
official censorship was installed with the task of looking after the ideological uniformity of
the nation. Translations were subjected to the book-controlling system in the same way
as native productions: the censorship boards reviewed all types of narrative material
submitted for publication on the Spanish market and gave their verdict concerning the
advisability of the work in question.
Using a descriptive methodology to study the production of translations in this context, I
have been able to identify the different translation and publishing policies operative in the
last years of the dictatorship and the first years of democracy. This has been done by
“reconstructing the map of what actually got translated in Spain (…) from empirical
evidence drawn systematically from rich documentation sources” (Merino 2005: 87).
The aim of this paper is to give a brief overview of the way in which the censorship
mechanism worked and how it affected the translation of foreign novels, focusing on
those works originally written in English. After having set the main lines of work of this
mechanism of control, I will provide examples of the different approaches taken by the
official administration regarding particular works, illustrating the various ways of
manipulating texts that were exerted at the time and accepted by publishers and
translators alike: from the banning of a work to the erasures and changes some texts had
to suffer before publication. Finally, I will focus in more detail on the kind of changes
suffered by some novels categorizing them according to the taboo topics of the time –
mainly sex, religion, politics and bad language– and I will finish by showing how the
publishing practices of that time are still operative today: some of those translated novels
published with cuts and changes during the dictatorship continue to be sold in the same
version in a market where the economic norms of profit-making seem to be the top
priority. It is thanks to the discipline of Translation Studies that we can trace the
behaviour of translators in a specific time span and in a very particular social and political
context, thus legitimizing the impact that translation and publishing practices have had on
the Spanish community of readers, translators and publishers of yesterday and today.
66

Jean-Marc GOUANVIC
Université Concordia
jmgouan@alcor.concordia.ca
Papers
Sociologie de la «traduction originale» en Français de
l'auteur américain de romans policiers Chester Himes
dans la Série Noire (Gallimard)
Nous allons envisager la traduction d'un point de vue sociologique, en analysant le cas
d'un auteur américain de romans policiers, Chester Himes. Jusqu'à sa rencontre avec
Marcel Duhamel, après la Seconde Guerre mondiale, Chester Himes avait essentiellement
publié aux États-Unis des romans lus par un public restreint. Son oeuvre semblait
condamnée à une réception médiocre dans l'espace culturel américain. Marcel Duhamel,
dont le succès de la collection la Série Noire (Gallimard) draînait vers lui ce que
l'anglophonie pouvait compter d'auteurs prometteurs ou consacrés, conseilla à Himes
d'écrire des romans policiers, ce qu'il fit avec brio. Ce furent en particulier La Reine des
pommes et Il pleut des coups durs, qui mettaient en scène des policiers noirs Ed Cercueil
et Fossoyeur Jones. C. Himes devait se faire un nom comme écrivain noir de roman
policier avec ces romans.
Si l'on étudie les textes publiés en français dans la Série Noire, on s'aperçoit que ce sont
des traductions dont les originaux n'ont été publiés qu'après la publication des versions
françaises. Effectuées à partir des manuscrits non encore publiés en américain, les
traductions auraient-elles influé de quelque façon sur les originaux? En tous cas, il n'est
pas possible de parler des textes originaux sans tenir compte de la réalisation ou de
l'actualisation des habitus de Duhamel/Himes, à la source des oeuvres.
Nous examinerons dans quelles conditions l'oeuvre de Himes a émergé dans les années
de l'après-guerre, stimulée par Marcel Duhamel, puis, à partir d'une analyse contrastive,
nous verrons dans quelle mesure l'oeuvre en français et l'oeuvre en américain ne
constitueraient pas deux originaux. La situation de Himes s'apparente-t-elle à celle des
expatriates d'avant-guerre? Quel est le rôle exactement de Marcel Duhamel et de sa
collection de la Série Noire dans la production des oeuvres policières de Himes? Cette
collection bien française a-t-elle été un modèle pour Himes? C'est ce type de questions
que nous nous poserons en situant l'oeuvre de l'auteur américain dans le champ de la
littérature policière française et en analysant les textes de façon contrastive pour faire
apparaître les manières de traduire de l'équipe de Marcel Duhamel. Nous tenterons en
particulier de voir si les traducteurs de la Série Noire vernacularisent systématiquement
leur traduction, adaptant le sociolecte des Noirs de Harlem aux usages du roman policier
français de l'époque.
La méthodologie que nous appliquerons à cette étude est héritée de la sociologie des
biens symboliques de Pierre Bourdieu, notions de champ, d'habitus et d'illusio, qui ont
montré leur efficacité appliquées à d'autres corpus de traduction (la science-fiction, le
roman réaliste traduit de l'américain).
67

Simos GRAMMENIDIS
ARISTOTLE UNIVERSITYOF THESSALONIKI
simgram@frl.auth.gr
Papers
Translating Menus in Greece
A Matter of Language or a Matter of Function?
This paper presents the preliminary conclusions of an ongoing research project, on the
subject of the translation of menus available in Greek restaurants, undertaken by the
Department of Translation of the School of French at the Aristotle University of
Thessaloniki. In the course of the last two years, three hundred menus gathered from
restaurants across various regions of Greece or found on tourist websites on the Internet
were recorded and analysed from the perspective of translation strategies by student
research groups. The goal here is not only the evaluation of the quality of the final
product but the deciphering of the main problems posed by the translation as well as the
analysis of the issues that arise beyond these texts and concerns the translation practice
in a broader sense.
The main points which will be considered are the following:
a. the linguistic and functional characteristics of menus,
b. the languages which are involved in translation activity, (i.e. into which languages
are the menus translated, which factors justify, or even dictate, the transfer to certain
languages and not to others?)
c. the connection between the adopted strategies and the translation event, (i.e. to
what extent are these strategies influenced by parameters such as the commissioner of
the translation, the quality of the restaurant etc. which condition the translation event?)
d. the type and function of the text to be translated as factors of translation choices,
(i.e. how does the text type influence the translators’ decisions?)
e. finally, which are the principles that should guide the translator in his choices in
order to improve the role played by menu translations towards satisfying tourist demand
for better service?
Bibliography
Baker, Mona. (1992). In other words. A coursebook on translation. London / New York:
Routledge.
Nord, Christiane. (1991a). Text analysis in Translation. Theory, Methodology and Didactic
applications for translation-oriented text analysis. Amsterdam: Rodopi.
(1991b). “Scopos, Loyalty and Translational Conventions”. Target, 3:1, 91 – 109.
(1992). “Text Analysis in Translator Training”. In C. Dollerup, A. Lindegaard (ed),
Teaching Translation and Interpreting. Amsterdam / Philadelphia: John Benjamins
Publishing Company. pp. 39 – 48.
(1997). “A Functional Typology of Translations”. In A. Trosborg (ed), Text Typology and
Translation. Amsterdam / Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing Company. pp. 43 – 66.
Reiss, Katharina. (1977/2002). La critique des traductions, ses possibilités et ses limites.
Traduit de l’allemand par C. Bocquet. Artois : Presses Université.
Toury, Gideon. (1995). Descriptive Translation Studies and beyond. Amsterdam /
Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing Company.
68

Nadja GRBIC, Sonja POELLABAUER
University of Graz
nadja.grbic@uni-graz.at
sonja.poellabauer@uni-graz.at
Papers
Why It Matters: Scientometrics as a Methodological
Tool for Investigating Research on Translation and
Interpreting
It has long been accepted in translation studies that interdisciplinarity has become an
important characteristic of the discipline; translation studies have even been referred to
as an interdiscipline (cf. Snell-Hornby et al. 1994) and obviously view themselves as such
(cf. the Call for Papers for the 2007 EST Congress). In this paper we would like to focus
on one specific interdisciplinary method of the field of social studies of science which has
been used in a small number of papers in translation/interpreting studies (see below) but
which, to our mind, does not appear to be widely known and/or accepted within the
discipline: scientometrics. As Stock (2001:8) pointed out, publishing is „ein sozialer Akt
[...], der aus der Lebens- wie Forschungssituation des Wissenschaftlers, der Struktur der
Wissenschaftsgemeinschaft sowie der gesellschaftlichen Struktur erwächst“ (Stock 2001:
8). Social studies of science, an interdisciplinary field with methodological approaches
taken from sociology, anthropology, history, philosophy, political science, economics,
psychology, etc., focus on different aspects of scholarly research, the scientific community
as a system, and on individual researchers as members of such systems. One empirical
branch of this field is scientometrics or bibliometrics, which can be defined as the science
of measuring and analysing scientific output. Since the early 1970s, scientometrics have
become an accepted field of social studies of science (especially in the natural sciences
and in technology) and offer a wealth of quantitative methods for the analysis of science
(e.g. publication analyses, (co-)citation analyses, co-word and keyword analyses). Such
analyses have proved valuable for the investigation of the development of emerging
disciplines and for tracing current trends and potentials in research. Bibliometric analyses
are based on different empirical data such as publication and/or citation databases, but
also other parameters like the foundation of scientific journals, the frequency of
conferences, the counting of patents, etc. The measuring and evaluation of scientific
production have become and will continue to be an important factor in any discipline. In
some disciplines, the allocation of funds and/or positions may be influenced by the results
of such analyses. We therefore think that translation and interpreting studies should not
ignore this important field of research and prepare themselves for future developments
where translation and interpreting studies might become the subject of scrutiny of
bibliometry-based evaluations.
In this paper, we would like to show how different methods and tools of scientometrics
and/or bibliometrics may be used in translation and interpreting studies and in which way
translation and interpreting studies may benefit from such an interdisciplinary approach.
We also intend to focus on the advantages and disadvantages of such an approach, on
different (potential) subjects of scientometric/bibliometric analyses, as well as the
potentials and pitfalls of such studies. Based on a small corpus of bibliometric analyses in
translation and interpreting studies (e.g. Pöchhacker 1995a, 1995b, Gile 2000, 2005, van
Doorslaer 2005, Grbić/Pöllabauer 2006, Pöllabauer 2006, Grbic 2007) we will provide
examples for such an approach and point out topics/subjects which have not yet been
studied but may prove worthwhile. We will also critically discuss the use (and abuse) of
scientometric methods and focus on the degree of "interdisciplinarity" (multidisciplinarity
vs. interdisciplinarity vs. transdisciplinarity, cf. e.g. Kaindl 1999) such studies allow and
the relationship between translation/interpreting studies and scientometrics.
69

Papers
We will also briefly discuss how such methods may be combined with other (related)
methods of social studies of science such as content analysis or network analysis. It has
often been lamented that scientometrics/bibliometrics have been lacking a sound
theoretical basis (cf. Borgman 1990:13, Pierce 1990). Many scientometric/bibliometric
studies are only quantitative in nature and do not claim to be integrated within a wider
theoretical framework. In our view, scientometrics/bibliometrics offer valuable heuristic
tools for descriptive meta-theoretical research, they should, however, be integrated within
a wider theoretical framework. As writing and (doing) research can be regarded as a
social practice, empirical scientometric/bibliometric research could for instance be
interlinked with translation sociology which has proved valuable for the description of
social practices in translation and interpreting.
References:
Borgman, Christine L. (1990) “Editor’s Introduction”, in: Borgman, Christine L. (ed.)
(1990) Scholarly Communication and bibliometrics. Newbury Park/London/New Delhi:
Sage, 10-27.
Gile, Daniel (2000) “The history of research into conference interpreting: A scientometric
approach”, in: Target 12:2, 297-321.
Gile, Daniel (2005) “Citation patterns in the T&I didactics literature”, in: Forum 3:2, 85-
103.
Grbic, Nadja (2007) “Where Do We Come From? What Are We? Where Are We Going? A
Bibliometrical Analysis of Writings and Research on Sign Language Interpreting”, in: The
Sign Language Translator & Interpreter 1:1 [in press]
Grbic, Nadja/Pöllabauer, Sonja (2006) “Forschung zum Community Interpreting im
deutschsprachigen Raum: Entwicklung, Themen und Trends”, in: Grbić, Nadja/Pöllabauer,
Sonja (eds.) “Ich habe mich ganz peinlich gefühlt.” Forschung zum
Kommunaldolmetschen in Österreich: Problemstellungen, Perspektiven und Potenziale.
Graz: Institut für Translationswissenschaft (Graz Translation Studies 10), 11-36.
Kaindl, Klaus (1999) „Interdisziplinarität in der Translationswissenschaft. Theoretische und
methodische Implikationen“, in: Gil, Alberto/Haller, Johann/Steiner, Erich/Gerzymisch-
Arbogast, Heidrun (eds.) Modelle der Translation. Grundlagen für Methodik, Bewertung,
Computermodellierung. Frankfurt a. Main/Berlin/Bern/Bruxelles/New York/Wien: Lang
(SABEST Saarbrücker Beiträge zur Sprach- und Translationswissenschaft 1), 137-155.
Pierce, Sydney J. (1990) “Disciplinary Work and Interdisciplinary Areas: Sociology and
Bibliometrics”, in: Borgman, Christine L. (ed.) Scholarly Communication and bibliometrics.
Newbury Park/London/New Delhi: Sage, 46-58.
Pöchhacker, Franz (1995a) “’Those who do...’: A Profile of Research(ers) in Interpreting”,
in: Target 7:1, 47-64.
Pöchhacker, Franz (1995b) “Writings and research on interpretation: a bibliographic
analysis”, in: The Interpreters’ Newsletter 6, 17-31.
Pöllabauer, Sonja (2006) “’During the interview, the interpreter will provide a faithful
translation.’ The potentials and pitfalls of researching interpreting in immigration, asylum,
and police settings: methodology and research paradigms”, in: Linguistica Antverpiensia
LA NS5 [in press]
Snell-Hornby, Mary/Pöchhacker, Franz/Kaindl, Klaus (1994) (eds.) Translation Studies –
an interdiscipline. Selected papers from the Translation Studies Congress, Vienna, 9-12
September 1992. Amsterdam/Philadelphia: Benjamins.
Stock, Wolfgang G. (2001) Publikation und Zitat. Die problematische Basis empirischer
Wissenschaftsforschung. Köln: FH Köln (Kölner Arbeitspapiere zur Bibliotheks- und
Informationswissenschaft 29).
van Doorslaer, Luc (2005) “The indicative power of a key word system: A quantitative
analysis of the key words in the translation studies bibliography”, in: Meta 50:4, n.p.
70

Ewa GUMUL
University of Silesia, Poland
ewagumul@gmail.com
Papers
Creating and Disambiguating Grammatical Metaphors
in Simultaneous Interpreting
The present paper aims to address the notion of grammatical metaphor in simultaneous
interpreting in an attempt to strengthen the links of translation studies with linguistics and
social sciences as well as to suggest implications for the process of interpreters training.
Grammatical metaphor, the concept propounded by Halliday (1985/1994) within his
framework of Systemic Functional Grammar, is perceived as variation in the expression of
a given meaning. The situation described in a sentence might be realized in two different
ways on the level of syntax: by a semantically congruent construction, when semantic
functions fulfil primary syntactic roles, and by a semantically non-congruent construction,
i.e. grammatical metaphors, when semantic functions play secondary syntactic roles.
Thus, the process of grammatical metaphorisation should be seen as the shift in the
semantic function, and the unit undergoing such a transformation, referred to as a
grammatical metaphor, as an alternative lexicogrammatical realization of a semantic
choice.
It is worth noting that metaphorical constructions and their congruent equivalents should
never be perceived in terms of a mere variance in syntactic form, since different
structuralisations might be referring to the same entities but do not communicate the
same (Jędrzejko 1993). Variation in a lexicogrammatical realization is generally associated
with differences in interpretation and different discourse and stylistic effects. According to
Halliday (1985/1994), the most powerful resource for creating grammatical metaphor is
nominalisation, i.e. substituting verbal constructions with nominal ones. By means of such
a transformation, processes and properties (congruently worded as verbs and adjectives
respectively), are reworded metaphorically as nouns, which makes the resulting
construction more abstract, impersonal and increases its lexical density. The notion of
grammatical metaphor has attracted considerable interest in various sub-fields of
linguistics (e.g. Ravelli 1988, Simon-Vandenbergen et al. 2003, Steiner 2004, Sušinskiene
2004, etc.). However, relatively little research has been conducted so far into this
phenomenon in translation (Puurtinen 2000, 2003). In view of the above-mentioned
differences between congruent and metaphorical constructions, such shifts between
source and target texts appear to be particularly interesting. Whereas Puurtinen’s (2000,
2003) research focuses on potential ideological implications of creating or disambiguating
grammatical metaphors in press translation, this paper also aims to investigate other
causes that trigger this type of translational shifts, taking into account the specificity of
the analysed medium, i.e. simultaneous interpreting. Given the major differences between
written and oral translation as well as the intrinsic constraints impeding the simultaneous
interpreting task, such as substantial temporal pressure, limited short-term memory
capacity, virtual simultaneity of the input reception and output production, lack of revision
phase, and the linearity constraint, grammatical metaphor might be expected to acquire a
different dimension in this mode of interpreting.
Thus, the aim of the present study is to determine which type of shift prevails in SI.
Which is more frequent in this mode: creating grammatical metaphors (i.e. substituting
verbal constructions with nominal ones) or disambiguating them (i.e. translating nominal
constructions as verbal ones)? The paper also undertakes to investigate the causes
triggering both types of translational shifts, which in SI might be brought about not only
by a conscious attempt at discourse manipulation, but also engendered by various
constraints affecting the process of simultaneous interpreting.
71

Aykut GURCAGLAR
Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University
gurcagla@msu.edu.tr
Papers
The Potential Brought by Interactions between Art
History and Translation Studies
I am an art historian by training and practice. I mainly study Ottoman westernization and
the artistic interactions between the Ottoman Empire and the West and the Far East. As I
studied representations of the Ottoman world by western painters, I gradually became
intrigued by the way they depicted a specific professional group operating in the Ottoman
capital: dragomans, i.e. interpreters.
There were two specific reasons why these representations attracted my attention. First
of all, there seemed to be strong cliches dominating the visual representation of
dragomans in terms of their attire, their positioning in the paintings and their spatial
relations with other figures in the paintings. There are three main genres within which
dragoman paintings can be found: audience scenes, portraits and costume albums. It
occurred to me that dragomans had to have considerable presence and influence in the
Ottoman Empire to have made their way into the audience scenes, usually featuring such
notable figures as the Ottoman sultan, the grand viziers and foreign ambassadors. On the
other hand, the existence of dragoman portraits proved that these individuals were rich
and powerful enough to commission portraits to western artists working in
Constantinople. This offers some clues about the self-image of the dragomans. It was
uncommon to see Ottoman officers, even as high ranking as ministers or generals,
commission western-style portraits in the 18th and early 19th centuries. The dragoman
presence in costume albums is an indication that they were visible to foreign travelers and
painters who found their special dragoman’s costumes striking and saw them as one of
the components of the rich and exotic Empire.
The second reason why I was attracted to the issue had to do with the historical roles of
dragomans. Dragomans served as channels of communication between the Ottoman
Empire and the western powers. A preliminary look at the available, yet scarce, sources
on the subject reveals interesting information about their problematic and critical position
in the dealings between the Empire and the western world. Unlike today’s interpreters,
dragomans enjoyed a high status, often being promoted to various positions such as the
post of the governor or ambassador which indicates that their sole occupation was not
interpretation. On the other hand, they were never fully trusted by either of the parties
and many a dragoman fell prey to political conspiracies. A scholarly study of the visual
representations of dragomans needs to borrow its tools of analysis not only from the
realm of art history but translation and interpreting studies as well. For instance, the
positioning of the interpreters in the audience scenes can only be explained by including a
discussion of the historical role of interpreters and their “visibility”. The in-betweenness of
interpreters in these scenes becomes more meaningful when one becomes aware of the
current literature in translation studies regarding the liminality of the
translating/interpreting subject. The dragoman portraits, likewise, gain a new dimension
when one regards them through the growing emphasis on the issue of agency in
translation studies.
My paper will draw on examples of how translation studies can nourish itself by turning to
art history for visual sources to unearth more of the relatively hidden history of the
profession of translation and interpreting. The paper will also provide room for a
discussion on how the theoretical and historical foundations of translation studies can
shed new light on other disciplines, as exemplified by art history.
72

Gyde HANSEN
Copenhagen Business School
gh.first@cbs.dk
Papers
Übersetzungsprozesse im Studium und in der Praxis
von Experten (From Student To Expert)
Eine empirische Langzeitstudie der Zusammenhänge
zwischen Profilen, Prozessen und Produkten in
verschiedenen Stadien der Kompetenz
Für das Gelingen von Übersetzungsprozessen sind Aufmerksamkeit und Kontrolle, d.h.
auch Selbstaufmerksamkeit und Selbstkontrolle wichtige Voraussetzungen. Dies zeigt eine
interdisziplinäre, empirische Untersuchung von Übersetzungsprozessen an der
Copenhagen Business School (CBS), bei der weniger das Produkt als vielmehr der mentale
Übersetzungsprozess mit seinen vielfältigen Einflüssen im Mittelpunkt stand.
Weil im Übersetzungsunterricht immer viele Fehler angestrichen werden, war die Frage,
die anfänglich gestellt wurde: „Was kann am Übersetzen denn so schwer sein?“. Die
Annahme war, dass die vielen Probleme nicht immer nur auf Fremdsprachendefizite oder
fehlendes fachliches Wissen und Können zurückgeführt werden können. Durch
Experimente mit einer Population von 47 Versuchsteilnehmern im letzten Jahr ihres
Diplomübersetzerstudiums wurden andere Ursachen, Störquellen, entdeckt. Es handelt
sich dabei z. B. um Detailfixiertheit, Absicherungsmanie, Überheblichkeit, Unsicherheit,
Bequemlichkeit, Blockaden und Vorlieben. Das Erkennen und Bewusstmachen solcher
Störquellen zeigte sich als eine Voraussetzung für ein wirkungsvolles didaktisches
Eingreifen. Es wurden auch einige Gewohnheiten im Hinblick auf das Zeitmanagement
während der Übersetzungsprozesse beobachtet. Um einem besseren Verstehen der
Komplexität des Übersetzungsprozesses näher zu kommen, wurden Erkenntnisse der
Psychologie, Soziologie, Kognition und methodische Ansätze anderer Disziplinen
einbezogen. Es handelte sich also um ein interdisziplinäres Projekt, bei dem
Methodenpluralität, d.h. Kombination und/oder Triangulierung von qualitativen und
quantitativen Methoden und Daten, verwirklicht wurde. Durch die Vernetzung bei der
Analyse der einzelnen Datenkategorien aus Profilen, Prozessen und Produkten und durch
einige Kontrollversuche wurde trotz aller subjektiven Einflüsse ein hoher Grad an
Sicherheit der Analyseergebnisse erreicht. Bei einigen der Versuchsteilnehmer hatten die
Forschungsergebnisse durch Feed-back und Dialog sofort einen positiven Effekt, was sich
in ihren Übersetzungen zeigte.
Aber wie ist die Situation heute, 10 Jahre nach den ersten Versuchen, die in mehreren
Versuchsrunden von 1996 bis 2004 durchgeführt wurden? Können wir feststellen, dass
„Translation Studies matters“ - and why?
In dem Vortrag wird über erste Ergebnisse einer Langzeitstudie berichtet, an der die
Gruppe der damaligen Versuchsteilnehmer 2006 wieder teilgenommen hat. Heute sind sie
in Organisationen, Institutionen und Unternehmen, in Dänemark, Schweden und
Deutschland, als Expertinnen und Experten tätig, und jetzt wurden ihre
Übersetzungsprozesse und Übersetzungsprodukte sowie ihre Expertenprofile in engem
Kontakt mit ihren aktuellen Arbeitsplätzen neu untersucht.
Die Frage ist: Haben der damalige, auf Forschung basierte Unterricht und die Experimente
einen Effekt gehabt? Was ist davon hängen geblieben? Was ist hinzugekommen? Sind die
Gewohnheiten und Störquellen die alten, oder gibt es neue?
73

Papers
Nicht alle Versuchsteilnehmer arbeiten heute als Übersetzerinnen oder Übersetzer, aber
bei denen, die vom Übersetzen leben, wurde untersucht, was
übersetzungswissenschaftliche Erkenntnisse für sie bedeutet haben, und welche neuen
Aspekte aufgrund ihrer Erfahrungen aus oft verschiedenen Arbeitssituationen und
aufgrund von Weiterbildung hinzugekommen sind.
Besonderer Wert wird bei dem Projekt aber auf die Entwicklung und Veränderungen in
der Übersetzungskompetenz gelegt, und die Hypothese der Untersuchung ist, dass
aufgrund von Erfahrung und aufgrund der Zeitspanne, die nach dem Studienabschluss
vergangen ist, sowohl Verschlechterungen als auch Verbesserungen der
Übersetzungskompetenz vorkommen werden.
74

Gernot HEBENSTREIT
Universität Graz
gernot.hebenstreit@uni-graz.at
Papers
Coming To Terms With CI
Over the last decade community interpreting (CI) has increasingly drawn attention upon
itself. The growing importance of CI manifests itself in different ways. On an institutional
level there seems to be an increasing awareness for the need for CI resulting from
regional and global migration processes. Professional organizations as well as individual
translators/interpreters “discover” CI as a “new” field of activity, explicitely integrating it
into the traditional scope of services. In the field of translator/interpreter training CI has
been integrated into core curricula and/or been made object of special training programs
for professional and/or non-professional translators. Last, but not least CI occupies a
growing space within translation and interpreting studies. Given the variety of settings
and cultural contexts in which CI takes place, it is not surprising that the range of
activities covered by the concept of community interpreting in different countries or even
communities varies as much as the multitude of terms and definitions to be found in
academic writing on the matter.
These definitions do not only reflect the characteristics of local varieties of CI but also
researcher’s disciplinary background and interests. Consequently the term community
interpreting and its synonyms and quasisynonyms are used to denominate a great variety
of concepts. In fact this variety of terms and concepts may cause confusion not only
amonng outsiders. The question arises whether it is possible to describe a prototypical
concept of CI, or whether cultural and academic background of the concept interfere with
such an endeavor. This study’s aim is tot work out a typology of characteristics as found
in definitions of CI that can serve as a tool of comparision of the various concepts and to
distinguish prototypical core characteristics as well as culture or theory bound elements.
75

Pál HELTAI
University of Pannonia, Veszprém
heltai.pal@fibermail.hu
Papers
Collocations in Specialized Translation
Research on translationese has shown that one major reason for „quasi-correctness”
(Klaudy 1987) is differences in the thematic structure of translated and non-translated
texts. Differences in collocational patterns may prove a close second: there is reason to
suppose that the cumulative effect of collocational violations will contribute to the
difficulty of processing a translated text. We could say, in relevance theoretic terms, that
gratuitous collocational violations make processing more difficult without providing
additional contextual effects, and thereby violate the principle of relevance.
However, when evaluating a translation from the collocational point of view, it is very
difficult to say what exactly is acceptable or not acceptable. First, there are no impossible
collocations: in the appropriate context even deviant collocations can be easily
interpreted. Second, of all the subcompetences of communicative competence it is
perhaps collocational competence that is the least stable and shows the widest variation
across a speech community. Collocational restrictions are often violated, especially under
time pressure, even in native language communication. Third, we do not know enough
about the effects of collocational violations. We have little information on whether
collocational patterns in translated texts are really different from those in non-translated
texts, and we have no data on whether increased difficulty of processing of deviant
collocations will actually happen. The use of habitual collocations seems to be especially
important in translating specialized texts, where it is the habitual rather than the novel
that is expected. Yet in translating habitual collocations may give way to less habitual
word combinations. This may be due to the inadequacies and uncertainties of the
translator’s collocational competence in the TL (even if it is her native language), pressure
of time, cross-linguistic differences (no parallel collocations existing in the TL) and direct
interference from the SL. Since collocations cannot be right or wrong, only more or less
felicitous, there is less resistance to transfer.
This paper will report on ongoing research undertaken to explore the role of collocations
in translationese by using tests measuring ease of processing in collocationally
appropriate and inappropriate texts, following Chesterman’s recommendation that
prescriptive statements should be treated as hypotheses to be tested. It will also report
on a study comparing novice and experienced translators’ use of collocations in
translating specialized texts from English into Hungarian, based on a bilingual corpus of
English and Hungarian specialized texts which is being developed in Szent István
University, Gödöllı. Thus, analysis of use of collocations corresponding to collocations
with delexical verbs in English (perform an operation, carry out an analysis) as against
simple verbs might reveal differences in translated and non-translated Hungarian texts
and between expert and novice translators.
By finding out more about the features of translated texts and by checking the effects of
those features we can provide a more solid basis for evaluating collocational appropriacy
in translator training. References
Chesterman, A. 1999. The empirical status of prescriptivism. Folia Translatologica 6, 9-19.
Klaudy, K. 1987. Fordítás és aktuális tagolás. Nyelvtudományi Értekezések. 123.
Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó.
76

Nataša HIRCI
University of Ljubljana
natasa.hirci@guest.arnes.si
Papers
Bridging the Gap between Acceptability and
Unacceptability of Translations into a Non-Mother
Tongue through the Application of Modern Translation
Tools
In the age of information society it seems almost impossible to imagine anyone
undertaking translations without the use of modern translation tools such as computers,
electronic resources, the Internet with online electronic dictionaries, glossaries,
encyclopaedias, translation corpora, translators’ forums and similar. Translation tools are
now available which may have a positive impact on the translation process, resulting in a
final product whose translation quality is acceptable to its target audience.
The present paper addresses the question of the acceptability of translations into a nonmother
tongue. It involves a case study looking at two translation tasks from Slovene into
English, which were undertaken by two groups of third-year undergraduate students of
translation at the Faculty of Arts, University of Ljubljana, Slovenia, all of whom have had
at least three years of experience in translating into a non-mother tongue, including
English, and had also taken part in the course on Translation of Promotional Texts from
Slovene into English in Year 3. The students were asked to translate two fairly short
promotional tourist texts from Slovene, their mother tongue, into English. For Text One,
Group 1 was allowed to complete their translations only with the aid of paper resources,
while for Text Two, both paper and electronic resources were made available. Reverse
conditions applied to Group 2: the group was allowed to make use of all resources for
Text One, and was restricted to the use of only those in paper form for Text Two.
The main premise of the paper is that the application of modern translation tools has a
positive impact on the translation process as far as the trainee translators’ speed and
efficiency is concerned, and that the translations where no restriction on the translation
tools was made for the student translators are more acceptable to the target audience
than those where such restriction was imposed. Competent native speakers of English, all
engaged in the teaching of translation and/or linguistics, were asked to complete a
questionnaire assessing the benefits of the application of modern resources in translation.
By applying this method, problems concerning the application of modern translation tools
could be ascertained and the acceptability of the given translation tasks from the mother
tongue into the foreign language established, with the main objective being to identify the
impact of the application of modern tools on the translation process, i.e. whether or not
the use of electronic translation tools helped trainee translators to translate out of their
mother tongue and aided in the verification process of their intuitive translation choices
providing the reassurance often necessary for translating into a foreign language.
The aim of the present study is to establish how the use of electronic tools affects the
quality and acceptability of translations into a non-mother tongue, with native speakers of
English assessing the acceptability of eight selected student translations of Text One and
Text Two, evaluating their acceptability to the target language and target culture
community.
77

Minna HJORT
University of Helsinki
minna.hjort@helsinki.fi
Papers
An Example of a Multi-Methodological Approach to
Studying Translation
In my presentation I will argue, by means of an example, for a multi-methodological and
multi-disciplinary approach to studying translation. The example I will refer to is my study
on Finnish swearwords and the translation of swearwords in contemporary US fiction into
Finnish. The study takes two main approaches to translation research: first, it looks at
translated language on its own, in contrast to texts written originally in the language of
the translations. Secondly, it examines the translations in contrast to the source texts,
thus providing more ground for explaining the differences found between original and
translated language. The findings from the material, which comprises three relatively
large but manually collected corpora of fictional texts, is also discussed in light of a
questionnaire study conducted on the subject of the translation of swearwords.
In my presentation I will argue that sometimes, instead of engaging in arguments over
whether to choose between, for example, a quantitative and a qualitative approach, a
corpus study and a case study, or a mechanical and a manual method, the best solution
can be to combine all of these. There are, for example, aspects of linguistic and
translational phenomena that are best observed by looking at tendencies in a large data
set. Some even remain undiscovered if such an approach is not taken. A quantitative
corpus study is also an excellent way to avoid the presentation of assumptions and
impressions as hard fact. Similarly to other fields of research, translation studies has
witnessed claims as to the frequency of certain phenomena (for example the
overrepresentation of certain forms and expressions in translated language or the
censorship of certain words in translation) that have not been proven with reliable data.
On the other hand, there are linguistic and translational phenomena that surface only
when closely examining individual cases, and they may be interesting in other respects
than in their frequency. Likewise, while the use of large ready-made corpora facilitates
the study of many aspects of translated language, there are research subjects that cannot
be studied by means of a ready-made corpus because certain variations would never be
found, and thus manual analysis is required or a corpus has to be created manually,
which can lead to comprises in the size of the data as compared to the ready-made
corpora. Also, as translation scholars are well aware, it is also often profitable to apply a
multi-disciplinary approach in addition to a multi-methodological one. There translation
studies and linguistics are combined with other fields of research such as, say, sociology,
literary studies or political sciences. This is discussed briefly also in light of the exemplary
case. Thus, to achieve the big picture, both of two opposite viewpoints are often needed.
To conclude, I discuss the applicability of the results of such a multi-methodological and
multi-disciplinary study to the practice of translation, and briefly debate the related
argument of whether translation research should be prescriptive or merely descriptive.
78

Severine HUBSCHER-DAVIDSON
University of Salford
s.hubscher-davidson@salford.ac.uk
Papers
How TS Benefits Students by Providing New Training
Methods Such as TAPS
As Lung and Yan (2004) suggest, "a translation curriculum is always a field of (uneasy)
compromises". Indeed, academics and professionals are in constant war on the issue of
theory vs. practice in translator training, and whether students can really learn from the
increasing literature in Translation Studies. According to Gambier (2004: 67), publications
in TS have been repetitive in their choice of subject and conclusions drawn, and that
although the emerging identity of translators and the new demands made on their skills
and behaviours certainly make it necessary to renew our efforts at description and
explanation, research in translation should be more than just an academic pursuit.
I agree and believe that the real impact of TS can be gauged through the analysis of its
influence on translator training, and hence by focusing on and tackling learners’ needs,
and by adopting an individualistic approach which encourages each student to engage in
the theory. In this paper, I will aim to demonstrate that Translation Studies matters
because it provides a useful forum for trainers to draw on and find inspiration for their
teaching. One of the key findings in my research is that a great majority of translation
students enjoy experimenting with innovative approaches from TS such as TAPS, which
are deemed to be helpful and to have a positive impact on student work. It seems to me
that students’ acceptance of a training method is of paramount importance to its potential
success; indeed, in recent years universities have been increasingly aware of both student
and professional needs, and much of this awareness has been generated by teachers who
actively seek to realign their teaching so that it opens its doors to new ideas from outside
the university (Sewell and Higgins 1996: 9). Students constantly need to be motivated
and their curiosity aroused if they are to do well. I believe putting them in new and
different translating situations is the way forward, and that they are more likely to enjoy
being taught if it presents new experiences and new challenges. I will aim to show that a
constant change of learning methods can enrich the student experience, and that this is
an area where I believe theory successfully meets practice, and Translation Studies
benefits Translation Training.
Having recently obtained a grant to fund a project investigating innovative methods of
training translators, I am currently working on methods such as TAPS and other
computer-assisted methodology which focus on the student and on his behaviour. My aim
is to monitor students’ performances, and detect the effects of this student-focused
technology on target text quality. The place of technologies in both theory and practice is
increasingly significant and something which students generally relate well to. As TS has
recently been suggesting, the voices of both students and trainers need to be a feature of
the training process for the theory to succeed. This new direction in translator training
will, I believe, give new breadth and strength to the interdisciplinary field of Translation
Studies.
79

Dr. JUREWICZ, Magdalena
University of Poznań, Poland
magdalena-jurewicz@wp.pl
Papers
Wie Missverständnis in Nichtverstehen übergeht
Analyse eines „kommunikativen Unfalls“ beim
Verhandlungsdolmetschen
Sowohl bei Missverständnissen als auch bei Nichtverstehen liegt eine
Kommunikationsstörung vor. Bei Nichtverstehen wird das Problem beiden Parteien sofort
bewusst, weil keine plausible Interpretation des lautlichen Ereignisses möglich ist, bei
einem Missverständnis dagegen nimmt der Hörer zunächst keine Störung wahr.
Nichtverstehen resultiert normalerweise in einer sofortigen Rückfrage, ein Missverständnis
nicht. (vgl. Falkner 1997, 161) . Das heißt also, dass der Hörer nicht versteht, wenn das
lautliche Ereignis nach seiner eigener Einschätzung nicht sinnvoll interpretierbar ist,
während ein Missverständnis das Ergebnis eines Interpretationsvorgangs ist, den er als
erfolgreich in dem Sinn empfindet, dass er die Intention von dem Produzenten des Textes
erkannt zu haben glaubt. (vgl. ebenda, 162)
Beim Gesprächsdolmetschen ist die Situation umso komplizierter, als für das Verstehen
noch eine dritte Person verantwortlich ist, die manchmal über kein ausreichendes
Fachwissen verfügt. In dem Beitrag möchte ich an einem Beispiel veranschaulichen, wie
ein Missverständnis, das durch ein mangelhaftes Wissen der Dolmetscherin im Bereich
Logistik verursacht wird, zu einem kommunikativen „Unfall“ führt. Das Missverständnis auf
propositionaler Ebene, also das Verwenden eines falschen Wortes in der Dolmetschung,
wird zuerst von den beiden Parteien nicht gemerkt. Erst wenn die Verwendung des
Wortes im Kontext nicht passt, ruft das die Reaktion einer Partei, die zuerst meint, dass
die andere Seite sie nicht verstanden hat, was explizite zum Ausdruck gebracht wird. Erst
in dem Moment merkt die Dolmetscherin, dass die Schuld an dem Nichtverstehen
vielleicht an ihr liegt. Wie sie mit diesem Problem umgeht, wird in der Analyse gezeigt.
80

Papers
Klaus KAINDL
Universität Wien
klaus.kaindl@univie.ac.at
Elvis singt Deutsch
Die Übersetzung von Elvis Presley-Songs im
deutschen Sprachraum
Populares Liedgut ist in allen Kulturen verbreitet. Seine Präsenz und Verankerung in der
Alltagswelt machen allerdings eine wissenschaftlich-definitorische Erfassung des
Phänomens äußerst schwierig, da es einerseits als nicht weiter zu hinterfragender Teil des
Lebens wahrgenommen wird, der uns in den unterschiedlichsten Zusammenhängen und
Situationen begegnet (von der Berieselung im Restaurant und Supermarkt über die
Massenmedien Radio, Fernsehen, Internet, im Rahmen von Konzerten bis hin zum
privaten Hören von Musik); andererseits tritt es in den unterschiedlichsten
Erscheinungsformen auf. Diese Vielgestaltigkeit wird noch akzentuiert, wenn man
populares Liedgut in einem interkulturellen Kontext betrachtet. Jede Kultur hat ihre
eigenen Genres und Subgenres, mit jeweils unterschiedlichen soziologischen Wurzeln,
unterschiedlichen Bewertungen und Positionierungen innerhalb des musikalischen Feldes
sowie unterschiedlichen textuellen Merkmalen sowohl was Musik, Gesang, Sprache als
auch die visuelle Präsentation betrifft. Eine umfassende übersetzungswissenschaftliche
Analyse dieses Bereichs muss daher einerseits die soziologische Dimension in den Blick
nehmen, andererseits die semiotische Komplexität des Materials berücksichtigen.
Ausgehend von einer Definition gesungener Popularmusik als semiotisch komplexe Form
ästhetischer Kommunikation, die als Teil der Popularkultur gesehen wird und aus
sprachlichen, musikalischen und visuellen Elementen besteht, die durch eine
interpretierende Person oder Gruppe entweder audio-visuell oder rein auditiv in Form von
kurzen (meist einige Minuten langen) narrativ eigenständigen Stücken vermittelt wird, soll
in diesem Beitrag das Liedgut eines Sängers, Elvis Presley, mit seinen deutschen
Übersetzungen in Form von Schlagern miteinander verglichen. Die Basis hierfür bilden
ungefähr 200 deutschsprachige Fassungen von Presley-Songs. Zunächst werden die
Popularmusiksysteme der USA und Deutschlands miteinander verglichen. Dabei werden
Konzepte aus der Translationswissenschaft („Polysystem“) mit dem
popularmusikwissenschaftlichen Konzept „mediation“ in Verbindung gesetzt. Mediation
umfasst nicht nur die technischen Verbreitungsmittel, sondern auch die
Vermittlungstätigkeiten der in den Prozess der Produktion, Distribution und Rezeption
involvierten Akteure sowie die sozialen Beziehungen zwischen diesen. Die Mediation, also
die Vermittlung durch die in den kulturellen Transfer des Liedguts involvierten Akteure
und Medien, bestimmt auch den Wert und die Bedeutung popularmusikalischer
Erzeugnisse im musikalischen Feld, was wiederum einen entscheidenden Einfluss auf die
Übersetzung hat, sowohl auf die Frage, ob als auch wie übersetzt wird.
Diese Hypothese soll im Anschluss anhand des Corpus von Presley-Songs untersucht
werden, die im US-amerikanischen Sprachraum in anderen medialen Zusammenhängen
stehen als die deutschen Fassungen, die meist als Schlager wahrgenommen werden. Es
wird analysiert inwieweit die Gattungsspezifik des Schlagers, das Image der jeweiligen
InterpretInnen und die Mediationszusammenhänge die Gestalt der Übersetzungen
beeinflussten. Die dabei festgestellten Änderungen betreffen vor allem die Darstellung
von Sexualität, Liebe und Beziehung und bewirken, dass Elvis Presley-Songs im
Deutschen weitaus harmloser und „sauberer“ wirken als im Amerikanischen.
81

Krisztina KÁROLY
Papers
School of English and American Studies, Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest
karolyk@ludens.elte.hu
The Role of Genre Transfer Strategies and Genre
Transfer Competence in Translation
Text typology and genre analysis aid the study of translation by revealing ways in which
the generic identity of the source text may be retained in translation. Difficulty may arise
in translation when the source language (SL) genre has no equivalent in the target
language (TL), or, if it does, it portrays different structural and/or rhetorical
characteristics as a result of the differing norms and conventions according to which TL
genres are constructed. This paper addresses this problem and has a dual focus: first, it
proposes a taxonomy of genre transfer strategies and then it specifies the kinds of
competences that translators need to be able to select the appropriate translation
strategy and apply it successfully to produce a translation that may be regarded as a
generic equivalent of the SL text. It is argued that many translation problems resulting
from differing generic conventions across languages and genres may be avoided or solved
by integrating the development of generic competence into translator training.
Analyses of various genres across disciplines, fields, languages and cultures have provided
ample evidence for the assumption that because of the distinct nature and functions of
the texts, translators make use of different genre-specific translation strategies to ensure
that the target text fulfils its function in the target context and meets the expectations of
the target audience. Building upon the principles of “functional translation” (Nord, 1991,
1995; Reiss Vermeer, 1984), this paper argues that the creation of a communicatively
and functionally equivalent target language text requires the application of a special set of
strategies that is referred to here as “genre transfer strategies”. These strategies are
claimed to be the results of the (mostly conscious) decisions of translators and affect
discourse-level phenomena. On the basis of the study of a wide variety genres (from the
fields of academic, media, political, economic, technical discourse, etc.) and building upon
the results of a number of language-pair-specific empirical investigations (e.g., Adab,
2000; Bhatia, 1997; Hansen, 1997; Kussmaul, 1997; Trosborg, 1997; Schäffner, 1995;
Schäffner Adab, 2001; Sidiropoulou, 1995; Vamentine Preston, 2002), the paper
discusses a number of genre-related translation problems and proposes a taxonomy of
genre transfer strategies. The taxonomy touches upon the relevant aspects of discourse
(e.g., discoursal norms and conventions, genre- and text-type-specific norms and
conventions, information structuring, logical/rhetorical structuring, cultural, stylistic and
tactic aspects) and offers solutions to the translational problems related to these.
The successful application of these strategies presupposes a number of special
competences that translators need besides their general language and communicative
competence (Hymes, 1971; Canale Swain, 1980). Therefore, the second aim of this
paper is to highlight these competences, grouped under the umbrella term “genre transfer
competence”. Genre transfer competence differs from the notion of genre competence in
that it presupposes not only the knowledge of and the ability to use the genre
conventions of one particular culture or language, but it also involves the knowledge of
two or more cultures’ or languages’ conventions, as well as the ability to transform these
from one language to another in a functionally adequate manner.
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Finally, the paper will show that the development of genre transfer competence is a
crucial component of translator training, as novice translators usually disregard the
differences between genres in different languages and fields. Raising trainees’ awareness
to these may contribute not only to the improvement of the quality of translations, but
also to bringing conscious decisions when opting for a particular translation strategy.
Genre analysis yields particularly useful results for translator training, as it identifies and
describes linguistically and communicatively similar texts that share similar translation
problems. Thus, during the course of training, these texts may be dealt with together, in
a systematic manner.
83

Dorothy KELLY
Universidad de Granada
dkelly@ugr.es
Papers
Needs Analysis for Translator Trainer Training and an
Outline of Trainer Competence
One of the major reforms associated with the European Higher Education Area is a move
from teacher-centred to student-centred education, a major change in higher education
teaching paradigm. Although TS as a university discipline is possibly one of the most
advanced in training approaches, the need for trainer training has become an important
issue in recent years as the Bologna debate has spread across Europe and beyond. The
TS literature on the issue deals mostly with the need for translator trainers to be
professional translators. This concern, although important, seems reductionist. This paper
will submit that the different areas of competence or expertise required in order to be a
competent translator trainer are: professional translation practice; Translation Studies as
an academic discipline; teaching skills. Although the first two are essential for overall
translator trainer competence, they are a little like the language competence one expects
of a professional translator, in that they constitute prerequisites rather than the central
competence itself. Training courses for trainers will, therefore, vary depending on the
needs of the particular group of trainees: language teachers, professional translators and
Translation Studies academics do not require the same kind of training in order to become
efficient translator trainers. Needs analysis is thus an essential first step in the design of
any trainer training. After a review of different profiles and training needs for future
trainers in different contexts, the paper will examine some of the existing resources in the
field. It will then attempt to develop a model of trainer competence, covering all three
areas above, but centring especially on the third, that of teaching skills. An initial attempt
to describe these teaching skills (Kelly 2005), on which this paper will build, subdivides
these into at least the following “subcompetences” or areas of competence:
- Organizational:
- the ability to design courses and appropriate teaching and learning activities
- the ability to apply and manage these
- the ability to design, apply and manage appropriate assessment activities
- Interpersonal:
- the ability to work collaboratively with trainees towards their learning goals
- the ability to work in a training team
- the ability to act as a mentor for trainees
- Instructional:
- the ability to present content and explain clearly
- the ability to stimulate discussion and reflective thinking
- the ability to arouse interest and enthusiasm
- Contextual or professional:
- understanding of the educational context in which training takes place (local,
national, international)
- understanding of the teaching profession
- Instrumental:
- knowledge of training resources of all kinds and ability to apply them
appropriately and usefully to the training process.
84

Kinga KLAUDY, Krizstina KAROLY
Papers
ELTE (Eötvös Loránd) University of Budapest, Dept of T/I
kklaudy@ludens.elte.hu, karolyk@ludens.elte.hu
The Asymmetry Hypothesis Further Developed
The Asymmetry of Upgrading and Downgrading in
Translation
The “asymmetry hypothesis” postulates that explicitations carried out in the L1→L2
direction do not necessarily entail implicitations in the reverse, L2→L1 direction, because
translators – if they have a choice – prefer to use operations involving explicitation, and
often do not perform optional implicitation (Klaudy 2001). The terms explicitation and
implicitation are used as defined by Klaudy (1998, 2003) as cover terms including a
number of obligatory and optional transfer operations. Explicitation takes place in the
following cases: when a SL unit with a general meaning is replaced by a TL unit with a
more specific meaning; when the meaning of a SL unit is distributed over several units in
the TL; when new meaningful elements appear in the TL text; when one sentence in the
ST is divided into two or several sentences in the TT; or, when SL phrases are extended
or “upgraded” to clause level in the TT, etc.
Implicitation on the other hand occurs: when a SL unit with a specific meaning is replaced
by a TL unit with a more general meaning; when translators combine the meanings of
several SL words in one TL word; when meaningful lexical elements of the SL text are
dropped in the TL text; when two or more sentences in the ST are conjoined into one
sentence in the TT; or, when ST clauses are "downgraded" or reduced to phrases in the
TT, etc.
Klaudy and Károly (2005) in a study focusing on the bidirectional analysis of translation of
reporting verbs (from English into Hungarian and from Hungarian into English) provided
empirical evidence for the validity of the asymmetry hypothesis. The present paper is an
attempt to provide further justification supporting the validity of the asymmetry
hypothesis by exploring upgrading of English participial, infinitival and nominal phrases
into clause level in English-Hungarian translation on one hand, and downgrading of the
Hungarian clauses into phrase level in Hungarian-English translation on the other hand.
The upgrading of participial, infinitival and nominal phrases into independent sentence
units is a standard transfer operation that depends on the language pair and on the
direction of translation, and is characteristic of the English-Hungarian translation. The
reason for upgrading can be explained by the differing complementability of English and
Hungarian participial phrases, infinitival phrases and noun phrases, i.e. by systemic
differences between the languages. Translators, however, frequently use upgrading even
when there is no need to do so, and the original sentence could be translated easily,
without upgrading. In these cases they follow a language pair specific translation
strategy, that is, information packaging, typical of Hungarian. To increase the amount of
information per sentence Hungarian prefers an accumulation of independent clauses
rather than the use of syntactic compression.
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The elevation of phrases may be explained not only by language pair specific translation
strategies but also by one of the universal translation strategies, that is, explicitation,
which means that translators faced with a choice among several synonymous target
language solutions are inclined to favour the more explicit ones. If downgrading is
compared with upgrading an interesting case of operational asymmetry can be detected
between upgrading in the E-H direction and downgrading in the H-E direction. Based on
analysing the literary subcorpus of Hungarian National Corpus, it may be argued that
translators tend to prefer upgrading (more clauses in the TL) to downgrading (fewer
clauses in TL). The fact that translators faced with a choice of several synonymous target
language solutions are inclined to favour the more explicit ones, may be a proof for the
universal character of explicitation strategies.
86

Nike KOCIJANČIČ POKORN
University of Ljubljana
nike.kocijancic@guest.arnes.si
Papers
A World Without God
Translation of Children’s Literature in a Socialist
Country
The aim of the proposed paper is to show that a children’s literature used to be and still
remains in many cultures the genre where manipulations through translation seem to be
permissible and acceptable. This acceptance of censorship (often self-imposed by the
translators) most probably stems from the conviction that children’s literature, including
the works that are not openly didactic, should not be harmful to the development of
children into ideal citizens – and since the concept of an ideal citizen changes throughout
the history, also translations change according to the ideology of a particular TL culture.
The hypothesis was checked against the situation in Slovenia in two periods, the first one
extending from the end of the Second World War to 1992, i.e. the Socialist period, the
second one from 1992 onwards, i.e. the post-Socialist period. A search through the most
exhaustive Slovene electronic bibliographic source (COBISS) and the printed Slovene
bibliography for the period from 1945 to 1963 showed that in the first five years after the
war translations of children’s literature were scarce (there were none in 1945, and in the
following four years only one published per each year). From 1950 to 1958 approximately
6 translations for children were published annually, and from 1959 to 1963 up to 10. Of
these, only those translations that have been reprinted and also re-translated in later
periods were selected (with the exception of Andersen’s and Grimm’s tales that have
already been subjects of other studies (see Orel Kos 2001)). Those are Robinson Crusoe
by Daniel Defoe, Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher-Stowe, The Wind in the Willows
by Kenneth Grahame, Treasure Island by R. L. Stevenson, Pippi Longstocking by Astrid
Lindgren, Heidi by Johanna Spyri, and Bambi by Felix Salten. The translations of those
works were compared to the originals, reprints and later translations with the aim of
establishing whether any anti-religious censorship was applied to them. The editors for
children literature at the three state publishing houses that published children’s literature
in Socialist times and at the five publishing houses that publish children’s literature now in
Slovenia were interviewed. Following van Doorslaer’s suggestion (van Doorslaer 1995:
265), the originals and the translations were read independently and all potentially
relevant passages were marked and compared. Due to limited space, only the most
prominent examples will be quoted here.
It has been established that since the status of Christian religion changed considerably
after the Second World War, religious elements were most often subject to translational
censorship. In the first period, in particular in the translations for children that were
produced in the 50’s and 60’s, the censorship was directed against any mentioning of
Christian religion. In the period from 1992 onwards, in accordance with expectations,
more religious elements were present in translation, however, they were often
attenuated. It will be argued that the most important reason for this partial or complete
religious censorship that still persists nowadays is in part ideological (religion is still often
considered as obsolete, but even more frequently, more explicitly Christian passages are
omitted in order to make the translation closer to children growing up in a different
religious environment) and in part commercial (by making the translations religiously
neutral they could be sold to members of different religious environments). In both
periods children were not allowed the access to the original and religious were omitted or
attenuated – the reasons for the censorship, however, were different, in the first period
they were ideological, in the second mainly commercial.
87

Kaisa KOSKINEN
University of Tampere, Finland
kaisa.a.koskinen@uta.fi
Papers
What Matters to Translation Studies?
In my presentation, I would like to turn the conference theme the other way round:
instead of asking why or where Translation Studies (TS) might matter to others, I will
discuss whether developments in the professional field and cultural contacts matter, or
should matter, to TS. Since the 1980s, Descriptive Translation Studies (DTS) has been a –
if not the – dominant paradigm in TS. It has undoubtedly contributed greatly to the
development of the discipline into a serious academic discipline, with a perspective
reaching beyond the immediate needs of translator training. The scientific ethos of DTS –
that the task of the scholar is to describe, not to prescribe – is to be understood against
the then perhaps typical way of approaching translation through a prescriptive analysis of
anecdotal examples.
The question I will pose in my presentation is: has this emphasis on being descriptive
prevented the discipline from fully exploiting its critical potential, within the academia or
in the society at large? Is it the moral responsibility of scholars to actively get involved, or
are we there to witness and analyze the developments? This issue can be divided in three
parts: First, is DTS in practice as neutral as its ethos implies? Second, what is the role and
status of other, more critical approaches in TS, and are they as critical as their ethos
implies? Third, does the future of TS seem more descriptive or critical, and what is the
relation between the two? The question is closely related to ethics. Mary Snell-Hornby
(2006) argues that the ethical turn is still to be taken in TS. I will explore the field from
this point of view, and discuss the role of ethics, commitment and social relevance in TS.
These also have a bearing in translator training: how uncritically can we, for example,
accept work-related course contents and promote particular technical tools? And what is
the stance towards ethical issues we cultivate in the students, and how? In the end, these
questions are personal. Maria Tymozcko (2000) has talked about activist translation; do
we have a need for activist translation research, too?
References:
Snell-Hornby, Mary (2006). The Turns of Translation Studies. Benjamins.
Tymoczko, Maria (2000). “Translation and political engagement: Activism, social change
and the role of translation in geopolitical shifts”. The translator 6:1, pp. 23–47.
88

Katja KREBS
University of Glamorgan, Wales, U.K.
kkrebs@glam.ac.uk
Papers
Reinforcements and Challenges
Translation Studies, Interdisciplinarity and Notions of
Hybridity
Translation Studies, by its very nature, is an area of scholarship reliant upon
interdisciplinarity and dependent on a close engagement with other academic fields. While
Translation Studies has embraced the enriching and engendering factors of such
interdisciplinary approaches, other fields of study, more often than not, neglect to engage
with translation as an important cultural and creative phenomenon. A case in point are
the fields of Translation Studies and Theatre Studies which, until very recently, have
seldom come together – a surprising state of play if we consider the number of theoretical
concerns and positionings which are shared by these two areas of scholarship and
research. The tension between reinforcement of domestic cultural and political
assumptions on the one hand and the possibility of challenging those assumptions by
providing alternatives on the other is typical of both the discussion and analysis of acts of
translation as well as of acts of performance (e.g. Carlson 1996; Phelan 1996; Johnston
2000; Tymoczko 2003). Furthermore, both acts can be characterized as a conscious
struggle to become the unobtainable Other and the realization of the impossibility of such
an endeavour is an experience both the translator and the performer, rather than the
reader or the audience, encounter repeatedly throughout their respective creative
processes. Such similar experiences and concerns should be seen as an already existing
common base which can contribute to a meaningful conversation between the two
practices and areas of scholarship.
Arguably, both translation studies and theatre histories - unlikely bedfellows as they may
be – can offer a fresh perspective on methodological concerns, such as the elusive
relationship between text and performance and the motives behind groups of translators
and their programmes of activities. The focus of this paper, however, is not necessarily
such subject specific implications. Instead, it concentrates on the fact that relationship
between these two areas is of political importance. It suggests an alternative to the
construction of national(ist) stories of tradition and development that we can find both
within theatre and translation studies.
This paper argues that, by considering the processes involved in two diverse yet related
forms of manipulation and creation of meaning – translation and theatre –an alternative
to the construction of national(ist) cultural narratives dependent on the articulation of
exotic difference (see Bhabha 1994) can be developed. Rather than reinforcing
assumptions of separate cultures, an examination of hybrid texts will allow a better
understanding of constructions of international cultural histories. Reflecting the notion of
hybridity, such a methodology is conceivable only as a result of an embrace of and
engagement with interdisciplinarity where the apparently separate modes of cultural
practice and modes of study – translation and theatre – merge into one. By concentrating
on the relationship between Translation Studies and the construction of theatre histories,
this paper concludes by arguing that Translation Studies matters because it can force a
related field of enquiry to examine its assumptions about cultural processes in general
and constructions of history in particular by making visible hybridity.
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Papers
Works cited:
Bhabha, Homi (1994) The Location of Culture, London & New York: Routledge. Carlson,
Marvin (1996) Performance – A Critical Introduction, London: Routledge.
Johnston, David (2000) ‘Theatre as Intercultural Exchange’, in Christopher Shorley and
Maeve McCusker (eds) Reading Across the Lines, Dublin: Royal Irish Academy, 11-23.
Phelan, Peggy (1996) Unmarked – The Politics of Performance, London: Routledge.
Tymoczko, Maria (2003) ‘Ideology and the Position of the Translator: In What Sense is a
Translator ‘In Between’?’, in Maria Calzada Pérez (ed) Apropos of Ideology – Translation
Studies on Ideology – Ideologies in Translation Studies, Manchester: St. Jerome, 181-201.
90

Papers
Jan Christoph KUNOLD
Saarland Universtity
j.kunold@mx.uni-saarland.de
Translating Music
The Lost ‘Gestalt’
Translation Studies matters because it investigates phenomena and regularities in
translation and its processes in an effort to make them transparent and repeatable for
others. While outstanding translations have been produced for hundreds of years, today
the controversy of whether it is an art or skill still hinders the acceptance of translation as
an academic discipline with concepts and methodologies of its own which may be
attractive and fruitful to other academic disciplines as well.
The following paper proceeds from this understanding of why translation studies matters
and is presented with the aim of showing an option for systematizing the translation of
musical texts. The paper is theoretically anchored in the differentiation of text
perspectives and holistic translation approach as proposed by Gerzymisch-
Arbogast/Mudersbach (1998). Within this concept, it is assumed that musical texts involve
two sign systems, i.e. language (‘langue’) and music, and they are actualized as
potentially simultaneous manifestations (‘concretizations’) in an individual musical text.
This paper suggests that the mutual interrelationship of the two sign systems and their
simultaneous interaction in the translation process can be made transparent and
systematized in a sequence of methodological steps which support the translator’s
decision-making processes in an effort to make these translation decisions repeatable for
others.
The methodological sequence includes:
1) establishing the simultaneous co-occurrence of musical and verbal text categories as
concretizations of the two sign systems underlying the musical text to be translated. This
is done by isolating constitutive aspects that co-occur in the written and musical form of
the text (by Aspectra analysis),
2) The identified aspect(s) are then structured as constitutive elements (holemes) of the
separate sign systems (holons) of which they are part of and which underlie the musical
text in both its written and music form (Holontra analyses).
3) The identified holemes that co-occur simultaneously in both systems are then related
back to the actual musical text as (potentially simultaneous) concretizations of the two
sign systems language and music.
4) The concretized simultaneous elements are now presentable as transparent instances
of a simultaneous co-occurrence of music and verbal text which can then be translated as
an operationalized musical ‘Gestalt’ following the methodological sequence presented in
Gerzymisch-Arbogast/Mudersbach 1998.
The methodology is exemplified in this paper with the aspect of Focussing as it applies to
the English translation of Franz Schubert’s Die Schöne Müllerin.
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References:
Gerzymisch-Arbogast, Heidrun/Mudersbach, Klaus (1998): Methoden des
wissenschaftlichen Übersetzens. Tübingen: Francke. UTB
Gerzymisch-Arbogast, Heidrun/Kunold, Jan Christoph/Rothfuß-Bastian, Dorothee (2006):
„Coherence, Theme/Rheme, Isotopy: Complementary concepts in text and translation“.
In: Heine, Carmen/Schubert, Klaus/Gerzymisch-Arbogast, Heidrun (Hrsg.): Text and
translation. Theory and methodology of translation. Jahrbuch 6, 2005/2006 Übersetzen
und Dolmetschen. Tübingen: Narr. 357-378. Kaindl, Klaus (1995): Die Oper als
Textgestalt. Tübingen: Stauffenburg.
Kunold, Jan (2006): “Die Problematik der Musikübersetzung am Beispiel der englischen
Übersetzung von Schuberts ‘Die schöne Müllerin’. In: Das Österreichische Lied und seine
Ausstrahlung in Europa. Schneider, Herbert/Béhar, Pierre (Eds). Hildesheim: Olms. 157-
177.
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Papers
Kerstin KUNZ *** , Carme COLOMINAS * , Sara CASTAGNOLI ** , Natalie KüBLER **** , Stella NEUMANN ***
* University Pompeu Fabra, Spain
*** Saarland University, Germany
carme.colominas@upf.edu
** University of Bologna, Italy
{k.kunz}{st.neumann}@mx.uni-saarland.de
**** Paris Diderot University, France
scastagnoli@sslmit.unibo.it
natalie.kubler@eila.jussieu.fr
Corpora in Translator Training
A Program for an E-learning Course
This paper presents ongoing work in MeLLANGE, a European project whose main
objective consists in the development of a European Masters in translation technology.
Studies report that it is a constantly growing challenge for translators to adapt to the new
competences and skills required at the labour market. We therefore focus on the creation
of a course program which aims at training student and professional translators in the use
of new technology and resources in the process of translation. This involves the
integration of contents gained from new insights in theoretical and practical aspects of
translation studies. Our courses are implemented in an eLearning platform in order to
provide a learning environment which is innovative and efficient at the same time: It
offers dynamic and collaborative teaching and learning strategies for free and allows
course participants to learn at their own computer at their own pace and time.
This paper deals with an eLearning course designed for the application of corpora in
translation. A recent MeLLANGE survey reflects considerable interest of translators in
integrating corpora and results from corpuslinguistic research in their translation
workflow. Moreover, the survey shows that there is a growing need for translators to be
trained in how this can be done. The MeLLANGE project addresses this demand by
providing an elaborate course program online which is implemented in Moodle, an open
source eLearning platform. The course is structured into several sections. The sections
treat topics which are relevant for student and professional translators as they get an idea
of the ways in which plain and encoded corpora can assist them in different steps of the
translation process. For example, participants learn constructing their own corpora for
particular translation projects, encoding corpora with different types of information,
making useful queries on plain and encoded corpora and identifying terminology in
corpora. In addition, they gain an insight into recent advances from translation studies
based on results from the corpuslinguistic analysis of translations and originals, e.g. with
respect to characteristic features of translation. They also learn how to adopt this
knowledge when translating. The sections are separated into smaller eLearning units in
order not to overstrain the participants. They combine teaching activities with learning
activities and make use of a variety of interactive functionalities offered in Moodle. On the
one hand, we impart knowledge and skills by providing theoretical background,
introductions in the application of corpus tools, links, references and glossaries. On the
other hand, we also test this knowledge and skills by including exercises such as
knowledge tests, assignments, the application of tools, etc. At every point in the course,
participants are informed about their position in the structural hierarchy and about the
subjects and activities to be treated.
The MeLLANGE eLearning course on corpora for translation has already undergone
intensive assessment by external testers from Eastern European universities. It has
proven to be of high quality and relevance for translators as it integrates resources and
contents from translation studies and corpuslinguistic research in an innovative and
dynamic program for initial and continuing translator training.
93

Anna KUZNIK
Papers
Departament de Traducció i d'Interpretació, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
annakuznik@catalonia.net
El contenido de los puestos de trabajo de traductores
e intérpretes visto desde la Traductología y la
Sociología del Trabajo
La comunicación que nos proponemos presentar versa sobre el contenido de los puestos
de trabajo, tanto de los traductores como de los intérpretes, analizado desde dos
disciplinas distintas: desde la Traductología y la Sociología del Trabajo. La primera
proporciona elementos esenciales sobre la especificidad profesional de estos puestos y la
segunda ofrece conceptos válidos para investigar y describir las relaciones de tipo laboral.
La actividad profesional del traductor e intérprete, independientemente si se realiza en
una empresa, en un organismo público o en una entidad de tipo autónomo, no consiste
solamente en realizar procesos de traducción o interpretación. En muchas ocasiones, los
traductores hacen mucho más que traducir o efectuar una interpretación: actualizan
bases de datos con uso de un idioma extranjero, editan textos redactados o traducidos,
buscan nuevos proveedores en otros países, se encargan de seleccionar personal
traductor para sus empresas, se vuelven asesores de temas culturales y de publicidad,
organizan misiones comerciales en el extranjero, etc., en general combinan su actividad
de traducción y/o interpretación con funciones hasta ahora reservadas para distintas
profesiones (especialista en márketing, editor, informático, redactor y corrector de estilo,
etc.). Observando el tipo de oferta de servicios de traducción y/o interpretación accesible
en el Internet o en las Páginas Amarillas, nos damos cuenta de que, a parte de un sector
muy representativo de entidades que se dedican exclusivamente a la traducción y/o
interpretación, cada vez con mayor frecuencia encontramos servicios combinados que
requieren de competencias de varias profesiones a la vez. La impresión que podemos
hacernos en base a esta observación, es que la profesión del traductor y/o intérprete
tenga unos límites muy fluidos, “borrosos”, y que la neta distinción entre la actividad
traductora y la actividad “otra” es cada año menos posible, o menos deseable.
Para poder identificar la actividad profesional propia de un traductor y/o intérprete y
discernirla de la que no le pertenece, necesitamos disponer, en nuestro campo de
estudio, de herramientas conceptuales y metodológicas que nos permitan describir, de
una manera objetiva, en qué consiste la actividad profesional del traductor. Una posible
respuesta a este vacío es nuestra propuesta de concepto de “tarea traductora”, con sus
características específicas, opuesta a tareas provisionalmente definidas por nosotros como
“no traductoras”, “ajenas” a la traducción y/o interpretación.
Ya que nuestro planteamiento se encuentra en el cruzamiento de dos disciplinas distintas,
creemos oportuno empezar la presentación con algunas observaciones introductorias. En
un primer momento (Parte I.), situaremos en un mapa conceptual general varias
disciplinas a las cuales haremos referencia, a saber: 1) la Traductología, por un lado
(llamada por nosotros indistintamente los Estudios de Traducción); 2) y las Ciencias
Sociales (CCSS), por otro lado, y sus disciplinas particulares, o sea la Sociología, la
Sociología del Trabajo, las Ciencias Empresariales (CCEE), las Ciencias del Trabajo (CCTT)
y Organización de Empresas, las Relaciones Laborales (RRLL), la Gestión de Recursos
Humanos (RRHH), la Psicología Social, la Psicología del Trabajo y la Metodología de las
Ciencias del Comportamiento. En este intento de sistematización de los distintos campos
de estudio, definiremos en cada caso el objeto de estudio principal y posibles conexiones
entre ellos.
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En lo que se refiere al objeto de estudio de la Traductología, nos parece pertinente darle
el mismo tratamiento a la modalidad escrita (la traducción) y a la modalidad oral (la
interpretación). Luego, situaremos, dentro del objeto de estudio general de la
Traductología, un objeto específico, o sea los aspectos laborales del desempeño
profesional de los traductores e intérpretes en el sitio de su trabajo.
Igualmente, en esta primera parte introductoria, explicaremos cuál es el objeto de estudio
específico de la Sociología del Trabajo y en qué consiste la Gestión de Recursos
Humanos; los temas más tratados por estas disciplinas y la metodología de investigación
más usada.
Para terminar esta primera parte, definiremos qué significa para nosotros el concepto de
“profesión”, “ocupación” y de “puesto de trabajo”.
En la Parte II. nos centraremos en estos aspectos de la Sociología del Trabajo y de la
Gestión de Recursos Humanos que nos parecen pertinentes para la descripción de la
actividad del traductor y/o intérprete en el ámbito laboral. Presentaremos la tipología de
estructuras organizacionales clásicas (la burocracia, la forma divisional, la estructura
simple) y las estructuras flexibles. Luego nos detendremos en la clasificación general de la
actividad laboral en: 1) trabajos de repetición; 2) trabajos de atención personal; 3)
trabajos analíticos-simbólicos. Para terminar este bloque temático, presentaremos dos
conceptos clave para la descripción de los contenidos de puestos de trabajo: las tareas y
las funciones.
La Parte III. de nuestra comunicación se referirá a la problemática específica tratada por
la Traductología. Se definirá el concepto de “traductor”, “intérprete”, “traducción”, e
“interpretación”. Se darán a conocer características de los distintos sitios físicos y ámbitos
organizacionales en las cuales se desarrolla la actividad de traducción. Se comentarán
estudios de caso en torno al funcionamiento de la actividad traductora en las
organizaciones (en los organismos públicos, agencias internacionales, fundaciones,
empresas de traducción, etc.)
En esta misma Parte, presentaremos los modelos de gestión y ejecución de las
traducciones, elaborados en el campo de la localización del software y de la traducción
general, subrayando la importancia de los procesos y la concepción de la Traductología en
términos de una disciplina tecnológica. Se evidenciará la fluidez de los límites de la
profesión del traductor y su constante contacto “por contagio” con profesiones parecidas
(terminólogo, redactor, editor, etc.)
La Parte IV. de la comunicación tendrá como objetivo la presentación del concepto de
“tarea traductora” y la discusión de su aplicabilidad para los Estudios de Traducción. Los
temas principales de este bloque serán: la tipología de las tareas traductoras según el
ámbito (tareas didácticas, experimentales, profesionales); los antecedentes directos del
concepto de “tarea traductora”; la definición de “tarea traductora”, sus características, la
clasificación y la ejemplificación; el problema de la estandarización de la tarea y de su
visibilidad para un observador externo.
Y para terminar propondremos la metodología más idónea, según nuestro entender, para
investigar los contenidos de los puestos de trabajo de traductores e intérpretes, mediante
el concepto de “tarea traductora”, basándonos tanto en los métodos cualitativos como
cuantitativos.
95

Sigmund KVAM
Papers
University of Oslo, Norway/Østfold University College, Halden, Norway
sigmund.kvam@iln.uio.no
Zur Notwendigkeit einer linguistischen Perspektive in
der Übersetzungstheorie
Warum die Sprachwissenschaft für die Beschreibung
von linguistischen Phänomenen notwendig ist
1. Ausgangslage: Übersetzen als sprachlich-kulturelles Produkt
Übersetzen kann kurz beschrieben werden als eine konventionalisierte Reproduktion eines
durch sprachliche Zeichen konstituierten geschriebenen Textes aus einem spezifischen
sprachlich-kulturellen Raum in einen ebenfalls durch sprachliche Zeichen konstituierten
und soziokulturell konventionalisierten Text aus einem anderen sprachlich-kulturellen
Raum. Ausgehend von dieser recht allgemeinen Abgrenzung ist jeder Übersetzungsfall
durch mindestens folgende genera proxima gekennzeichnet: - Jede Übersetzung besteht
aus Sprache in der Form eines Textes und wird somit auch als Vertreter einer mehr oder
weniger bestimmten Textsorte interpretiert.
- Jede Übersetzung ist eingebettet in eine kulturspezifische Situation, verstanden als
spezifische Produktions- und Rezeptionsbedingungen für den Text als Vertreter einer
spezifischen Textsorte einerseits sowie als Vertreter für den besonderen Intertexttypus
Übersetzen andererseits. Textsortenkonventionen und Übersetzungskonventionen können
wiederum zwischen den ausgangssprachlichen und zielsprachlichen
Diskursgemeinschaften variieren.
2. Problemstellung
Im folgenden Beitrag werde ich mich auf die Relevanz der Sprachwissenschaft als einer
von mehreren notwendigen Analyseperspektiven zur Beschreibung des sprachlichkommunikativen
Phänomens Übersetzen beschränken. Auf die relevante Frage nach einer
systematischen Einbeziehung der Sozialwissenschaften in die Übersetzungswissenschaft
sowie auf die noch interessantere systematische Verknüpfung von Sprach- und
Sozialwissenschaft kann aus Zeitgründen hier nicht systematisch eingegangen werden.
Bei der vorliegenden Analyse wird Sprache – wie eingangs durch die Definition von
Übersetzen deutlich wurde - als sozial konventionalisiertes Verständigungsmittel in
menschlicher Interaktion gesehen. Sprache und der sprachliche Spezialfall Übersetzen
werden im folgenden in diesem instrumentellen Kontext gesehen und nicht etwa aus der
Perspektive der Systemlinguistik, wo Sprache als eigenständiges, von der Kommunikation
getrenntes System betrachtet wird. In der vorliegenden Arbeit ist am Beispiel der drei
linguistischen Teildisziplinen pragmatische Textlinguistik, Transphrastik und Syntax zu
zeigen, dass diese für die Beschreibung von Übersetzungen notwendig sind: Zunächst ist
der Gegenstand der jeweiligen linguistischen Disziplinen und dadurch auch die Grenzen
ihrer Beschreibungsdomänen kurz zu skizzieren (3), anschließend erfolgt vor dem
Hintergrund des oben positionierten Übersetzungsbegriffs und der Analyse des
Gegenstandsbereichs der drei genannten linguistischen Teildisziplinen ein kritischer
Durchgang der Grenzen und Möglichkeiten dieser Disziplinen für die Beschreibung von
Übersetzungen (4).
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Dabei wird zu zeigen sein, dass trotz verschiedener Beschreibungsdomänen alle drei für
eine methodisch angemessene Beschreibung vom Übersetzen als sprachlichkommunikativem
Phänomen unentbehrlich sind: Erklären und beschreiben kann man das
Textphänomen Übersetzen nur über eine pragmatisch orientierte Textlinguistik, da hier
Text als sozio-kulturell festgelegte Einheit der sprachlichen Kommunikation und nicht nur
als eine Struktur von formell definierten Größen gesehen wird. Die Syntax und
Transphrastik sind eben dafür nicht geeignet, weil der Gegenstand dieser Teildisziplinen
erstens ausschließlich struktureller Art ist, zweitens, weil sie nicht auf den Text als
kommunikative Einheit, sondern lediglich auf Teile von Texten beschränkt sind: im Falle
der Syntax handelt es sich um Strukturen innerhalb des Satzes, bei der Transphrastik um
strukturelle Verknüpfungen zwischen Sätzen. Trotzdem sind sie für die Beschreibung von
Übersetzungen nicht wegzudenken: Syntax und die Transphrastik liefern notwendige
Beschreibungskategorien für eine Analyse von Übersetzungsproblemen, die auf der Satzoder
Satzverknüpfungsebene lokalisiert sind – sei es im Rahmen von Analysen von
einzelnen Übersetzungsfällen oder auch generell durch korpusbasierte Analysen von
vergleichbaren Übersetzungstypen. Nach einer kurzen Beispieldiskussion (5) erfolgt eine
Schlussfolgerung in der Form einer Hypothese zur besonderen Rolle der pragmatischen
Textlinguistik für die Übersetzungswissenschaft (6): Diese Textlinguistik ist zwar immer
noch linguistisch fundiert, aber durch ihre Positionierung von Text als grundsätzlich soziokulturell
determinierter Kategorie bildet sie eine interessante methodische Schaltstelle
zwischen Sprach- und Sozialwissenschaften. Denn durch die systematische Ausarbeitung
von sprachwissenschaftlich und sozialwissenschaftlich fundierten Beschreibungskategorien
würden wir einem sehr wichtigen Aspekt des vielseitigen Phänomens Übersetzen einen
Schritt näher kommen - selbstverständlich ohne dabei den Anspruch einer ganzheitlichen
Translationstheorie stellen zu wollen bzw. zu können.
97

Krisztina LAJOSI
University of Amsterdam
klajosi@hotmail.com
Papers
Interferences of Musicology and Translation Studies
Nineteenth-Century National Canon Formation as a
Form of Translation
Nineteenth-Century national canon formation as a form of translation Translation studies
and musicology are not directly related disciplines, however, musicology can draw a lot on
the methods and contributions of translation studies. Piano transcriptions, romantic lied,
opera, symphonic poems are just a few examples where the question of
translation/transfer would be a plausible startup to approach these genres because they
all experiment with transposing one media or genre into another. Nineteenth-century
Western art music was consciously exploring the limits of its possibilities. Interference
between the different media has always been in the focus of art, but in the nineteenth
century the signs of explorations are visible not only in the content or form of a work of
art, but also on the meta-level. Self-referenciality and reflection about the nature of art
belong to the main stream artistic discourses of the age. There was a growth of industry
in writing about music, about the relationship of music and text and experiments to
transpose one cultural artifact in another cultural context. Appropriation of pieces from a
different cultural heritage has a long tradition in European art music, which is a storehouse
of the European popular and folk dances. The Baroque period favoured the
allemande, the pavane, the gavotte. Bach for example encorporated these dances in the
classical style composing them even in his church music and passions. The trend
continued in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries with other folk-dances like
ungaresca, mazurka, polka or the waltz. The “Orientalism“ of the eighteenth century
encouraged this kind of appropriation. One of the most well-known musical pieces of this
trend is the third movement of Mozart’s Piano Sonata No. 11 in A major, K. 331, known as
Rondo alla turca, which was in fact inspired by Hungarian verbunkos music. All these
trends call for an approach from the field of translation studies since the interchange of
two different semiotic systems is involved in the process of creation.
The paper aims to raise some theoretical questions about the affinity between the
disciplines of translation studies and musicology while interpreting the nineteenth-century
concept of national music as a form of translation. The case study is going to focus on the
Hungarian and Romanian musical culture. Analyzing, comparing and contrasting
Hungarian and Romanian canon formation processes, the paper intends to show how the
whole idea of authentic national music is in fact a matter of appropriation and translation
from other cultures, especially from the western art music. It is also going to take under
close scrutiny the question of how traditional western art music contributed to the identity
construction – as an imagined cultural community – of the newly emerging national
schools and national canons. The investigation is going to use the methods of Evan-
Zohar’s polysystemic approach to translation. The conclusion of the paper will resume
around the question of what image musicians, musical critics and the listeners of the
nineteenth-century did convey about their own national cultural identity and how this
image was influenced by other cultural impacts.
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Papers
Heike LAMBERGER-FELBER, Julia SCHNEIDER
Institut für Theoretische und Angewandte Translationswissenschaft, Universität Graz,
Austria
heike.lamberger@uni-graz.at, julia.schneider@uni-graz.at
Interferences in Simultaneous Interpreting with Text
A Case Study and Its Impact on Teaching and Practice
Linguistic interferences have been the subject of research in contrastive linguistics,
bilingualism studies and foreign language learning since the 1950s. In translation studies,
interference is defined more widely as a projection of characteristics of the source text
into the target text resulting in a violation of parole-related target text norms and can as
such be lexical, thematic, micro- and macrotextual, situative and cultural (Kupsch-Losereit
1998).
Many texts about interferences in translation are of a didactic nature, and interference
typologies are less frequent than in linguistics and are often based on rather unsystematic
descriptions of personal observations.
The same is true in interpretings studies: Linguistic interferences are mentioned mostly in
didactic texts as a problem to be avoided, e.g. through deverbalisation (Théorie du sens,
Selekovitch/Lederer). It is only in recent years that empirical case studies begin to
investigate the actual occurrence of interferences in simultaneous interpreting (SI) and
the influence of different parameters (e.g. language pairs, A-B versus B-A, beginners vs.
professionals etc.) on the frequency and type of interferences (e.g. Garzone/Cardinaletti
2004, Russo/Sandrelli 2003).
The aim of the proposed paper is twofold:
Firstly, different interference “typologies” (e.g. Schmidt 1989) will be discussed with
respect to their relevance and practical usability as parameters in empirical SI research
(pilot study carried out at the University of Graz by Schneider, M.A. thesis).
Secondly, a hypothesis that is mentioned by various authors in the context of SI with text
will be tested empirically: It is suggested that due to the double input (visual + auditive),
the danger of interferences might be greater when interpreters use the written
manuscript while interpreting a read-out speech (cf. Daniel Gile in his effort models on SI
with text). A limited number of interference parameters will be applied to a corpus of
interpreted texts in order to find out whether SI with text does indeed result in an
increased occurrence of interferences:
In the case study, 12 professional conference interpreters interpreted 3 read-out
speeches from English into German (their A language) under 3 different working
conditions: with the speaker´s manuscript given to them a week in advance for individual
preparation, with the text given to them just seconds prior to the interpretation , and
without text.
Results will show whether:
- The chosen parameters have proven sensitive enough to show interferences in SI
- Interferences found are more frequent when interpreters work with the written text in
the booth
- The possibility of preparation reduces the danger of interferences when working with
text
- The overall frequency of interferences varies among the subjects of the study
- The occurrence of interferences can be linked to other investigated parameters (e.g.
errors, omissions)
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Finally, the results will serve as a starting point to discuss the possible relevance and
impact – if any – of case studies in SI research on interpreting practice and teaching.
References:
Garzone, Giuliana/Cardinaletti, Anna (eds.) (2004) Lingua, mediazione linguistica e
interferenza. Mailand: Franco Angeli (Lingua, traduzione, didattica)
Kupsch-Losereit, Sigrid (21999) “Interferenzen”, in: Snell-Hornby, Mary et al. (ed.)
Handbuch Translation. Tübingen: Stauffenburg, 167-170
Russo, Mariachiara/Sandrelli, Annalisa (2003) „La direccionalidad en interpretación
simultánea: un estudio sistemático sobre el tratamiento del verbo“, in: Kelly, Dorothy et
al. (eds.) La direccionalidad en traducción e interpretación: perspectivas teóricas,
profesionales y didácticas. Granada: Atrio, 407-425
Schmidt, Heide (1989) „Übersetzungsdidaktik und Interferenz“, in: Schmidt, Heide (ed.)
(1989) Interferenz in der Translation. Leipzig: Verlag Enzyklopädie
(Übersetzungswissenschaftliche Beiträge 12), 29-38
100

Caroline LEHR
Université de Genève
lehrcar3@etu.unige.ch
Papers
Semantic Priming-Effects in Translators
In the context of an interdisciplinary research project between the Translation School of
the University of Geneva and the Neuropsychological Department of the Geneva
University Hospital a psycholinguistic experiment was conducted to test the semantic
priming effect in translators. This effect consists in a more rapid processing of two
semantically related words due to an activation of the same semantic net in the brain and
provides information about the representation of two languages in the mind, their
processing and especially about the question if and where the two languages share
representations.
Semantic priming can be observed for two words of one language but also for words of
different languages. The inter-lingual existence of this effect leads to the assumption that
conceptual information about the meaning of words is stored in a representation shared
by both languages. In experiments conducted before an asymmetric effect was found in
bilinguals: in the inter-lingual L2-condition (language order L1-L2: first and second
language) the effect was more distinctive than in the inter-lingual L1-condition. A
symmetric effect was observed, however, in an experiment with translators and raised the
question if this symmetry can be attributed to the high language proficiency of the
subjects. In the aim to make further presumptions about the symmetric priming effect
and its particular development in translators we conducted an experiment with twenty
translation students from the University of Geneva.
The results of our experiment show a symmetric priming-effect in both inter-lingual
conditions, providing further evidence that the symmetry of the effect reflects a particular
language processing related to the high proficiency of the subjects. Moreover the results
of our experiment, using psycholinguistic experimental methods, indicate further
particular language processing that is automated in translators and gives an insight into
the partial processes that form the whole complex translation process.
101

Chia-hui LIAO
University of Warwick, England, UK
chiahuiliao@yahoo.com.tw
Papers
Classical Chinese Poetry Translation
Problems and Strategies in Translating Wang Wei’s Lu
Zhai
This paper discusses what problems emerge and what priorities translators of different
cultural backgrounds consider while rendering the classical poem Lu Zhai (Deer Grove) by
Wang Wei (701-761), the archetypal landscape poet of the Chinese Tang Dynasty (618-
907). The poet Wang Wei’s status in the West is partly associated with Zen, a branch of
Buddhism. His pastoral poetry, believed to brim with the connotation of Zen, constitutes
imagery of peace and serenity. In the late 1950s, a group of young American literary
men, in search of spiritual freedom, were attracted by the philosophy of Zen for its urge
to be able to adapt oneself to different circumstances. Western philosophies tend to be
logic and organised, whereas Eastern philosophies, like Zen, are inclined to reflect on
matters with their intuition. Western literary men interested in Zen started to explore the
imagery of worldlessness, emptiness and serenity presented in the nature poetry of Wang
Wei.
The translators were asked to complete a ‘Think-Aloud Protocols (TAPs)’ (Toury, 1995 ;
William and Chesterman, 2002). Translations into English done by two groups of the
translators (one Chinese-speaking and one English-speaking) based on the source text
(ST), a transliteration of the ST, and a character-by-character translation of the ST will be
analysed (cf. Weinberger and Paz, Nineteen Ways of Looking at Wang Wei, 1987, pp. 2,
4, 6).
Based on the case-study of TAPs, the following issues will be addressed:
(1) illustration of the translation process,
(2) identification of translation problems, and
(3) analysis and evaluation of factors which may affect translators’ strategic decisions.
The analysis reveals a three-stage process of translation: understanding, synthesis and
evaluation; translation problems relating to comprehension and production; as well as the
influence of the translator’s cultural background, intuition and intratextuality on the choice
of translation strategies. Such examination of the translating process can help us
understand the priorities in decision-making and how translators handle the intercultural
tasks of representing the source culture. Therefore, this pilot study is of great significance
as it shows how the translator’s cultural background has an immediate impact on his
selection of poetic diction, which may produce different incarnations of the original poem.
This leads to questions of a wider scope:
(1) What imagery of the source culture is projected via translation to the target readers?
(2) What is the interaction between the original text and the translated text? In addition,
this pilot study can lead to future research examining the interplay between text and
reader through the aesthetic of reception.
There have been many scholars and/or translators devoting much time and energy to
making a poem ‘survive through the proliferation of translation’ (Chan, 2003: 19). This
paper seeks to provide a fresh perspective on contemporary English poetry and culture
through the introduction of the diverse and rich poetic traditions of classical Chinese
verse. The poetry and culture of the English speaking world, in turn, will also influence
translated poems in a variety of aspects. Although this case study focuses on translation
into English, the issues discussed apply to the translation from the relatively distant
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Papers
Chinese language and culture into any European language and general conclusions can be
drawn.
Chan, Leo Tak-hung, ed. (2003). One into Many: Translation and the Dissemination of
Classical Chinese Literature. Amsterdam: Rodopi.
Toury, Gideon. (1995). Descriptive Translation Studies and Beyond. Amsterdam ;
Philadelphia: John Benjamins
Weinberger, Eliot and Paz, Octavio, eds. (1987). Nineteen Ways of Looking At Wang Wei.
N.Y.: Moyer Bell.
William, Jenny and Chesterman, Andrew. (2002). The Map: A Beginner’s Guide to Doing
Research in Translation Studies. Manchester: St Jerome Publishing.
103

David LIMON
University of Ljubljana
limon@siol.net
Papers
Translators as Cultural Mediators – Goal or Reality?
It has become a commonplace within Translation Studies to describe translators as
"cultural mediators", but to what extent does translation practice actually conform to the
cultural mediation model? How much of the translation work carried out in any particular
cultural environment is concerned with cultural adaptation or approximation rather than a
less ambitious linguistic transfer? Do most working translators see themselves as cultural
mediators and are they viewed as such by those who employ or commission them? Does
the relative status of the translator within a particular society make it more or less likely
that he or she is going to function as a genuine cultural mediator or is this more
dependent on institutional attitudes to translation or even to the type of translation being
carried out? Is it usual for the exact role of the translator to be adequately specified in the
translation brief or is that role something that happens by default, in accordance with the
specific circumstances of the particular translation project or task?
An attempt will be made to answer these questions, or at the very least to indicate how
answers these questions might be found, in relation to Slovenia – a relatively new
country, as well as a recent EU member, and the home to a "less widely used" language
spoken by only about 2 million people, where most translation takes place from or into
English. Most of the translation carried out between Slovene and English is non-literary,
mainly in the political and economic spheres, and many of the genres now being dealt
with are new to the Slovene environment. In order to limit the scale of our discussion a
particular functional type of text will be considered, i.e. promotional texts, and within this
category the two broad sub-types of tourism texts focusing on cultural heritage and
company web sites.
The analysis will be further limited to the discussion of translation from Slovene into
English, which for a range of reasons is largely carried out by translators working away
from their mother tongue. Within this context, we shall discuss to what extent translators
can be seen to be striving for functional equivalence, conveying both what is made
explicit and what is implied in the text to an extent judged to be relevant for the target
audience. Moreover, we shall try to identify how much use the translator makes, in
manipulating the source text, of a "cultural filter" (House 2001) that takes into account
shared conventions of communication, preferred rhetorical styles, expectation norms and
so on. Where genuine cultural mediation is taking place one would expect to find more
translation shifts occurring than in a less interventionist linguistic transfer. More
specifically, such translations would be marked by the presence of explicitation, in
particular of aspects of the source culture that are likely to be unfamiliar to target readers
(with translation from English, the default assumption is often that explicitation is not
required due to the new global role of the language and its apparent "universality"): by
analysing a range of texts we shall identify how much explicitation is actually taking place.
This results of this analysis will be compared with the results of earlier research into the
work of EU translators (Limon 2004) that identified a common preference for a strategy
based on "prudence" and "capitulation" rather than "risk-taking" and "persistence" (cf.
Campbell 1998). The degree of mediation (Hatim and Mason 1997), i.e. the extent to
which translators intervene in the transfer process, is very low with regard to EU texts,
the majority have which have a legal or legislative function: does this also apply to
translations of other texts, such as those written for promotional purposes?
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Papers
We shall also briefly consider the relevance of the current status of translators in Slovenia
– based largely on a research project carried out in 2005 among 87 translators into their
educational profile, social and legal status, training and work experience, and views on
translation – in order to decide whether this might influence the kind of translation
strategy they use.
In particular, we ask whether there are pressures on translators to conform to prevailing
norms (i.e. to follow an ethics of sameness, cf. Venuti 1998) and adopt a low-mediation
approach, as well as a lack of interaction between them and others in the communicative
process, leading to a failure to consider the generic or textual appropriateness of SL texts
written specifically for translation. Due to processes of internationalisation and European
integration, many Central and Eastern European countries such as Slovenia are having to
accommodate a broad range of new textual genres that are often introduced via
translation. The special factors relating to the dominance of Anglo-Saxon cultural values
within many fields of communication and the growing status of English as a lingua franca,
should not be overlooked here – if nothing else, they raise difficult questions of cultural
hegemony and the desirability of conforming to a increasingly globalised model. Thus we
shall raise the issue of how far translators should go in emulating an Anglo-Saxon model
when translating into English. Finally, in answer to the question posed by the title: we can
hypothesise that cultural mediation is in most instances, at least in the environment
examined, still a goal rather than a reality – much still needs to be done to raise the
status of translators, especially those involved in non-literary translation, so that they are
in a better position to take on the mantle of experts in cultural mediation. Part of the
solution undoubtedly lies in the kind of translator education currently being implemented
in Slovenia as well as elsewhere in Europe.
105

Aage LIND
Papers
Norwegian School of Economics and Business Administration (NHH)
age.lind@nhh.no
Avoiding the Minefields
On the Translation of Legal Terminology
The transposition of legal terminology is perhaps one of the most difficult areas of
translation, since there will rarely be complete or direct equivalence between concepts in
two languages. A number of factors such as statutory law, common law, legal precedent
and consuetude, in addition to court practice and procedure, contribute to setting them
apart. Even in countries where the legal traditions and the language are the same, like
England and Australia, we find considerable differences also in respect of terminology and
the legal interpretation of apparently identical concepts. These dissimilarities also exist
between English and Scottish (and to a lesser extent Northern Irish) law, especially
common law, although much modern statutory law is passed (with minor, necessary
variations) for the whole of the UK. This also applies to the USA, where each state
constitutes a separate jurisdiction with its own system of law, in addition to the federal
judicial system, and there may be considerable disparities in legal terminology and legal
practice between states. There is, for instance, no common American definition of
concepts like felony or misdemeanor. It is thus hardly surprising that a number of terms
have no equivalents in another language, and will have to be "constructed".
As a linguist and translator of legal material, as well as an author of several dictionaries
on legal terminology, I shall in this paper look at some of the lexicographic and
lexicological – as well as translational – problems involved, and by drawing comparisons
between English (to some extent also American) and Norwegian terminology, indicate
ways in which to try and solve these problems. The paper will also look at ways in which
a dictionary may assist the user in navigating through the maze of legal concepts to find
the information he or she seeks, in terms of semantic information, conceptual
discrimination, collocations, definitions, factual (enclyclopedic) and syntactical information,
equivalence, register, etc. This paper will also look at the problems involving terminology
that does not have any (acceptable) equivalents in the target language, and by drawing
on examples from my dictionary, discuss the principles involved in the “construction” of
terms. Should one, for instance, adopt partly equivalent terms in the target language that
would be readily identifiable or recognisable, if not strictly speaking "correct"? Or should
one "coin" new terminology that would not convey any unwanted source language
connotations, at the possible expense of transparency?
The paper will also try and address the problem of what, in a technical sense, constitutes
a legal term, to be included in a bilingual dictionary of law, and what would be regarded
as a non-technical word/term, and perhaps better excluded.
What about register? How do you treat terms which are not, strictly speaking, legal
concepts as such, but which in everyday, non-technical or colloquial usage cover the
same reality as legally defined ’terms of art’, frequently used by laymen as well as legal
professionals? The Norwegian concept, "blotter", may, for instance, variously be called
"exhibitionist" by the medical profession, "flasher" by most people, including legal
professionals, whereas the indictment may refer to "(the person) charged with the
offence of indecent exposure". The paper will also examine the concept of collocations
and the use of illustrative, explanatory sentences or definitions, which may be variously
considered an indispensable guide and assistance to the dictionary user, or perhaps a
rather unnecessary addition?
106

Papers
How do you treat changes in target-language terminology? In English law a number of
terms (eg misdemeanour, felony, receiving stolen goods, etc have been removed as
statutory concepts or replaced by other terms. I have chosen to include the terms, not
only because they are still used in US law, for instance, but also because they are part of
the general body of language. They will, moreover, be met in past law reports, in prior
cases or legal decisions used as precedent or authority for cases under consideration
today, etc.
107

Yvonne LINDQVIST
Stockholm University
yvonne.lindqvist@tolk.su.se
Papers
Metatranslation in Translation
A Comparison of Metatextual Elements in the
Swedish, English and French translations of the
Spanish novel La caverna de las ideas by José Calros
Somoza
The paper examines three translations of the Spanish novel La caverna de las ideas by
José Carlos Somoza (2000), namely the Swedish, English and French translations
performed by Karin Sjöstrand (2004), Sonia Soto (2002) and Marianne Millon (2003)
respectively. The novel La caverna de las ideas is particularly interesting for Translation
Studies scholars since a fictive translator is one of the main characters in the plot of the
novel. The novel is in fact a meta-translation, i.e. a translated text commenting on its own
genesis. The multi layer narrative of the novel – on the one hand the plot of the ancient
Greek manuscript the translator is working on, and on the other hand the alternative plot
taking place in the footnotes – are constantly interplaying and eventually dissolved in the
novel leaving the reader somehow surprised. The fictional meta textual elements in the
novel of the three translations – i.e. the way the fictional translator communicates with
the reader by literally occupying the footnote space of the real translator (as an
integrated part of the fiction ) – are in a first step compared to the source text and then
eventually to each other in order to discover differences in translation solutions.
The study presented draw on the polysystem theory approach (Even-Zohar 1990, Toury
1996 & 1998) and the cultural sociology of Pierre Bourdieu (Bourdieu 1986, Gouvanic
2002 & 2005) in forwarding the hypotheses that the metatextual elements in the novel
will be translated in different ways depending on the overall makeup of the cultural
system within which the translators perform their task. The Swedish, the British and the
French cultural systems differing substantially with reference to their overall translation
policy, and hence to the position of translated literature within those cultures (cf. Venuti
1996). The crucial importance of the cultural environment to translators might in fact
provide a possible explanation and a deeper insight into understanding the translator’s
habitus, i.e. the structuring and structured structures by which the translator understand
and act in the socio-cultural environment (Bourdieu 1992:51, Simeoni 1998, Sela-Sheffy
2005) particularly on the literary translation field in question – the translator habitus
presenting a fundamental clue to translation behaviour.
108

Papers
LOUPAKI, Elpida
Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
eloupaki@frl.auth.gr
News Translation
Investigating Translator’s Strategies in Rendering
Ideological Conflict
The intensified circulation of human, cultural and economic capital along with the
expansion of digital technologies have resulted in a new, globalized era in mass
communication. Distances have diminished, as the information is transmitted all over the
planet almost instantly, transforming local news into global. In this multicultural
environment, the role of translation in moving beyond linguistic boundaries is crucial,
although it is not always acknowledged as so. For instance, in Greece different
newspapers regularly publish translated articles taken from the French, German or British
press, without however indicating that these articles constitute a translation neither
mentioning the name of the translator. Despite the fact that the significance of news
translation has lately been underlined by Translation Studies scholars, such as Gunilla
Anderman (2004), Michael Cronin (2005) and Christina Schaeffner (2005), in the context
of an AHRB funded research project entitled “Translation in Global News”, I believe that
this kind of translation and its impact on the formation of public opinion invites further
discussion.
The aim of this paper is to examine the strategies used by the translator when he/ she
deals with ideological conflict in the source text. The word “conflict” is here used as
described by Mona Baker (2006:1): “a state of hostility between groups of people, usually
belonging to different races, religions or nation states”. In this definition conflict has a
clear political and ideological connotation. Some of the questions that this paper will try to
answer are the following:
- Could the translator always reproduce the conflict embedded in the original?
- If not, which are the factors influencing his/ her translational choices?
- Which are the techniques the translator uses in order to recreate or not the
conflict found at the original?
The answers to these questions will be based on the study of a selection of articles
originally written in English and their translations into Greek found in newspapers of
different political orientation.
Bibliographical References
- ANDERMAN, Gunilla. 2004. Reflections of the day. In the Programme of the
International Symposium: “The Language of Global News”.
http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/ctccs/research/tgn/events/2004/pro/
- BAKER, Mona. 2006. Translation and Conflict. A Narrative Account. London/ New York:
Routledge.
- CRONIN, Michael. 2005. “Burning the House Down: Translation in a Global Setting”. In
Susan Bssnett (ed). Language and Intercultural Communication, 5:2, 108-119.
- SCHAEFFNER, Christina. 2005. “Bringing a German Voice to English-speaking Readers:
Spiegel International”. In Susan Bassnett (ed). Language and Intercultural
Communication, 5:2, 154-167.
109

Josep MARCO
Universitat Jaume I (Castellón, Spain)
jmarco@trad.uji.es
Papers
The Case for Corpus-Based Translation Studies
With Special Reference to the Translation of
Phraseology
Is it really necessary to argue the case for Corpus-based Translation Studies (CBTS, from
now on)? CBTS, as a distinct approach, has been around for over a decade now. It was
launched by a series of seminal articles by Mona Baker which in many respects have
guided its course up to the present. However, the initial seed has germinated into a
variety of interests, or research lines, not at all incompatible with each other but with
quite distinctive flavours.
1. What might be referred to as the canonical line is the one initiated by Baker
herself, which focuses on the main features of translated language – vis-à-vis nontranslated
language. It is strongly indebted to Descriptive Translation Studies. Source
texts do not come into the picture at all, research is typically based on comparable
corpora and what scholars ultimately search for is translation universals.
2. But there alternative lines. Bernardini (2005), for instance, argues that corpusbased
translation research has been biased in favour of comparable corpora and the
balance needs to be redressed. That kind of research has thrown light on a number of
interesting aspects of translation behaviour, but “it is the very nature of translation as a
mediated communicative event (Baker 1993) that makes an exclusively target-oriented
approach to translation analysis methodologically questionable” (Bernardini 2005).
It is argued that parallel and reference corpora need to be used to complement the data
yielded by comparable corpora (as in Teich 2003). All these different growths are well
documented in Laviosa (2002) and Olohan (2004). In fact, the existence of such
textbooks – it might be argued – bears witness to the fact that CBTS is well established as
a discernible approach within our discipline. However, not enough attention has been paid
to the fact that corpora and corpus analysis tools represent a revolutionary step, a
qualitative leap as far as research methods are concerned. Translation Studies research –
just like research in many other language-centred disciplines – used to be anecdotic until
very recently, and remains so in many cases. The reason for this lies in that the amount
of data an individual scholar, or even a research group, could handle was very limited
and, as a result, they felt obliged to end many of their scholarly contributions on an
apologetic note, along these familiar lines: our conclusions are such and such, but further
research should be carried out in order for them to be generalizable. Now that difficulty is
partly overcome, as the results yielded by such large amounts of data as corpus-based
translation scholars are often able to handle have more general validity. In fact, the
amount of data that can be analysed by electronic means is virtually limitless. That does
not mean that the output of such research is the truth, in any philosophical sense, but it
is certainly less (fatally) limited than the output of manual analysis.
The kind of analysis performed by the computer is not comparable, of course, to human
analysis, in terms of quality; but even so, if selectively applied, automated or semiautomated
analysis can throw light on new areas of research by virtue of its sheer bulk.
All this can be illustrated by reference to the pervasive phenomenon of phraseology,
which, under such various terminological guises as idioms, fixed expressions, clichés, etc.,
has drawn translation scholars’ attention for several decades now.
110

Papers
Vinay and Darbelnet, for instance, illustrate the technical procedure they call equivalence
by reference to the translation of phraseological units. And phraseological units –
including collocations – are part and parcel of such textually oriented translation works as
Baker (1992) and Neubert and Shreve (1992). More recently, they have been presented
(Molina 2001) as items at the interface between language and culture.
Only in the Spanish context several monographs (e.g. Corpas 2000; Van Lawick 2006)
have broached the subject of the translation of phraseology. All this bears witness to the
interest aroused by the subject; but the studies mentioned are seldom empirical, and
when they are, they move within the narrow limits of manual analysis. In order to show
that CBTS matters – in general and as applied to the translation of phraseology – this
paper focuses on the study of a number of phraseological units extracted from the
English-Catalan section of COVALT (Valencian Corpus of Translated Literature), a
multilingual corpus – still under construction – made up of the translations into Catalan of
narrative works originally written in English, French and German published in the
autonomous region of Valencia from 1990 to 2000. The English-Catalan sub-corpus
currently includes 30 pairs of source text + target text which amount to 1,641,251 words
(829,503 English, 811,748 Catalan). Corpus analysis is carried out by means of
AlfraCOVALT, a bilingual concordancing programme developed within the COVALT
research group by Josep Guzman (see Guzman, forthcoming). The overall study of
phraseology in COVALT is still in progress, but it has already thrown the following aspects
into relief: a) the controversial nature of the sameness / difference distinction as regards
translation solutions to the problem of phraseology;
b) the key role of expressivity as a factor guiding translation solutions;
c) the role played by isomorphism and opacity as elements conditioning satisfactory
or even acceptable solutions. The results yielded by our study are expected to bear
implications for knowledge proper as well as for translator training.
111

Cristina MARINETTI
University of Warwick
c.marinetti@warwick.ac.uk
Papers
Translation Studies and the Theatre
Dialogue or Monologue?
The concept of translation in its broadest sense of cross-cultural communication is at the
forefront of contemporary theatre practice. From the arts councils to the director and the
actor, the interest in the encounter between cultures, languages and beliefs permeates
European theatre in the 21st century. Theatre festivals become every year more
international, theatre companies and their ethos are increasingly multicultural and the
interest in exploring cultural ‘otherness’ is a driving force in the development of new
writing for the stage. Doing theatre on the European stage today, means getting involved
in an act of translation. And yet the theatre is the place where the practice of translation,
in its narrow sense of transferring a text from source to target language, is at its most
invisible. In Britain, where the distinction between translation as a craft and translation as
an art is still widely accepted by the non-specialist, the knowledge of the source language
is optional for a theatre translator. Most theatre translators (often called adaptors) work
from existing translations or from ‘literal’ translations produced for the occasion by
bilingual translators whose work is poorly paid and virtually unrecognised.
What I intend to argue in this paper is that beyond the invisibility of the theatre translator
emerges a more complex picture of the relationship between translation studies and the
theatre. By analysing the writing of a selection of translation scholars who have looked at
translation and the theatre (Bassnett, Anderman, Aaltonen) I will explore the way in
which these writers position their work in relation to affiliated disciplines (theatre studies,
performance studies, cultural studies and theatre semiotics) and consider the
consequences that this positioning has had on the exchange of ideas between these
fields. I will then extend the analysis to writing by theatre translators and consider what
impact (if any) translation studies has had on the practice of theatre translation and on
the status and function of the translator in the theatre. I will then suggest that the
relationship between translation scholars and the theatre is characterised by a one-way
dialogue. This one-directional communication occurs both at the level of the relationship
between translation scholars and practitioners and in terms of the impact of translation
studies research on related fields.
Translation studies’ long and historical involvement with debates around plurality, crosscultural
communication and the exploration of cultural otherness make it a discipline that
is perfectly positioned to contribute to the investigation of contemporary theatre practice.
If the function of a theory of translation is, as Rosmary Arrojo and Andrew Chesterman
suggest, ‘to empower translators-to-be and raise their conscience as writers concerning
the responsibility they will face in the seminal role they will play in the establishment of all
sorts of relationships between cultures’ (Chesterman and Arrojo 2000: 159), then the
discipline of translation studies should encourage work aimed at exporting its expertise
and make it accessible, relevant and conversant with the concerns of related disciplines
and those of theatre practitioners.
Chesterman, A. & Arrojo, R. (2000) 'Shared Ground in Translation Studies'. Target 12 (1),
151-160.
112

Iwona MAZUR
Papers
Department of Translation Studies, School of English, Adam Mickiewicz University, Poland
iwona.paskal@interia.pl
Translating Culture-Bound Texts
Can Theory Help Practice?
Despite the increasing globalization and the associated cultural homogenization (e.g.
Giddens 1990, Ritzer 1993), most of the cultures around the world continue to remain
distinct (Barber 1992, Robertson 1994). In this interconnected world the translator plays
an increasingly important role, not just as an interlingual, but also, if not primarily, as an
intercultural mediator (e.g. Katan 1999). Culture-bound texts can be a great challenge
even to professional translators, as they require profound knowledge of the two cultures
in question. But even such good knowledge does not guarantee a successful translation,
as cultural concepts usually do not overlap and ready-made equivalents are few and far
between. This is where translation theory could possibly come to the rescue. Starting
from general translation strategies along the domestication-foreignization continuum (e.g.
Venuti 1995), through translation procedures along the exoticism-assimilation spectrum
(e.g. Newmark 1988, Ivir 1997, Malone 1988, Aixela 1996), the translator has a range of
useful tools at their disposal that, in theory, should help them deal with culture-specific
items. In the paper the author sets out to determine whether the theory does in fact
translate into practice.
For that purpose a study has been conducted at the School of English, Adam Mickiewicz
University, involving eight beginner translation and interpretation students, with no
background in translation theory whatsoever. The students were asked to translate a
culture-bound text, with no further instructions given. Then, they were asked to translate
the same text again, but this time the assignment was preceded by a detailed and
extensive discussion of the major theoretical approaches to translating texts in general
and culture-bound texts in particular. The former approaches included, for example,
Reiss’s text typology (1977/1989), the Skopos theory (Reiss and Vermeer 1984) and Holz-
Mänttäri’s theory of translational action (1984), whereas the latter ones involved, for
example, the above mentioned domestication vs. foreignization approach, as well as other
similar dichotomies, e.g. covert vs. overt translation (‘cultural filter’) (House 1977, 1997),
dynamic vs. formal equivalence (Nida 1964), or instrumental vs. documentary translation
(Nord 1997). Additionally, the students were presented with a detailed breakdown of the
major translation procedures along the exoticism-assimilation spectrum (e.g. importation,
calque, extra information, normalization, compensation, substitution), along with the
relevant examples. Before translating the culture-bound text for the second time, the
students were also given detailed instructions as regards the skopos of the text, its
commissioner, target audience, etc.
The primary aim of the study was to test, based on selected culture-specific items,
whether and to what extent in the second translation the students’ solutions have been
affected by the relevant theoretical considerations. The results, coupled with the students’
introspective comments, help determine whether more emphasis should be placed on
teaching theory in practical translation courses and whether and how the knowledge of
such theory can add value to translators’ work.
113

Reine MEYLAERTS
KU Leuven
reine.meylaerts@arts.kuleuven.be
Papers
The Impact of Translation Policies on Minorities
The Struggle for ‘Who Is In’ and ‘Who Is Out’
Translation has a strategic role in the (social, political, cultural, technological) planning
and organization of multilingual societies. Among other things, it conditions and regulates
the presence of the minority languages in the public sphere. Although there is an
underlying political dimension to all translations, a dimension that is heightened in
contemporary multilingual, globalized contexts which are by definition hierarchical,
research on language policies in multilingual societies remains surprisingly silent about the
key role of translation. Translation is inherently part of language ideological battles and
research on (the historiography of) translation policies and strategies forms an essential
contribution to the understanding of language policies, of language ideologies and their
link with ‘nations’, minorities, migration, globalisation etc. Not only which language(s)
can/cannot/must/ be used, but also, and necessarily, what can/cannot/must be translated
by whom and how in a certain geo-temporal, institutional framework: these matters are
never left to chance, but form part of multilingual societies’ fundamental legal options and
regulations. Therefore, whoever wants to understand multilingual societies (and are there
any other?) has to have insight in the history and dynamics of their language and
translation policies, as Siamese twins allied with each other. Struggles on language and
translation policies are settled in an intricate web of institutional settings and legal
dispositions, of competing discursive practices, of various and variable interiorizations of
and resistances to these institutional and discursive structures by the actors involved. All
these parameters evolve by their own rhythm, within dynamic and complex power
relations. However, within this intriguing network of parameters, one thing seems
undeniable. If, as often is the case in multilingual societies, socio-political power is linked
to language domination of one group over the other(s), among other things by
institutional monolingualism, then translation forms an integral part of multilingual
societies’ ideological debates. This is no innocent conclusion: it means that an essential
part of our societies’ history remains to be discovered and (re)written. The paper will try
to illustrate these issues with examples from past and present American (e.g. ‘English
only’) and European language and translation policies.
114

Tamara MIKOLIČ JUŽNIČ
Papers
Dept. of Translation, Faculty of Arts, University of Ljubljana, Slovenia
tamara.mikolic@guest.arnes.si
Towards Better Italian-to-Slovene Translations
Nominalization Issues
Presently, virtually no didactic materials are available for Slovene-to-Italian or Italian-to-
Slovene translation, which means that when educating future translators, we have to rely
only on our personal experience as translators, and of course this is not an ideal solution.
Some interesting studies regarding translation between Slovene and Italian have been
carried out recently (e.g. a number of works by Martina Ožbot), but they are mostly
restricted to particular texts or kinds of texts and normally do not deal with more general,
recurring translations problems. Such studies can therefore hardly be presented to
translation students as examples or study material.
We believe that it would be of great help if researchers provided studies on more general
issues in Italian-to-Slovene and Slovene-to-Italian translation. Practicing translators are
often able to pinpoint particular problems but rarely take the time to locate principles and
propose consistent solutions. Their knowledge, which may indeed be considerable,
remains thus useless to young aspiring translators. With the intent of offering consistent
solutions, or at least useful guidelines, for solving one particular translation problem, a
study of Italian nominalization and its translation equivalents in Slovene was undertaken.
It has been noted several times (cf. for example Klinar, S. 1996. »Samostalniškost
angleščine v primeri s slovenščino«. In Klinar, S. (ed.), K tehniki prevajanja iz slovenščine
v angleščino. Radovljica: Didakta; and also Plemenitaš, K. 2004. Posamostaljenja v
angleščini in slovenščini na primeru dveh besedilnih vrst: Doctoral dissertation. Ljubljana:
Faculty of Arts.) that the Slovene language seems to be rather more “verb-oriented” in
comparison with other languages such as English or, we might add, Italian. In other
words, grammatical metaphors of the ideational type, as defined by Halliday and
Matthiessen (2004. An Introduction to Functional Grammar. Third Edition. London:
Arnold; pp. 636-658), seem to be more frequent in certain languages than in others.
This study concentrates on Italian-to-Slovene translations: with the use of Italian (La
Repubblica Corpus, CORIS/CODIS) and Slovene corpora (FIDA, Naša Beseda), and
especially with the help of a collection of parallel Italian-to-Slovene translations
(approximately 1 million words per each side of roughly 50% fiction and 50% non-fiction
texts), we have analysed the frequency of nominalizations in both languages and looked
for possible translations of nominalized processes. Apart from the most expected version
with a congruent translation (i.e. using a verb to realize a process) of a metaphorically
worded process in Italian, there are several other possibilities that seem to occur
regularly, such as, for instance, adjectival or adverbial metaphorical realizations. Other
issues that are taken into account are the influence of the genre of the text, the
immediate context of a chosen nominalization, and the effect this context has on the
realization found in the Slovene translation. Because of its structure, the Italian-Slovene
parallel corpus allows us to observe the differences between the occurrence of
nominalization in fiction (novels and short stories) and in non-fiction (academic prose,
scientific texts etc.) and verify the validity of the notions proposed by Halliday and Martin
(1993, Writing Science. Literacy and Discursive Power. Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh
Press) for English, according to which grammatical metaphors of the nominalizing kind
were used for the first time to reach a certain communicative effect in scientific writing,
and from there they spread into other types of texts. We believe that a very similar
development took place in Italian, while in Slovene the process is yet to develop its full
potential.
115

Natasa MILIVOJEVIC
116
Papers
University of Novi Sad, Faculty of Philosophy, Department of English
zinger@ns.sbb.co.yu
On Interpreting and Translating Contemporary
Linguistic Terminology from English into Serbian
Should We ‘Internationalize’, Transliterate or
Translate?
It is a well established fact in translation studies that words carry contexts with them.
Furthermore, a good translation should strive not only at transferring knowledge across
cultures, but also at conveying its original cultural (at times also linguistic) background.
This paper aims at explaining and exemplifying one instance of such cross-cultural
sharing, namely the case of translating linguistic terminology. The issue is approached
from the viewpoint of translating for linguistic purposes where various translation
techniques (borrowing, reformulation, adaptation, compensation, etc.) are employed to
both ensure the accuracy of the shared linguistic facts as well as to preserve the features
of the target language academic discourse.
Translation techniques within the scope of TS for English and Serbian have so far been
taken up by Popović,1980; Hlebec,1989; Stojnić,1989; Sibinović,1983,1990; Bell,1991;
Jovanović,1991; Newmark,1991; Baker,1992; Alvarez,1996, Fawcett 1997, and others.
This may, at first glance, seem like an easy task since scientific vocabulary is in general
supposed to be accurate, precise and clear-cut. The contextual setting for the life of such
words is academic discourse which is, by definition, formal and exact, therefore also
lacking colloquialisms, wordplay or figures of speech. Yet, these characteristics frequently
do not prevail in real life of science, especially in humanities and some social sciences
where ‘the main aim of writing may not be parsimony and clarity, but richness and
nuance.’ (Eriksen 2005).
When it comes to contemporary linguistic models and frameworks (e.g. generative
grammar, cognitive linguistics, computational semantics, functional discourse grammar,
etc.), most of the terminology and literature, not surprisingly, is in English. What is more,
these linguistic texts abound in polysemies, linguistic metaphors even puns which are
frequently fully non-transparent to a non-English speaking person. Certain English
linguistic concepts may sound too informal or imprecise when translated, their
associations may be off in an academic discussion conducted in Serbian, while it may be
at the same time impossible to simply borrow them or translate them literally. On top of
that, while English and Serbian academic discourse do in some aspects ‘coexist
peacefully’, the evident dominance of the former shapes and conditions all the newly
added dimensions of the latter.
Translating contemporary linguistic literature therefore means building a local context for
the target language which is a gradual ‘step by step process, since prior knowledge
cannot be taken for granted.’ (Eriksen 2005). So the translator is faced with the task of
multi-layered complexity: not only should he ensure the information exchange, but he
should also create a brand new academic context to embed this information into (i.e.
linguistic facts, frameworks, tools and terminology) taking into account the specific
requirements of the language specific discourse, while also managing to preserve what is
‘local’ in terms of a culture-based academic setting.
The approach taken up in the paper is to go about such problematic situations by
reformulating, adapting and compensating, rather than by simply borrowing and
internationalizing. This strategy should result in bridging the existing lexical gaps and
transferring ‘incompatible worldviews across the language divide’ (Bennet 2006).

Papers
Ideally, such approach should also ensure a significant degree of autonomy for the
academic discourse of the target language, which may in turn contribute to sustaining the
worldwide plurality of linguistic academic discourse. The results presented were obtained
through the research originally conducted in 2005 at the English Department (Faculty of
Philosophy), in Novi Sad, within the scope of the project no 1386 of The Ministry of
Science and Technology of Serbia, entitled ‘Interpreting Contemporary Linguistic
Terminology and Transferring it into Serbian’. The corpus of 250 English and Serbian
equivalent linguistics terms used for the analysis initially represented an appendix to the
MA thesis of the author of this paper, entitled ‘Predicate Transfer in English and Serbian –
A Generative Approach’, which was defended in December 2005. Keywords: linguistic
terminology, translation techniques, academic discourse, linguistic metaphor
117

John MILTON
Universidade de São Paulo
jmilton60@yahoo.com
Papers
The Link between Economic Policy and the Publication
of Translated Works
A Case Study
Universidade de São Paulo This paper will examine the importance of economic factors in
the production of translated works in Brazil, concentrating on the period from 1930 to
1945 but also making reference to the 1945 to 1950 and the period following the military
coup of 1954. This is an area which has been almost totally ignored by scholars in the
area of Translation Studies. In his Introduction to Sociocultural Aspects of Translating and
Interpreting (ed. Pym et alli. 2006), Anthony Pym laments the lack of studies in this area:
“It is surprising, in this respect, to see how rarely economic factors are cited in our
studies […]” (ed. Pym et alli. 2006: 12). A number of the papers in the volume
tangentially mention economic factors but fail to develop this point.
This study will initially pay close attention to tariff barrier in the 1930 to 1945 period and
propose that high tariff barriers in a developing economy, such as that of Brazil in this
period, will lead to industrial growth in general, of which publishing is part, and within
publishing translations of classic and popular works will normally be a safe bet for
publishing companies which are starting out and which do not have huge financial
backing. Added to this, lax copyright procedures and censorship of domestic material also
pushed publishers towards concentrating on translations. Indeed, due to the enormous
translation activity, in this period has been called the “Golden Age” of translation in Brazil.
I also look at other periods of considerable growth in the Brazilian economy, firstly, the
“developmentalist” period of President Juscelino Kubitschek (1956-1961), whose
programme of rapid industrialization and construction of infrastructure resulted in
enormous growth in the publication of technical works, many of which were translations.
In this period US-sponsored translations became increasingly important, and after the
1964 military coup the USAiD programme supplied texts, translators and finance for a
large number of technical works, especially in the areas of engineering, medicine,
business and economics. Indeed, this programme was important both as a stimulus to the
Brazilian publishing and translation market, but also to win the “hearts and minds” of
educated Brazilians and instill the “American way of thinking” in the Brazilian middleclasses.
And although in this period the press was censored after the 1964 coup, very
severely in the 1969-1973 period, and books on the USSR or socialist themes could not be
published, it was a period during which the publishing industry developed at a rapid rate,
experiencing its own “miracle”.
In 1960 0.5 books per inhabitant were published; and in 1980 this figure had risen to two
books per inhabitant, a 400% growth in the space of 20 years, a rate higher than that of
the rest of the economy, which tripled in size. We can thus see the link between economic
and political factors and I attempt to extend Toury’s concept of norms to economic
factors. And following Even-Zohar, (2000), we can see that translations helped to
maintain the pro-American position of the Brazilian government in this period. For Even-
Zohar, translations generally occupy a conservative position in the literary system,
though, interestingly, in addition the enormous number of translations of popular and
technical works, protesters against the Brazil of the early 1970s, unable to voice their
protest, resorted to translating the Beat poets.
118

Papers
References:
Even-Zohar, Itamar (2000). “The Position of Translated Literature within the Literary
Polysystem”, in Venuti, Lawrence, The Translation Studies Reader. London: Routledge.
192-197.
eds. Pym, Anthony, Miriam Schlesinger and Zuzana Jettmarová (2006). Sociocultural
Aspects of Translating and Interpreting. Amsterdam: John Benjamins
119

Papers
Anthony MITZEL, *Michela GIORGIO-MARRANO, **Linda ROSSATO
anthony.mitzel@gmail.com
*University of Modena and Reggio Emilia
michela.giorgio@unibo.it
**University of Naples Federico II
lrossato@sslmit.unibo.it
Italian, Short, Sweet and Dubbed
A Relevant Experiment in Perception
The present paper sets out to report the results of a large-scale empirical study aimed at
assessing the audience perception of two Italian short films (Bbobbolone, Daniele
Cascella, IT 2002 and Tutto Brilla, Massimo Cappelli, IT 2005) dubbed into English for the
Anglo-American market. The study is based on the project “Italian, Short, Sweet &
Dubbed”, which was recently presented at the 63rd Venice Film Festival under the
auspices of AIDAC (The Italian Association of Dubbing Script Writers), the Universities of
Bologna, Trieste (Italy) and Durham (UK), SIAE (Italian Association of Authors and
Publishers), Voci nell’Ombra (a yearly dubbing festival), SAI (Italian Actors’ Union) and
aSinc, an online journal on dubbing policy and critique. Based on the premise that
contemporary Italian cinema has so far been unable to find an audience outside national
borders, the project aims at promoting the use of good-quality dubbing as a means to
improve the international circulation of Italian audiovisual products. In particular, the
proponents of the project aim to achieve circulation in Anglophone countries in which,
traditionally and for a number of different reasons, foreign cinema is usually subtitled.
This, in turn, usually leads to foreign films being considered as niche products that do not
enjoy box-office success or even exposure to viewers outside the context of film festivals.
The empirical study presented here derives from the assumption that audience enjoyment
and appreciation of films and other products dubbed into English could be considerably
facilitated by this specific form of audiovisual translation. Our ongoing research has
gathered data from native English speakers in the USA and the UK by means of a purpose
built online questionnaire. Respondents are being asked to view the two short films
mentioned above and answer the relative questions concerning both specific aspects of
the translation/adaptation into English and more general issues on dubbing as a form of
audiovisual translation. Typical questions concern for instance the appreciation of specific
examples of humour, the rendering of linguistic variation and of references to the Italian
lingua-cultural context, in an attempt to assess the efficacy of the strategies used
(Antonini et al. 2003; Antonini and Chiaro, 2005; Bucaria 2006). Also, more general
questions are concerned with the viewers’ attitude towards watching dubbed foreign films
and with their acceptance levels of this form of audiovisual translation. The answers will
be compared with those of a control group of Italian viewers who will have watched the
two films in Italian. The collected data will be statistically analyzed and variables such as
age, sex, level of education, and socioeconomic background will be taken into
consideration.
The results of the study will show the significance of Translation Studies from at least two
points of view. On the one hand, the survey will contribute to shed light on the possibility
to export contemporary Italian culture via film translation and adaptation and on the most
efficient strategies to do so. From a more commercial, but nonetheless essential,
perspective, a survey on the appreciation of dubbed products in countries where dubbing
is not the preferred form of audiovisual translation will show the economic viability of the
undertaking and possibly encourage commissioners to invest in an untapped market.
120

Papers
References:
Antonini, R., Bucaria, C. and Senzani, A. (2003). “It’s a Priest’s Thing, You Wouldn’t
Understand: Father Ted Goes to Italy” Antares 6: 26-30.
Antonini, R. and Chiaro, D. (2005). “The Quality of Dubbed Television Programmes in
Italy: the experimental design of an empirical study”. Cross-Cultural Encounters: Linguistic
Perspectives, M. Bondi and N. Maxwell (eds.). 33-44. Rome: Officina Edizioni.
Bucaria, C. (2006). “The Perception of Humour in Dubbing vs. Subtitling: The Case of Six
Feet Under” ESP Across Cultures 2: 36-48.
121

Brian MOSSOP
York University
brmossop@yorku.ca
Papers
Use and Non-Use of Translations by Choral Singers
and Concert-Goers
In the English-speaking world, the choral classics of Bach, Mozart etc. are almost always
performed in Latin or German, rather than in English translation, by both professional and
amateur choirs. Folk songs and works in other genres are also often sung in the original
language. Translations are provided in several forms: the scores used by the singers may
contain translations; conductors or choir members who know the language in question
may provide translations orally during rehearsals; audiences may be handed program
notes that contain translations.
A broad range of issues arise here:
- the relative importance attached by conductors, singers and audiences to the linguistic
aspect of choral music (as opposed to instrumental sounds, voice quality, emotional
tone);
- the relative importance attached by these groups to the phonetic as opposed to the
semantic aspect of the words;
- the relative importance of the meaning of the text as a whole, individual sentences, and
individual words;
- assumptions about the linguistic knowledge of the audience for classical choral music
(e.g. that they already know the meanings of a phrase like “agnus dei qui tollis peccata
mundi” in the Latin mass; or that it doesn’t matter to them what it means).
- when (and whether) program notes are used by audiences: before the concert or during
intermission? during performance?
- how (and whether) singers refer to the translations printed in the scores during
rehearsals and performances;
- how translations are set out in scores (on a separate page? directly under the musical
notation and source-language text?);
- and how they are set out in program notes (with or without the source text? one above
the other? side-by-side?)
A questionnaire and interview study on these matters will be conducted with concertgoers,
choral conductors and amateur choral singers. It is anticipated that it will take
considerable time to organize the interviews, prepare and distribute the three
questionnaires to choirs, receive replies and compile the findings. It may be possible to
report only partial results at the Congress, along with presentation of the questionnaires.
In keeping with the Congress theme, I will consider the question of whether concepts
from Translation Studies could be useful in solving problems identified in the
questionnaire and interviews. Obviously this depends on the findings, but being a longtime
amateur choral singer myself, I can anticipate that one issue will be the different
levels of language which singers and conductors may or may not attend to: text level (“a
young woman’s lover has gone off to war and died”), sentence level (“when will he return
to me?”), word level (“death”), and phonetic level (the vowel of German “Tod” versus the
vowel of English “death”).
Another possible issue is what might be called simultaneity: do the singers know the
meaning of a word or phrase at the moment of singing it, as they do when singing in their
own language? Translations in the score may not be helpful in this regard since the
translation of a word may be positioned under a different note (“death” will not be right
under “Tod”), or the translation may be a free one (“He has gone from this world”).
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Papers
Also, attempting to glance at the translation while singing could create cognitive overload,
since there are so many other things to attend to while singing (pitch, dynamics,
breathing, rhythm, pronunciation of the foreign-language word).
In music, phonetics is very important because composers may attend to the sounds of
individual words when setting them to music. As a result, the question arises whether
singers have a sense of the phonetics of the language in which they are singing, given
that the phonetics is not always apparent from the orthography—a problem which may
lead to ‘literal pronunciations’. In my experience conductors, who are trained in music
rather than languages, tend to gloss over interlingual matters. Translation theory may be
able to help, for example by recommending the use of multiple representations of a
choral work: textual, sentential, word-level and phonetic transcription. This raises the
practical question of how these representations could be positioned in the score so as to
be useable during rehearsals and performance. On the other hand, the usefulness for
singers of Translation Studies in its current state is hampered by the fact that while much
attention has been paid to the cultural effects of translations on target societies, little
attention has been paid to the immediate reception process of the users of translations.
There is a considerable difference, for audiences, between viewing surtitles at the opera
(which match what is happening on stage) and trying to use translations in printed
program notes or CD inserts: How do you match up the noises coming from the stage or
from your stereo set with the relevant bit of translation? Also, little thought has been
given to the question of where people are and what they are doing when reading
translations: walking down the street, standing near a machine doing repairs, or in our
case, listening to a choral concert or standing on a stage singing.
123

Birthe MOUSTEN
Aarhus School of Business
bmo@asb.dk
Papers
CCVT Editing and Revision of Texts
Cross-cultural virtual teams (CCVTs) are now everyday realities of the workplace. Some
companies have given up their organizational division based on geography and work
instead in organizational teams across borders. The resulting change in workflow patterns
worldwide creates new challenges for the language work across borders when a work
team is suddenly positioned, maybe not only on a trans-border basis, but also on a transcontinental
basis. A solution to some of the cooperation challenges may to some extent
be an increased awareness of mediation as a tool. As a spin-off of earlier projects
between the University of Wisconsin-Stout (US) and the Aarhus School of Business
(Denmark), this pilot project concentrated on editing and revision of texts. Editing in this
context is seen as the adaptation of a source text for the purpose of translation, whereas
revision is seen as the adaptation of the translated target text to be used in the target
country. The CCVT members were students of technical writing in the US and translators
of language for specific purposes in Denmark.
The actual project covered texts from Danish T&I magazines on Danish conditions that
had to be translated and adapted to magazine articles for a certain industry in the US. As
such, the set-up of the CCVT very closely copies the CCVT constellations in many
workplaces: cooperation across professions, borders and time zones in that people with a
technical background in one country cooperate with people with a linguistic background in
another country. In contrast to previous projects, this project did not focus on the crosscultural
difficulties of the work process as such, but on the professional difficulties in
relation to the actual editing and revision processes. Like many workplace CCVTs, the
actual work was to a high extent made in the two countries, even though the process was
collective. The work process was divided as follows between the CCVT members: a text
was taken from a Danish trade and industry magazine, so the text had been written by an
experienced technical writer. In the actual CCVT process, the editing process and
translation of the source text was made by the translator with the purpose of adapting
the text to the new target audience. The US CCVT members, who were studying technical
writing, revised the text for publication in a US trade and industry magazine.
Thus, the results of the actual changes in the editing phase were supplemented with the
results that emerged in the translation phase, and eventually in the revision process. The
combination of the translation phase and the revision phase highlighted interesting
differences between the text versions and unveiled new and unforeseen problems in
CCVT text processing. On the whole, the project created new insights in some of the
cross-cultural differences that were hard to nail down, but that were seen by the students
and commented on. Some of these insights call for new approaches to editing and
revision as work methods.
124

Sources:
Papers
Mossop, Brian (2001) Revising and Editing for Translators, Manchester: St. Jerome
Publishing
Anawati, Danielle and Craig, Annemieke: Behavioural Adaptation Within Cross-Cultural
Virtual Teams, IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication, Vol. 49. No. 1, March
2006.
Paretti, Marie C.: Audience Awareness: Leveraging Problem-Based Learning to Teach
Workplace Communication Practices, IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication,
Vol. 49. No. 2, June 2006.
125

Francis MUS
Romance Languages, KU Leuven
francis.mus@arts.kuleuven.be
Papers
An Immaculate View
The Function of Translation Studies in the Process of
Writing Literary Historiographies
Although the discipline has gained a high degree of autonomy, the question remains of
why Translation Studies matter. The ambiguous place that TS occupies within the field of
literary studies is due to the fact that the study of translations seems to give a rather
“narrow” image of the literary fact in a given situation, thus putting the discipline at risk
by its relative autonomy. Despite - but also because of - this very specific position that TS
holds, the discipline constitutes not only a supplementary but also a necessary way of
looking at literature: it allows an immaculate view on a given literature, its identity, its
(literary) relations. This specific perspective constitutes both its strength and its
weakness.
I will highlight these two features on both a theoretical and pragmatic level (case study)
(a) On the one hand, Translation Studies allows an indirect (translations as a symptom of
the socio-literary situation, see below) but accurate insight into the dynamics (and,
consequently, the process of shaping an identity) of the literary field in a given situation.
Especially in multilingual cultures (and which cultures are not multilingual nowadays?), the
study of translations is the way par excellence to map the (literary) relations of a certain
literature. In my paper, I will focus on the “Belgian” literary field in the interwar period. As
a geopolitical, multilingual and multicultural construct, Belgium serves as an ideal
laboratory for the study of the ways in which literature and translation influence each
other, shape cultural traditions and how Belgian literature defines itself.
By analyzing translations in Francophone newspapers and magazines of this period I will
be able to chart several relationships that reveal the dynamics of the literary field. By way
of questions such as “Which are the privileged source literatures?”; “What do they reveal
about European successful authors to be translated?” etc., the intended cartography will
enable me to formulate research hypotheses about the structure and evolution of intraand
international literary relations in Francophone Belgian literature. These hypotheses
need to be confronted with the accepted assumptions in existing literary historiographies
so as to confirm or contradict them. Involving the study of translations in literary
historiography adds another way of analyzing literature. This combination of perspectives
allows TS to fulfil the role of “extra argument” (pro or against) the accepted hypotheses
in literary historiography so that TS can even bring to light new elements (literary
relations, important foreign sources, etc).
(b) On the other hand, if TS wants to present itself as an accurate method for studying
literature in a given period, implementation of a more comprehensive theory is required.
Indeed, TS can give a reliable falsification/corroboration hypothesis of the literature (and
its dynamics, relations, identity), but in order to turn the hypothesis into thesis,
Translation Studies needs to be integrated into existing, more embracing theories such as
field theory (Bourdieu), polysystem theory (Even-Zohar) and discourse study (Angenot,
Maingueneau). My research on the Belgian interwar situation combines these angles (with
emphasis on TS). It will show on a theoretical plane the position and the importance of
TS within these theories and on a concrete plane the role of “transfer of cultural elements
between national or linguistic spaces” (Aron) that translations play so as to offer an
insight into literary dynamics in the Belgian interwar period.
126

Papers
Sandra NAUERT, Heidrun GERZYMISCH-ARBOGAST
Saarland University
s.nauert@mx.uni-saarland.de
h.gerzymisch@mx.uni-saarland.de
Website Localization and Translation
Translation is becoming increasingly important in our globalized world as a means of
securing communication across languages and cultures. Technological advances and
internationalization have contributed to the development of new fast, often short-lived
and multilingual forms of internet communication One of these new forms of international
communication is website localization, which has been defined as adapting a product to a
particular locale (LISA 2003, Esselink 2001). Within the localization process, translation is
regarded as only part of the process of , “modifying a website for a specific locale”
(Yunker 2002:17) along with project management, image adaptation or setting up a
language gateway. and involving the cultural adaptation of texts and other documents like
multimedia, graphics and other programs.
Translating websites has been little discussed in the translation studies literature although
it has been recognized as involving problems and decisions on a number of different
translation levels (e.g. cultural adaptation, information sequencing of hypertext segments
and language use). While considerable literature has been published on the topic from a
computer linguistic perspective (e.g. Somers 2003), little has been written about the
translation dimension. In particular, methodological proposals concerning the
interdependence of the categories language material, non-linear text and cultural systems
has been given little attention. The article argues that translation and localization are
overlapping concepts with translation referring to a wide spectrum of text types and
localization implying an internationalized product. These shared features include a.o. the
element of transfer or adaptation of culture in the widest sense.
The paper suggests a coherent strategy for translating websites on several dimensions,
the integration of which will show the interdependence of text and systems level, making
the website process more systematic and transparent, less time-consuming and thus
more economical.
Proceeding from different text perspectives, three interrelated levels are identified on
which translation decisions are made, i.e.
(1) the holistic level, on which decisions involving the entire website are made, e.g.
cultural adaptations,
(2) the hol-atomistic level, on which decisions involving the coherence and information
sequencing decisions are made, e.g. adapting navigation paths in hypertext segments and
(3) the atomistic level, on which decisions involving individual linguistic units, e.g.
‘Netspeak’ idiosyncracies are made.
The translation methods (Aspectra, Relatra, Holontra) reflect these text perspectives and
allow for an integrated methodological sequence of translating, which is adapted for
localization purposes. All three levels are interrelated and need to be considered in their
interrelationship when translating websites. This is shown with a sample website
localization which will illustrate the suggested methodology.
127

Papers
References:
Esselink, Bert (2000): A Practical Guide to Localization. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
Gerzymisch-Arbogast, Heidrun/Mudersbach, Klaus (1998): Methoden des
wissenschaftlichen Übersetzens. Tübingen: Francke. UTB Nauert, Sandra (forthcoming):
Lokalisierung von Websites als Prozess. Im Fokus: Alfa Romeo. To be presented at the
MuTra Conference in Vienna 2007.
Sandrini, Peter (forthcoming): “Localisation”. In: Gerzymisch-Arbogast et al. (eds.): Key
Issues in LSP Translation. Amsterdam - Philadelphia: John Benjamins.
Somers, Harold (ed.) (2003). Computers and Translation: A Translator's guide.
Amsterdam - Philadelphia: John Benjamins. Yunker, John (2002): Beyond Borders. Web
Globalization Strategies. Indiananpolis: New Riders Publishing.
128

Papers
Stella NEUMANN, Silvia HANSEN-SCHIRRA, Kerstin KUNZ, Erich STEINER, Mihaela VELA
Saarland University
st.neumann@mx.uni-saarland.de, hansen@coli.uni-sb.de, k.kunz@mx.uni-saarland.de,
e.steiner@mx.uni-saarland.de, m.vela@mx.uni-saarland.de
New Insights from the Study of Translations
This paper presents a corpus-based study of specific properties of English and German
translations compared to similar texts in the target language as well as their respective
source texts. The past decade has seen a number of studies investigating translation
properties – sometimes even called universals – on the basis of raw corpora. While
building on this work the present study goes beyond it in annotating the texts with a
broad range of linguistic information and aligning the texts on several levels. We use a
one million word corpus of English-German and German-English translations, the CroCo
Corpus. This corpus consists of originals and translations in both directions from eight
different registers – all relevant for translation. The linguistic annotation covers part-ofspeech
tagging, a morphological decomposition and the analysis of phrase structure and
syntactic functions. The alignment is based on the following units: sentences, clauses and
words. In order to cover a linguistic basis of comparison for both languages, we also
include register neutral reference corpora in both languages. This design permits
explanations not only for the comparison between translations and target language
originals but also between translations and their source texts, for register-specific
peculiarities and finally in view of the influence of contrastive differences.
In this paper we will show how we can retrieve complex and meaningful information from
our corpus and interpret it with respect to properties like explicitation, normalization,
shining-through etc. We will also discuss how empirical-quantitative and hermeneuticqualitative
methods go hand in hand in our research. Combining raw text with
multidimensional annotation and alignment, we try to bridge the gap between abstract
concepts like explicitation and the data itself. We claim that it is particularly insightful to
investigate published translations with all their possible flaws because it is these texts that
are produced by translators in real life and because they are consumed by the target
language audience. They allow inferences on what goes on in the translation process by
diagnosing the divergences from their source and comparable target texts and thus
complement process-oriented research. Furthermore, the translations have an impact on
the target language audience and represent one factor in language contact. This study
yields a wealth of insights: It contributes to understanding the pitfalls of translation and
can thus help adapt translator training specifically to existing problems. Through our
annotation and alignment architecture, we obtain a fresh perspective on the definition of
the translation unit. Beyond translation studies, our investigation contributes findings to
the study of language contact showing how differences in translations have an impact on
the target language. Furthermore, our corpus has already proven a valuable resource for
computational linguistics where information on translation strategies is desperately
needed. From a more practical perspective, it can also be an efficient resource for
professional translators during the translation process. The rich annotation and alignment
may prove time saving for the search of translational equivalents.
129

Christiane NORD
Papers
University of Applied Sciences, Magdeburg/Germany
cn@christiane-nord.de
"You Can Say You to Me..."
Organizing Relationships in Literary Translation
According to Roman Jakobson (1960), the phatic function is responsible for opening and
closing the communicative channel and keeping it open throughout the communication
process. Since the phatic function works mainly on the basis of conventional or even
formulaic (verbal and non-verbal) behaviour, quite a number of scholars take the view
that it is completely void of content and therefore not really worth studying. In my paper,
I would like to show that the opposite is true: the phatic function prepares the ground for
any successful referential, expressive or appellative communication, because it defines
and shapes the social relationship holding between the communicating parties right from
the start. We could therefore speak of a "channel-organizing" function, which includes
such important features of text and discourse as topic-comment progression, focussing,
connectives, metacommuni-cation, and the like.
The paper will focus on the sender-receiver relationship. This aspect is indicated in the
text or discourse by "relation markers", such as direct forms of address (or strategies to
avoid them), turn-taking signals, register selection, transition rituals, discourse markers,
and many others. Most of these markers do not depend on language structures, but they
are highly culture-specific, as a comparison between behaviours in various parts of larger
and diversified language areas (e.g., Germany vs Austria vs Switzerland, Spain vs any
Latin American country) may show. Nevertheless, and as far as I know, they have not
been dealt with in geat depth in the field of intercultural communication in the broadest
sense. In foreign-language teaching, for example, the first few lessons very often create
(or support) the illusion that a substitution of linguistic forms will suffice to produce
adequate dialogues in the foreign language. In fictional texts, relation indicators may be a
subtle device to describe the characters and the relationship between them in an indirect
way. In literary translation, they may be considered, among other things, as touchstones
for the identification of foreignizing or domesticating strategies. After briefly defining and
classifying the phatic function and its various sub-functions, the paper seeks to explore
the methods and strategies used in literary translations to represent the channelorganizing
behaviour of fictitious characters, drawing on a corpus of English, German and
Spanish lliterary texts and their translations. Particular attention will be devoted to relation
markers.
Jakobson, Roman (1960): "Linguistics and Poetics", Closing Statement in Style in
Language, ed. by T. A. Sebeok, Cambridge/Mass., 350-377.
130

Carol O’SULLIVAN
Papers
School of Languages and Area Studies, University of Portsmouth
carol.osullivan@port.ac.uk
Language Difference and Translation on Screen
Interdisciplinary Possibilities
To date, the interpenetration of the disciplines of Translation Studies and Film Studies has
been limited. With the rise of Audiovisual Translation Studies, new vistas and possibilities
for interdisciplinary research seem likely to emerge. One possible site of common interest
might be the phenomenon of language difference on screen, which has as yet remained
almost entirely untheorised. Decades-old observations by Shochat and Stam that ‘the
reality of language difference […] entails consequences for the cinema that have yet to be
explored’ (1985: 35) and by Laura Martin that ‘we do not even have a typology of the
devices used for representing foreign language within the context of English-language
film, much less an analysis of their functions’ (1984: 57) still stand.
In order to give ourselves a framework with which to talk about language difference in
film, this paper proposes an adaptation of the categories used by Meir Sternberg in his
seminal 1981 article ‘Polylingualism as Reality and Translation as Mimesis’. Though the
typology presented in this article was developed in relation to literature, the seed was
already sown for the extension of the ideas to encompass the treatment of language on
film, in which ‘the reality of polylingual discourse [is represented] through a
communicative medium which is normally unilingual’ (Sternberg 222). It will be argued
that Sternberg’s principal categories, ‘referential restriction’, ‘vehicular matching’ and
‘homogenizing convention’, are as appropriate to film as to print literature. Where
Sternberg’s model requires modification to make it applicable to film is at the level of
‘mimetic compromise’, defined by Sternberg as the combination of the above strategies
used by any given text. The polysemiotic nature of film will require any typology of
language difference to account for dubbing and subtitling, while also considering devices
such as partial subtitling, the deliberate omission of subtitles and the so-called ‘Babel Fish’
close-up. What is the usefulness of this modified typology for the disciplines of Translation
Studies and Film Studies?
I would argue that its significance lies in providing a basis for the inter- and
transdisciplinary analysis of diegetic translation and related phenomena on screen. The
typology is an essential building block in a more systematic and wide-ranging discussion
of the extent to which film constitutes a meaningful site for intercultural representation
and debate.
131

Michael OPGENHAFFEN
Lessius University College Antwerp
michael.opgenhaffen@lessius.eu
Papers
Translating for Online News Media
A "Mix of Attributes" Approach
During the last ten years, the Internet has become one of the most popular news sources.
This new technology with his specific features causes new types of communication and,
as a consequence, new types of journalistic writing, translation and adaptation. One of
the main questions in recent translation studies is to which extent the collaboration
between translation studies and communication studies is needed and could shed light on
the complex process of translation within this new context of online news media. The
“mix of attributes” approach, a concept in communication studies, can be applied to
reformulate the process of writing and translating for journalistic productions on the
Internet.
In this presentation, we suggest that the Internet as new technology results in new
challenges and opportunities for translators and journalists. Recent studies have indicated
that in 2006 almost 70 % of the people in the United States and Canada went online on
the Internet. During the last 6 years, the worldwide Internet penetration has been
doubled from 8 % to 16.7 % in 2006. Searching for information and news has always
been one of the top activities online. The Internet offers the news consumer a wide range
of news messages through different online media platforms. Not only traditional
newssites, but also news blogs, wiki-newssites, RSS-newsfeeds, newsgroups, newsalerts
and many other new types of online newsmedia are covering the world’s news issues.
Needless to say that these popular news media have been influencing and transforming
the work of translators, journalists, copywriters, webmasters and other people involved in
the journalistic process of translating and writing for the online news media. Because of
the characteristic features (multimediality, interactivity, hypertextuality and immediacy) of
the Internet and the different types of online news, one could argue that rewriting and
translating for the online news media is more complex than doing so for traditional news
media. Scholars in journalism studies suggest that the different types of news media
online must result in new types of journalism and that journalists must adapt their
storytelling to this new digital reality.
In this article, we suggest that the same is true for translation. We propose a
multidisciplinary focus when studying the process of translating, rewriting and adapting
media texts into the online counterparts. More specific, we use the “mix of attributes”
approach and other theories and concepts of communication studies to point out the
growing importance of understanding the main characteristics of online news media while
translating news messages. The “mix of attributes approach”, originally postulated as an
appeal to broaden the study of media effects to more than the study of the media
content, stresses to specify the formal and technological features of the medium while
doing research. Apart from the media content, other and maybe more important
dimension are in play when studying the media, for example the (non-)linearity of the
media text, the interactivity and multimediality. We suggest to apply this “mix of
attributes approach” in translation studies in order to take the specific characteristics of
the online media types into account and to get better insight in the translation process of
online news media.
132

Viktorija OSOLNIK KUNC
Filozofska fakulteta
viktorija.osolnik-kunc@guest.arnes.si
Papers
Qualitätssicherung in der juristischen Translation
Dargestellt am Beispiel eines Kommunikationsmodells
für slowenisch-deutsche Gerichtsdolmetscher und
Übersetzer von Rechtstexten in Slowenien
(Quality Assessment in Legal Translation. A Communication Model for Translators and
Interpreters from Slovene into German at Courts and Public Authorities in Slovenia) Eine
der schwierigsten Formen der Translation ist die von Rechtstexten. Nicht nur die
Idiomatisierung und der Abstraktionsgrad der Rechtssprache stellen eine Herausforderung
für Übersetzer und Dolmetscher, sondern auch und vor allem das (Fach-)Wissen über die
Rechtskultur, d.h. die nationale Rechtsordnung des jeweiligen Landes in oder aus dessen
Sprache übersetzt wird. Die Anfertigung eines Translats mit juristischem Inhalt, in dem
der Textinhalt vom Produzenten zum Rezipienten transponiert wird, ist besonders für
allgemein bestellte und öffentlich beeidete Gerichtsdolmetscher und Übersetzer von
Rechtstexten eine äußerst anspruchsvolle Aufgabe, zumal sie durch die Beglaubigung des
Translats die Richtigkeit und Vollständigkeit der angefertigten Translation besiegeln und in
Slowenien die strafrechtliche Haftung dafür übernehmen. Gerichtsdolmetscher und
Übersetzer von Rechtstexten geraten hiermit bei der Frage der „richtigen“
Fachübersetzung in den Zwiespalt zwischen dem Wissen im Fach und der sprachlichen
Korrektheit. Was von Juristen zum Thema der Rechtssprache häufig vereinfacht als
Fähigkeit des juristischen Denkens beschrieben wird, bedeutet für Translatoren erst
einmal eine Bewusstmachung der für die Translation relevanten Wissensaspekte. (Vgl.
hierzu: Gerzymisch-Arbogast 1999, Wiesmann 2004 und Baumann/Kalverkämper 2004)
Der Beitrag ist als wichtige Aufwertung des Status von Gerichtsdolmetschern und
Übersetzern von Rechtstexten in Slowenien zu verstehen und soll einen Beitrag zur
Qualitätssicherung in der juristischen Translation leisten. Anhand von empirischen
Erhebungen unter slowenischen Gerichtsdolmetschern und Übersetzern von Rechtstexten
wird festgestellt, wie groß der Anteil jener ohne juristische Ausbildung im Vergleich zu
Volljuristen ist und auf Besonderheiten zwischen Linguisten mit juristischem Fachwissen
im Vergleich zu Juristen mit fachlichen Sprachkenntnissen hingewiesen. In einem von mir
entworfenen Kommunikationsmodell wird für Linguisten bzw. nicht juristisch ausgebildete
Translatoren ein Modell des juristischen Denkens präsentiert. Es versucht Elemente wie
Erkennen, Verstehen, Denken, Differenzieren und Generalisieren, System und Kultur
juristischer Inhalte, sowie den einer Nation eigenen Denkstil zu berücksichtigen und sie in
ein Relationsverhältnis zueinander zu bringen. Die bisher vorwiegend auf fachvermittelnde
Informationen konzentrierte und sich häufig nur auf Fragen der Terminologie in der
Fremdsprache beschränkende sprachliche Vorbereitung von zukünftigen
Gerichtsdolmetschern und Übersetzern von Rechtstexten durch das slowenische
Justizministerium, soll durch das vorliegende Modell erweitert werden.
133

Papers
Martina OZBOT
University of Ljubljana
martina.ozbot@guest.arnes.si
Odes to Liberty
Political Subversiveness in Translations of Literary
Classics (Two Examples from Italian Literature in
Slovene Translations)
The aim of the paper is to discuss issues concerning the role translated literary texts can
have in promoting a subversive political agenda and thus in contributing to radically
changing a given political situation by supporting the target readership in their claims for
(greater) national autonomy. Translation as a means of developing national consciousness
and of encouraging political action will be explored by analysing textual and extratextual
characteristics of the Slovene translations of two classical works of Italian literature:
Edmondo De Amicis' Il cuore (Heart; 1886) and Niccolò Machiavelli's Il principe (The
Prince; 1513). De Amicis' book, which has the form of a schoolboy's diary, was written for
Italian schoolchildren, and while it has strong educational ambitions, it is also overtly
patriotic (i.e. pro-Italian and anti-Austrian) and therefore partly political in its scope.
Machiavelli's book, on the other hand, is a treatise about political leadership based on the
author's observation of the political situation in Italy in his own and earlier periods, and
can be read today variously as a historical, philosophical and/or literary work.
Each of the two classics has been translated into Slovene a number of times – in different
periods (Il cuore in 1891, 1929 and in 1952, with several reprints up to 1993; Il principe
in 1920, 1966 and in 1990), in different social and political contexts (in the Austro-
Hungarian Empire, in the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, in the Kingdom of
Yugoslavia and in the Socialist Republic of Yugoslavia) and by different translators. All the
translations examined are domesticating and the majority of them – and in particular the
first two versions of Il cuore and the first version of Il principe – display a heavy political
bias through the translators' adapting the source texts to the particular political, social
and historical circumstances of the target situations in order to make the translations
serve well-defined domestic agendas. Notwithstanding the rather different strategies
employed by the translators to achieve their goals, all the target texts exhibit at least
some degree of political commitment, which is at its highest in the first translation of Il
cuore, published at a time when (relative) political independence of Slovenes was no
more than an aspiration, whereas in the most recent translation of Il principe, the goal of
which seems to be of a genuinely literary kind, a political agenda is nearly absent.
The study of the two Italian classics in Slovene versions demonstrates that translation is
not only a means through which target language, literature and culture generally can be
enriched by new, »imported« ideas and concepts, but is equally significant as an
instrument which can serve domestic political ends. By virtue of preserving an appearance
of foreignness, translations often allow more scope for social and political subversion than
original writings, which do not have the protection enjoyed by those texts that have been
»merely« rewritten in a language different from the source one. In addition to exploring
the impact translated literary texts can have upon various extraliterary matters, the paper
also hopes to show that the interdisciplinary study of translation has the potential to shed
important light on various aspects of historical, social and political contexts in which
translated texts are embedded.
134

Adriana PAGANO, Igor Antonio DA SILVA
Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais
Papers
pagano@netuno.lcc.ufmg.br, ials@gmail.com
Expert Knowledge in Translation
Insights from Self-Translation in Disciplinary Writing
This paper reports on an ongoing project Expert@ – Expert knowledge in translation:
modeling peak-performance, developed at LETRA - Laboratory for Experimentation in
Translation at Faculdade de Letras, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Brazil, aimed at
mapping the development of expert knowledge in translation through empirical studies of
subjects along the cline ranging from novices to experts. More specifically, it discusses the
results of an experiment designed to explore expert academic writers’ translation
processes in order to verify the impact of domain knowledge and generic knowledge
(Scardamalia & Bereiter, 1991; Bhatia, 2004) on task completion and durability (Alves,
2005).
The experiment targeted four researchers at a leading research center in Brazil, who
translate their own papers into English, out of a Portuguese original, their main motivation
being their unwillingness to rely on professional translators’ services as they deem the
latter do not cater to their specific needs of text production. The experiment investigated
their translation process during their performance of two translation tasks of research
article introductions from Portuguese (L1) into English (L2). Two experts on sickle cell
anemia (S1 and S3) and two experts on Chagas disease (S2 and S4) were asked to
complete two translation tasks. One of the tasks was designed to gather data on the
subjects’ problem solving while translating a text related to their area of expertise, and
the other task involved a translation of a text related to a topic outside their area of
expertise (either sickle cell anemia for S2 and S4 or Chagas' disease for S1 and S3). In
both tasks, text genre was held constant, as both involved translations of research article
introductions, a genre regularly used by the subjects in their disciplinary writing.
The main objective was to see the impact of domain knowledge on the subjects’ problem
solving strategies and completion of the task and check correlations between domain
knowledge and generic knowledge for this particular profile of subjects. Data was
collected through the use of the softwares Translog© and Camtasia® to record all
keyboard and mouse movements and online search procedures during text production,
together with recall protocols produced by the subjects immediately after they had
finished their translations as they watched their own translation process on the computer
screen through the replay function of Translog©. The protocols were supplemented by
observational notes and interviews. Data triangulation was performed in order to
characterize the subjects’ profile, considering time spent during orientation, drafting and
revision, patterns of pauses and text segmentation, instances of meta-reflection and
metalanguage as evidenced in recall protocols and interviews and the target texts
produced at the end of the tasks. Interviews and protocols were also tagged in order to
map statements that could clearly be linked to problems related to domain knowledge and
problems related to generic knowledge, including mastering genre conventions in L2.
Results point to a direct relationship between the subjects’ performance within their own
area of expertise (maximum degree of domain knowledge) and their investment in
problem solving and task completion, particularly seen through a considerably higher
number of instances of metareflection and metalanguage in the task involving translation
of a text belonging to their own area of expertise. As expected, generic knowledge
remained stable in the two tasks performed, thus signaling the subjects’ mastering of
generic conventions across different expertise areas. Data triangulation allowed for the
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Papers
identification of different profiles within the group of subjects, the durability of their tasks
being a positive measure of their degree of expertise.
High durability was found in the performance of two of the subjects within their own area
of expertise, there being a positive correlation between time spent on the task, degree of
investment in problem solving, number of instances of meta-reflection and metalanguage
and text production complying with perceived generic constraints.
136

Natasa PAVLOVIC
Papers
Faculty of Philosophy, University of Zagreb, Croatia
natasa.pavlovic@zg.t-com.hr
Spot the Difference
Translation Processes into L1 and into L2 Compared
Translation into the second language (L2 translation) is a reality in many settings around
the world, especially - but not exclusively - in those cultures that use a "language of
limited diffusion". Even translators whose mother tongue is one of the "major" languages
are more and more frequently required to work out of their L1 into English, the dominant
language of the globalized world. This makes L2 translation an increasingly important
issue for the practitioner, and research on L2 translation a hot topic for Translation
Studies. In the past, prescriptive approaches to translation denounced the practice of L2
translation as unprofessional or even impossible. As a result, L2 translation was until
recently largely neglected both in translation theories and in research. Over the past ten
to fifteen years, however, the number of studies dealing with L2 translation has been on
the increase, with translation into the non-mother tongue even becoming the main topic
of forums and conferences, and their subsequent publications (e.g. Kelly et al. 2003;
Grosman et al 2000).
This paper will report on the findings of one such study, the author’s PhD project. The
main assumption of the study was that translation processes in the two directions are
different. The author set out to discover in what respect and to what extent this was so.
The study was set up as a set of experiments involving “novice translators” – university
students who had just passed their final translation exam – translating two comparable
general-language texts, one from English into Croatian and the other from Croatian into
English. All the subjects had Croatian as their L1, and at the time of the experiments they
had been learning English as their L2 for at least 12 years. The method of data collection
used in the experiments was the “collaborative translation protocol”, a type of verbal
report obtained from collaborative (joint) translation sessions. Collaborative translation
(cf. Kiraly 2000), albeit not typical of professional translation practice, is nevertheless
used in educational settings, and has been part of the subjects’ translation training. The
translation sessions were audio- and video-recorded, and later transcribed. Pre- and postexperiment
questionnaires complemented the data from the translation sessions. Both
quantitative and qualitative methods were used in analyzing the data.
The analysis focused on the number and type of problems the translators encountered,
the “tentative” solutions they considered, the final solutions they chose, the arguments
used in the decision-making process, the translators’ use of internal and external
resources, as well as on the number errors and their likely causes. Preliminary findings
suggest that translation processes in the two directions are similar in some respects, but
also point to a number of differences. They go beyond, and to some extent even
challenge, the popular belief that L1 translation focuses mainly on the comprehension of
the source text, while L2 translation centers around the formulation of the target text,
suggesting this may not necessarily be true in all translation tasks. It is expected that the
findings of this study will help formulate new hypotheses about L2 translation to be tested
in further research. It is also hoped that some of the findings can be profitably used in the
training of future L2 translators.
137

Jan PEDERSEN
Stockholm University
jan.pedersen@english.su.se
Papers
Using Descriptive Translation Studies as the Link
between Practice, Theory and Training
Using Descriptive Translation Studies as the link between practice, theory and training
When research is carried out within the Descriptive Translation Studies paradigm, the link
between theory and practise on the one hand and between theory and training on the
other is of paramount importance. The norms that studies in this paradigm seek to
uncover are not prescriptive norms based on introversion by an authority or idealised
notions about what translation should be about (cf. Chesterman 1997: 56). Instead, the
descriptive norms of the DTS paradigm should be based on hard and solid empirical
evidence. This means that the input of DTS theories is actual translation practise itself.
The researcher uncovers regularities in translated texts, makes generalizations from them,
collaborates these with statements made by practitioners, and on the basis of this,
descriptive norms are formulated. These, in turn, can be used for translator training (cf.
e.g. Kovačič 1996 or Leppihalme 2000). The translators will then be taught norms that are
valid in an actual workplace; norms which have evolved through the interplay between
translators, commissioners, and readers.
One example of such a study within the DTS paradigm is called Scandinavian Subtitles.
This is a comparative study of the subtitling norms found in Sweden, Denmark and
Norway. The project is based on a corpus of one hundred Anglophone films and TV
programmes and their Swedish, Danish and (to a certain extent) Norwegian subtitles. The
material was recorded on Scandinavian TV channels over one year and has been chosen
to represent multiple genres and programme types from documentaries to reality shows,
with a main emphasis on fiction. These texts have been supplemented by metatexts, such
as books and articles written by subtitlers describing their trade (e.g. Wildblood 2002;
Pollard 2002), proceedings from seminars with subtitlers (e.g. Mathiasson 1984; Nordisk
språksekretariat 1989), interviews with subtitlers and policy-makers within the field of
subtitling and not least with experience of the subtitling situation. In this way a sound
empirical base of actual subtitling behaviour is ensured.
From this material Extralinguistic Cultural References (ECRs, cf. Pedersen: forthcoming)
have been extracted. These pose a form of translation problem, to which a number of
solutions can be found in the subtitles. For instance, if someone in the ST makes a
reference to The Three Stooges, and these are not known in the Target Culture, the
subtitler may use some interventional strategy like Specification to help the viewers
access this ECR. After extracting coupled pairs (cf. Toury 1995: 81) of ECR problem +
solution in the many versions, patterns have been recognized, which has lead to the
formulation of a number of general translation solutions. These have been arranged into a
taxonomy which in turn can be compared to previous taxonomies and models (e.g.
Newmark 1988; Florin 1993) and complement these or even replace them, if it turns out
that contemporary practice has made them dated. Through a combination of empirical
data and translation theory, a definite set of norms on how these translation problems are
solved crystallizes. A conclusion can be formulated: if you have an ECR of the x kind, then
it can be shown that it is usually solved in manner y, under circumstances z. The norms
that have thus been formulated can then be taught to prospective subtitlers who can
benefit from a norm based on the experience and practice of their forerunners, without
having to amass their experience.
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Papers
In this way, the theorist repays the subtitling community for helping him to formulate the
norms in the first place. In this way, translation theory provides a service to translation
practice. It helps practitioners formulate the norms that they themselves use, and helps
them to pass them on to the next generation of practitioners, keeping abreast with the
development within the field. I think this is as it should be.
If theory is not based on practice, it runs the risk of alienating the very people it is
supposed to help. To me, a connection between practice, theory and training is not only
something to be desired, it is a necessity.
References
Chesterman, Andrew, 1997. Memes of Translation. The Spread of Ideas in Translation
Theory. Amsterdam & Philadelphia: Benjamins.
Florin, Sider. 1993. ”Realia in Translation” in Zlateva, Palma (ed.) 1993. Translation as
Social Action: Russian and Bulgarian Perspectives. London & New York: Routledge. Pp.
122 - 128.
Kovačič, Irena. 1996. “Reinforcing or changing norms in subtitling”. In Dollerup, Cay &
Appel, Vibeke (Eds.) Teaching Translation and Interpreting 3: New Horizons. Papers from
the third Language International conference, Elsinore, Denmark 9-11 June 1995.
Amsterdam & Philadelphia: John Benjamins. Pp. 105 - 110.
Leppihalme, Ritva. 2000b. “Caution: Cultural Bumps. On Cultural Literacy as a Goal in
Translator Training”. In Englund Dimitrova (ed.) 2000. Översättning och Tolkning:
Rapport från ASLA:s höstsymposium, Stockholm, 5-6 november 1998. Uppsala:
Universitetstryckeriet.
Mathiasson, Hans Åke (ed.) 1984. Rapport från Nordiskt översättarseminarium anordnat i
Stockholm 3 – 4 maj 1984. [Report from the Nordic translators seminar in Stockholm May
3 – 4 1984].
Newmark, Peter. 1988. Approaches to Translation. New York: Prentice Hall. Nordisk
språksekretariat. 1989. Nordisk TV-teksting: Rapport fra en konferense på
Schæffergården ved København 25.-27.november 1988. [Nordic TV subtitling: report from
a conference at Schæffergården in Copenhagen Nov. 25 - 27 1988] Oslo: Nordisk
Språksekretariats rapporter.
Pedersen, Jan. 2003. “A corpus-linguistic investigation into quantitative and qualitative
Reduction in Subtitles.” Örebro University, unpublished background study. Pedersen, Jan.
(forthcoming) "How is culture rendered in subtitles?" in Multidimensional Translation:
Challenges. Manchester: St. Jerome Publishing.
Pollard, Chris. 2002. “The Art and Science of Subtitling: A Close Look at How It's Done” In
Language International, 2002, 14, 2, Apr, 24 - 27.
Toury, Gideon. 1995. Descriptive Translation Studies – And Beyond. Amsterdam &
Philadelphia: John Benjamins.
Wildblood, Alan. 2002. “A Subtitle Is Not a Translation: A Day in the Life of a Subtitler” In
Language International, 2002, 14, 2, Apr, 40 - 43.
139

Bohdan PIASECKI
Papers
University of Warwick, Centre for Translation and Comparative Cultural Studies
b.a.piasecki@warwick.ac.uk
Translating Literatures
An Attempt to Establish a Methodology for the
Analysis of Anthologies of Translated Poetry
Over the years, the discipline of translation studies has become truly multifaceted.
Numerous theories formulated by scholars in the field focus not only on the act of
translation itself, but also endeavour to address a multitude of related issues, thus
operating, at times, within the realms commonly associated with cultural, literary,
political, editorial, and reception studies. My paper strives to assess the efficacy of a
number of theoretical frameworks in the analysis of the intricate cultural and literary
artefacts that are anthologies of translated poetry, and to evaluate their usefulness in the
analysis of the said anthologies’ changing role within the evolving structure of
international relations. The aspects one has to examine in order to fully understand the
significance and impact of anthologies of translated poetry are manifold. It seems
mandatory to investigate the mechanisms of the text selection process by identifying the
agendas of publishers, editors, and translators, taking into account extra-textual factors
such as national and cultural politics and power relations between countries, literatures,
and languages. An in-depth analysis of these factors will make it possible to discover, by
performing a thorough study of the translated text itself, how they affect the translator’s
conscious and unconscious choices, and how they are reflected in the target language
text. Finally, a comparative study of the reception reserved for the poems in the source
and target culture is necessary to ascertain whether goals were achieved, and what the
translations’ real influence has been.
In my paper, I try to verify which of the major theories in translation studies provide
scholars with the tools necessary to conduct a fruitful scrutiny of an anthology of
translated poetry, and strive to construct a set of concepts and theoretical instruments
that will amount to a working methodology. Itamar Even-Zohar’s polysystem theory,
Lawrence Venuti’s writings on the translator’s invisibility and the contrasting concepts of
“foreignisation” and “domestication”, André Lefevere’s notions of “patronage” and “rewriting”,
and Susan Bassnett’s insights on the increasingly fluid boundaries between
“translations” and “originals” would all certainly come to play an important role in the
establishment of a methodology suitable for my research, among other theoretical
notions. My examples are drawn from books of contemporary Polish poetry translated into
English in the past 30 years; the relationship between these two literatures has been a
particularly complex one and has changed greatly in that period, influenced by the
dramatic social and political changes in Poland. The source materials include seminal
selections of pre-1989 works such as Postwar Polish Poetry by Czesław Miłosz or Spoiling
Cannibals Fun: Polish poetry of the last two decades of the last two decades of
communist rule, by Stanisław Barańczak and Clare Cavanagh, as well as more recent
collections: The Burning Forest: Modern Polish Poetry, by Adam Czerniawski, Carnivorous
Boy, Carnivorous Bird: Poetry from Poland, by Marcin Baran, and Altered State: the New
Polish Poetry, by Rod Mengham, Tadeusz Pióro, and Piotr Szymor, among others.
The paper is an attempt to show that translation studies, far from being merely a set of
infringements on the territory of other disciplines, can provide unique and functional
frameworks for the analysis of complex, culture-forming literary phenomena, and provide
valuable insights into the multiple aspects of cultural exchange through procedures
ranging from the close-reading of translated poetry to drawing conclusions from
publishing strategies and critical receptions of translated texts.
140

Agnes PISANSKI PETERLIN
Papers
Department of Translation, Faculty of Arts, University of Ljubljana
agnes.pisanski@guest.arnes.si
The Translation of Text-Organising Metadiscourse
Translating Slovene Research Articles into English
Rhetorical conventions among cultural communities vary and an awareness of these
differences is necessary for successful intercultural communication. A lack of such
awareness may result in problems in discourse production or reception, and subsequently
also in translation. While intercultural contrastive rhetorical studies of rhetorical
conventions in comparable texts provide valuable information about intercultural
rhetorical differences, alerting us to potential translation problems, it is only through
research of originals and translations within the framework of translation studies that
translation strategies used in such cases can be identified, analysed and evaluated.
This paper attempts to examine an example of intercultural variation in rhetorical
conventions, focusing on the use of text-organising metadiscourse. Text-organising
metadiscourse is a pragmatic phenomenon and does not constitute a formal linguistic
category. A comparison of text-organising metadiscourse in originals and translations is a
rather complex issue as it involves two problems: the problem of rhetorical conventions in
translation and the problem of pragmatic phenomena in translation.
The main aim of this paper is to propose a model for the analysis of translation strategies
used in translating text-organising metadiscourse, also applicable to the analysis of other
pragmatic phenomena. The model describes the translation of metadiscourse units on two
levels. On the first level, it reflects whether the specific metadiscourse item is translated
or omitted, or whether an item of metadiscourse has been inserted in translation. On the
second level, it describes the microlocation of each individual metadiscourse item within
the sentence in both, the original and translation, as well as the formal realisation of the
item in the original and translation. The second aim of the paper is to examine the
question of how text-organising metadiscourse is translated from Slovene into English. It
has been established through previous research that Slovene and English academic
writing differ to some extent in the rhetorical conventions governing features such as text
organisation. Nevertheless, the issue of how such differences may impact the translation
of Slovene academic writing into English has not yet been explored and relatively little
data exists on translating Slovene academic writing into English. For this purpose, a
sample of Slovene research articles and their English translations is analysed using the
model outlined above. Metadiscourse items are identified through a manual search to
ensure that all instances of metadiscourse are discovered.
The results of the analysis are used to evaluate the proposed model, focusing on whether
the descriptions it provides give useful and sufficient information on the translation
strategies applied. The results of the analysis are also compared to the findings of
previous contrastive studies of the use of metadiscourse in Slovene and English research
articles. The present study examining the issue of translating text-organising
metadiscourse is useful from both a theoretical and a practical point of view. Firstly, it
seeks to propose a theoretical framework for describing the translation of pragmatic units.
Secondly, the results of this analysis provide information of practical use to translators
engaged in the translation of academic discourse, offering important evidence about
cross-cultural differences in pragmatics between Slovene and English.
141

Franz PöCHHACKER
University of Vienna
franz.poechhacker@univie.ac.at
Papers
Why Interpreting Studies Matters
The challenge raised by the Congress theme will be taken up, obviously enough, from the
perspective of interpreting studies as a major subdiscipline of Translation studies. Much of
this paper will be devoted to reviewing examples of where and how interpreting studies
(IS) has mattered in the past. This effort presupposes a thorough understanding of the
notion ‘interpreting studies’, which some may construe as ‘studies/research on
interpreting’ and others as the designation of a rather young academic discipline; the
analysis obviously hinges on this underlying definition, but on either understanding
examples of the relevance of IS to the scientific community and to society at large can be
found. Viewed as ‘research on interpreting’, there are some striking examples of how IS
has prompted theoretical progress in such fields as cognitive psychology and
neurolinguistics, mainly in relation to the skill of simultaneous speaking and listening
involving two languages. In addition, research on interpreting has influenced training
practices for interpreters, mainly with regard to aptitudes and component skills involved in
the task. On the disciplinary understanding, on the other hand, the social relevance of IS
has taken shape only recently; that is, it has begun to matter that there is an academic
infrastructure for the study of (i.e. for research on and the research-based teaching of)
interpreting. This development has gained momentum as interpreting scholars have
broadened their purview to include interpreting practices ‘in the community’, which makes
studies of interpreting in such social settings as courtrooms, hospitals, asylum tribunals
and schools relevant to society by definition.
The second part of the paper will thus discuss a number of examples of work by
interpreting scholars that has been closely interrelated with the concerns of social
institutions in particular nations. In the Austrian context these include the comprehensive
study on sign language interpreting practices by Grbic (1994), which has been followed
up by highly successful training and certification measures; the author’s surveys and case
studies on healthcare interpreting in Vienna (Pöchhacker 2000), which prompted the
development of an implementation plan for municipal community interpreting services as
well as a training course; the study by Kadric (2001) on selective interpreting in Viennese
first-instance courts, which has given rise to a due-process initiative by the judiciary; and
the discourse-analytical work of Pöllabauer (2005) on interpreting in asylum hearings,
which has served as the foundation for initiatives to raise quality standards in this setting,
inter alia by proposals for a legislative amendment and the publication of a handbook on
standards of practice.
The final part of the paper will explore areas in which IS has played a role and is likely to
matter even more in the near future. These include the introduction of new technologies
for simultaneous interpreting (remote interpreting, videoconferencing, simultaneous
consecutive, etc.) and the role of digital technologies in the traditional mainstay of IS,
that is, the education of future professionals. It is in relation to the latter, the interpreting
profession, that IS has had and will have a crucial role to play by default – on the
assumption that professional aspirations – unlike craftsmanship – require a mechanism for
the development and advancement of the field’s specialized body of knowledge.
142

Sieglinde POMMER
Papers
McGill University, Canada and University of Vienna, Austria
spommer@post.harvard.edu
Translation Skills for the Legal Profession?
Due to the great influence of European law on all branches of national law in the Member
States of the European Union, the law has become increasingly multilingual. This
development has made it more important than ever for lawyers to understand foreign
legal texts and to talk about one’s own as well as other legal systems in foreign
languages. While lawyers may not necessarily be required to actually produce legal
translations often, it is evident that the necessary transfer of legal content from one legal
system and legal language to another requires not only comprehensive comparative legal
knowledge of the legal orders involved but also good language proficiency as well as a
sound command of the specialized legal terminologies. The realization of the crucial role
of translation in European legal harmonization has, however, not yet impacted much on
how legal translation is taught. Unfortunately, very few interdisciplinary programs have
been set up. To an even lesser extent has legal education integrated obligatory language
classes in their curricula. Despite the close relationship which obviously exists between
law and language due to the fact that the law can express itself exclusively by way of the
latter and the fact that legal work depends heavily on the exact use of language, linguistic
skills are not promoted in European law schools in any particular ways. These mostly offer
voluntary foreign language classes in the form of introductions to foreign legal systems
and merely encourage study terms abroad. Today, the view is generally accepted that a
legal translator should have good legal knowledge in more than one legal system. While it
is a fact that more and more lawyers are asked to translate legal texts, they usually
receive only, if at all, practical on-the-job training – a remarkable trend blatantly contrary
to the establishment of Translation Studies as a recognized course of study in the tertiary
education sector and the placing of more and more significance on the importance of
translation theory in the classroom in the hope of optimizing the translation process and
guaranteeing better quality translation results. Acknowledging the importance of foreign
language skills for enhancing legal communication among the new generation of
European lawyers, this contribution explores the value of translation skills for the
discipline of law and shows the necessity as well as possible implementation options for
incorporating the respective training in legal education in order to allow the profession to
meet the changed demands of the day. Outlining an interdisciplinary approach to legal
translation learning and teaching, the author further discusses in which areas translation
skills could prove most useful to today’s lawyers, looking into topics such as systembound
legal terminology and inequivalent legal concepts, the usefulness of comparative
law, questions of comparability and translatability, the practice of co-drafting, methods of
applying law and determining meaning, the parameters of functionality and transparency,
and, more generally, the interplay of theory and practice, thereby identifying the specific
input translation studies could make for the education of the legal profession thereby
contributing to a better understanding of the national laws as well as the law in general.
143

Erich PRUNC
ITAT Graz
erich.prunc@uni-graz.at
144
Papers
Omnia Mea Mecum Porto: Translations as a Format
and Formative Element of the Discourse of
Emancipation of Slovene Culture between 1848 and
1918
Translations were ascribed a low status in the discourse on the establishment of Slovene
national literature because the establishment of a canon of national literature was given
absolute priority. The average middle-class audience was bilingual and literature critics as
well as publishers took it for granted that this audience was able to understand Germanlanguage
literary texts and/or texts in German which were intended to achieve a transfer
of knowledge.
The resulting preliminary norm of translation was that only genres were translated into
Slovene which were intended for a monolingual rural population. This includes a large
number of religious texts and devotional writings as well as light fiction, a genre which
had been gradually emerging at the end of the century. The only exemption from this
diglottic distribution of genres was the translation of dramatic texts which were intended
for groups of lay actors and the (semi)professional theatres in Ljubljana, Trieste, and
Maribor. The symbolic function of drama texts was considered more important than the
audience’s bilingualism. In an atmosphere of fierce cultural competition with the German
theatre, the mere staging a play in Slovene was considered a manifestation of national
identity.
Another argument which played an important role in the national discourse of
emancipation and legitimisation (especially with respect to the translation of classical
plays) was that with Slovene-language theatre performances the Slovene language was
able to prove its functionality. This discursive line can also be observed in the paratexts of
the translation of schoolbooks and scientific/academic texts. This discourse culminated in
a demonstrative show of disapproval by Count Alexander von Auersperg: in 1864, when
the introduction of Slovene as an official language in schools was heavily debated in
politics, he brought two of the recently published Slovene translations of schoolbooks into
the Carniolan regional parliament to point out the “wretchedness” of Slovene literary
production and the lack of expressiveness of the Slovene language by stating “omnia mea
mecum porto“.
In the Slovene counter-discourse, translations of schoolbooks and academic works were
therefore used to prove the lexical and terminological expressiveness of the Slovene
written language. This important function was also attributed to one of the classics of
science, “Das Buch der Natur“ (“The Book of Nature”) by Friedrich Schoedler, which was
translated within the Slovenska Matica project and laid down the foundations of Slovene
scientific terminology.
After a brief presentation of a research project on translations from German into Slovene,
which is conducted by the Balkans Commission of the Austrian Academy of Science, text
examples of different genres (devotional writings, light fiction, academic texts) will
demonstrate how, due to the fact that adaptation was the prevailing operative norm of
translation, translations themselves were used as a format for the prevailing discourses,
especially the religious-moral discourse and the discourse of emancipation and
legitimisation. This had an influence on discourse practice on the one hand, and on
translation policy on the other hand. In the autopoietic system of constructing a Slovene
nation and Slovene national literature, translations, thus, did not only prove to be a
possible format of discourse but, due to their social repercussions, also turned out to be a
formative element of this discourse.

Hong QIAN
University of Macau
ya57302@umac.mo
Papers
Investigating the Changed Positioning via the
Appraisal Theory: A Case Study of Four Translations of
the Speeches Delivered by National Leaders
Why translation studies matters? By focusing on one specific aspect—speakers’
positioning in Source Text and Target Text, it is hoped that this paper will to an extent
demonstrate the correlation between translation studies and translation practice. To
achieve this purpose, the Appraisal theory will be adopted in this paper as a theoretical
framework and four translations (from English to Chinese) of Q & A part of the speeches
delivered by national leaders will serve as cases for analysis. The Appraisal theory is part
of the interpersonal metafunction in Systemic Functional Linguistics. The interpersonal
metafunction is mainly realized through the mood and modality systems. Although the
two systems can reveal the interpersonal relationships, they may fail to reflect the
speaker’s attitudes and positions. Since 1990’s, J.R. Martin and P. White as well as other
scholars have further developed the theory of interpersonal metafuntion and framed the
system of the Appraisal theory. Appraisal theory consists of 3 parts, namely attitude,
engagement and graduation, each of which is subdivided into dimensions.
This paper will mainly adopt the part of engagement as the analytical framework.
Engagement enables people to analyze how various positioning are achieved linguistically.
It consists of 2 subsystems: “monoglossic” and “heteroglossic”. Monoglossic is
propositions that are construed as “either having no alternatives or challenges at all, or as
having no alternatives or challenges which need to be acknowledged or engaged with in
the current communicative context” (White & Sano 2004). Heteroglossic is employed to
“label all formulations which, in these and other ways, acknowledge that the utterance
operates against a heteroglossic backdrop and present the speaker as recognizing or
engaged with other voices and other view points within this backdrop” (White & Sano
2004). Within heteroglossic, there is a further distinction according to if they are
“dialogically expansive” or “dialogically contractive” in their intersubjectiv functionality.
The distinction lies in if the utterances allow for dialogically alternative positions and
voices (dialogic expansion) or alternatively, act to challenge, fend off or restrict the scope
(dialogic contraction).
This paper attempts to use the Appraisal theory (mainly the part of engagement) as a tool
to investigate the speaker’s positioning in the source and target texts. The object for this
study is four translations (from English to Chinese) of Q & A part of the speeches
delivered by national leaders. The source and target texts will first be described in the
appraisal theoretical framework by employing the variables in Engagement part. Then
they will be compared so as to find out the differences in the speaker’s positioning. Finally
a discussion will be carried out to explore possible reasons that caused the differences in
the speaker’s positioning in the target text. It is indicated that the translator’s role, the
linguistic conventions and the translation purpose may all contribute to the changes of the
speaker’s positioning. These findings show that in terms of translation practice, it requires
that translators should firstly carefully think about speaker’s attitude and positioning in ST
because any word may be an indication of the ST speaker’s positioning. With the ST
speaker’s positioning ascertained, then the translator can decide how to transfer the ST
positioning into TT according to text type, translation purpose, target readers and the
context, etc. And it is also worth noting that since even a form word may reveal the ST
speaker’s positioning, no words in the ST can be randomly omitted when translating.
145

Papers
Rosa RABADAN, Camino GUTIERREZ-LANZA, Noelia RAMON
University of Leon, Spain
dfmrra@unileon.es, dfmmgl@unileon.es, dfmnrg@unileon.es
Exploring Translation Research Applicability
Description for Assessment (ACTRES/TRACE)
Translation Studies as a distinct inter-discipline has brought us academic recognition in
the last few decades, but this seems to have worked against its close utilitarian links with
other fields and their activities. One of the reasons for our relative isolation from the real
world is that there are different types of applied activities that are carried out by users
outside the research/academic community. In many environments, activities such as
translation evaluation, proofreading and editing, etc., are the responsibility of a type of
professional on the rise, the language services provider, who can benefit from translation
research in a number of ways.
This paper sets out to explore the possibilities of designing an effective and efficient tool
to contribute to the assessment of translations by using a limited number of languagepair-bound
descriptive anchor phenomena. The procedure needs to be user-friendly, so
that service providers can incorporate it easily to their daily work routine.
Personal pronouns are a good candidate for ‘anchor phenomenon’ for the language pair
English-Spanish: English always shows a formal filler in the subject slot, whereas in
Spanish subject pronouns are typically omitted, as the information related to person,
number, and gender (the latter except in the 1st and 2nd person singular) is already
included in the verbal inflections. In order to examine the real usefulness of this feature
as anchor for assessment, we need to analyse both Spanish original texts and Spanish
translations.
The methodology used has two stages:
1. Anchor results stage: Empirical data are extracted from the ACTRES English-Spanish
parallel corpus (Contrastive Analysis and Translation English-Spanish), which contains
contemporary original texts and their translations, and are subsequently compared to data
from the CREA (Corpus de Referencia del Español Actual), a large reference corpus of
original Spanish texts. If we compare Spanish original texts with texts translated from
English into Spanish, a quantitatively significant difference in the number of subject
pronouns in the translations would suggest transfer from the source language and
indicate poor management of expressive resources in the translated texts. A second type
of result would be qualitative and would concern the choice of whether to use the subject
pronouns in Spanish and, if so, to what (additional) purpose.
2. Verification of applicability stage: Empirical data are extracted from the previously
mentioned ACTRES parallel corpus and from the TRACE English-Spanish parallel corpus
(TRAnslation and CEnsorship), which contains translations dated from the 1950s to the
1980s. The results obtained in the previous stage are applied to these translated materials
by a group of ‘real world’ (non-academic) users so as to verify whether our proposal can
work efficiently for time-constrained translation evaluation tests.
The results obtained from the corpus-based description of our chosen anchor
phenomenon are easy to handle by final (applied) users and contribute, at least, to the
following activities: translation quality assessment (TQA), identification of cross-linguistic
plagiarism and identification of pseudotranslation in Spanish language texts. Our proposal
also raises implications for academic users, as it may offer new insights into descriptive
research procedures.
146

Papers
Aline REMAEL, Reinhild VANDEKERCKHOVE, Annick DE HOUWER
University College Antwerp
a.remael@ha.be
reinhild.vandekerckhove@ua.ac.be
An Investigation into the Need for Intralingual Open
Subtitling in Flanders
The Findings of an Interdisciplinary Research Project
In this paper we will be reporting on the final results of a joint research project carried
out by the University of Antwerp and University College Antwerp into the use of
intralingual subtitling for native language (Dutch) television programmes in Flanders. The
prominence of this open form of subtitling in Flanders 1 , is tied in with the fact that a
growing number of people is currently adopting a spoken variant of Dutch that
increasingly functions as a kind of ‘general Flemish’, a linguistic variant that is strongly
coloured by the Flemish regiolect of the provinces of Brabant and Antwerp, but deviates
from standard Dutch. In fact, this ‘general Flemish’ is now used in contexts where in the
(recent) past either Standard Dutch or a local dialect would have been the norm. The
decision whether or not to subtitle a particular variant on television is symptomatic of the
informal (sub)standardization process that appears to be going on in Flanders, and which
runs counter to some linguists’ historical expectations.
In an earlier stage of the project 380 hours of recordings made in January, February and
March of 2005, consisting of 798 Dutch-language programmes broadcast on VRT and
VTM (one public and one commercial channel), were assembled and categorized
according to genre as well as the presence/absence of intralingual subtitling. In a second
phase, speaker profiles were drawn up and a selection of subtitled programmes was
subjected to an in-depth analysis, looking into what exactly was subtitled and how, as
compared to interlingual subtitling appearing on programmes broadcast by the same
channels. This analysis was backed up by interviews with the policy-makers responsible
for the decision to translate and the subtitlers responsible for some of the translations.
Finally, in the last stage of the project, 7 film clips were selected from the corpus (6 with
the major Flemish standard and substandard language variants, with and without
subtitling; 1 representing northern standard Dutch from the Netherlands, without
subtitling) and shown to 480 respondents from the 4 major linguistic regions in Flanders.
The respondents consisted of three age groups (18-25, 30-40, 60-70), and were asked to
supply some minimal background information about themselves (e.g. male/female). They
were shown the 7 clips and asked to reply to a brief questionnaire inquiring into their
understanding of the clips and their appreciation of the subtitles.
The results yielded by the questionnaire are extremely interesting in different respects,
and indeed, for (socio)linguists as well as translation scholars. They throw light on the
linguistic attitudes and aptitudes of different age groups and regional groups, as well as
the need for subtitling (or not) in some unexpected cases. In other words, the findings
are also relevant for society at large, and more particularly for the determination of
linguistic policies, translation policies and translation practice at television channels.
Finally, the project resulted in a methodological design that can easily be exported to
other (multilingual) countries with different linguistic setups, and, for instance, used for
investigations into the intralingual subtitling of (some) immigrants, or speakers from
minority communities. The project is the result of collaboration between linguists and
translation scholars, and would not have materialized without this collaboration.
1 It addresses neither the deaf and hard of hearing, nor immigrant communities
147

Papers
Earlier stages of the project have yielded the following presentations and one publication:
- A. Remael, A. De Houwer, R. Vandekerckhove, 2006. ‘The intralingual subtitling of Dutch
and Flemish TV programmes in Flanders: figures and a first analysis’. “The Study of
Language & Translation", Gent, 12-14 January 2006 (Research assistant: Isabelle Van der
Niepen)
- R. Vandekerckhove, A. De Houwer, A. Remael, 2006. Intralinguale ondertiteling van
Nederlandstalige televisieprogramma's in Vlaanderen: linguïstische en extra-
linguïstische determinanten. "Vijfde sociolinguïstische conferentie", Lunteren, Nederland,
28-29 March 2006. (Research assistent: Isabelle Van der Niepen)
-R. Vandekerckhove, A. De Houwer, A. Remael & I. Van der Niepen, 2006. Intralingual
subtitling of Dutch television programmes in Flanders: new perspectives on language
variation and change, “Sociolinguistics Symposium 16”, Limerick, Ierland, 6-8 July 2006
(Research assistant: Isabelle Van der Niepen)
-A. Remael, A. De Houwer & R. Vandekerckhove, 2006. Intervention in native-language
programmes: intralingual subtitling of Dutch and Flemish TV programmes in Flanders.
“2nd Conference of the International Association for Translation and Intercultural
Studies”, University of the Western Cape, Zuid Afrika, 12-14 July 2006. (research
assistant: Nele Jaeken).
Publication:
R. Vandekerckhove, A. De Houwer, A. Remael & I. Van der Niepen, 2006. Intralinguale
ondertiteling van Nederlandstalige televisieprogramma's in Vlaanderen: linguïstische en
extra-linguïstische determinanten. In: T. Koole, J. Nortier & B. Tahitu (red.): Artikelen van
de vijfde sociolinguïstische conferentie, 503-513. Delft: Eburon
148

Papers
Hanna RISKU, Angela DICKINSON, Richard PIRCHER
Danube University Krems
hanna.risku@donau-uni.ac.at
amdtranslations@yahoo.de
richard.pircher@donau-uni.ac.at
Intellectual Capital in Modern Society
Knowledge Management in Translation Studies
From a Knowledge Management perspective, Translation Studies has much to offer
translators, translation clients and other academic communities alike. As true knowledge
workers, translators are experts in their chosen field(s) of expertise and are party to
translation and scientific knowledge and methods relevant to the development of modern
society. By drawing the translation process firmly into the main design process in
intercultural communication projects and highlighting the range of skills and knowledge
required by translation practitioners, Translation Studies not only helps translators better
recognise the context and complexity of their work and the material they deal with but
also puts them in a position to exploit their role to the benefit of all concerned. There is
doubtless much more to come in this field in the future, with developments arising not
only from the field of Translation Studies itself but also from interdisciplinary activities
linking it to other fields such as Knowledge Management. Knowledge management (KM)
has gained increasing importance in the business world over the last decade, although the
concept of knowledge work is in fact far older, dating back to the 1950s when the term
“knowledge worker” was coined by the management expert, Peter Drucker, in his 1959
book Landmarks of Tomorrow. The recent rise in the significance of KM as a business
approach has again brought knowledge work to the forefront of management research,
where it is used to refer to people whose work primarily involves the development or use
of knowledge. Numerous examples are given of the types of professions that can
constitute knowledge workers, including, but not limited to researchers, engineers,
product developers, analysts and teachers. However, despite the fact that it obviously
merits being regarded as a knowledge profession, the field of professional translation is
still rarely, if ever included in general discussions on knowledge work. Nowadays, KM
assumes an increasingly important role in business, acting as an organisational driver and
with organisational KM seen as an integrated approach to achieving organisational goals
that places particular focus on "knowledge" as the new factor of production (see Sammer
et al 2003). It centres around the recognition that knowledge forms a key corporate
asset, and that organisations have good reason to try to manage this knowledge or
intellectual capital.
Aside from the obvious relevance of organisational KM for in-house translation
departments or translation agencies, this paper aims to show that translation and
Translation Studies matter both on an organisational and a larger social level by
demonstrating that:
1. the knowledge involved and embedded in professional translation forms a key
factor in value creation in organisations, and
2. the knowledge generated in the field of Translation Studies forms an important
part of the intellectual capital in the knowledge society.
The development of the KM movement also shows interesting parallels to the history of
Translation Studies: as the KM movement has developed, two different strategies have
emerged, namely the codification and the personalisation approaches (see Hansen et al.
1999).
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Papers
The codification approach focuses on the managing of information, regarding knowledge
as identifiable objects that can be stored and managed in information systems and
dealing primarily with explicit knowledge (since this is generally more readily accessible
and can be easily codified). Parallels to Translation Studies can be found here, for
example, in the system linguistic approaches to translation. The personalisation approach
looks more at human issues, i.e. managing and mobilizing people to develop, share and
use knowledge. Links can be seen here, for example, to intercultural transfer processes
and the professional development aspects of Translation Studies.
Recent trends show that the importance of the human and cultural aspects of KM now
seems to outweigh that of an IT-based knowledge strategy. A further trend in KM is the
recent focus on personal KM tools and techniques, with experts and practitioners
increasingly coming to the conclusion that organisational KM can really only become
feasible if it first provides people with effective tools to manage their own knowledge.
Personal KM revolves around a set of core issues, methods and tools aimed at managing
personal knowledge and information, supporting networking activities (e.g. communities
of practice and knowledge communities) and making best use of one's own personal
capital.
From a translation and Translation Studies perspective, this development is particularly
interesting for individual and freelance translators who can benefit greatly from access to
methods and techniques directed at KM on an individual level. Although translators are
often primarily seen as language professionals, their knowledge and skills extend far
beyond their language pairs. Translation is an analytical-synthetical, research intensive
process that requires extensive background knowledge (both tacit and explicit) not only of
the source and target languages and cultures, but also of the subject matter of the text,
the purpose of the translation, the requirements of the target audience, the potential
roles of the translator and the translation methods and strategies suitable for different
cultures and communication situations. In times of global cooperation and conflict,
intercultural communication helps smooth the way for dialogue and successful value
creation. To overcome cultural and communication barriers, societies today need access
to professional people with the right knowledge and competencies. As intercultural
communication experts and knowledge professionals, translators are in an excellent
position to make a unique contribution to the value creation process and this is where
Translation Studies comes into play. The challenge now facing Translation Studies in this
regard is to ensure they assume their rightful role as an integral part of Knowledge
Management endeavours.
References
Dickinson, A. (2002): Translating in Cyberspace. Virtual Knowledge Communities for
Freelance Translators. Master Thesis: Danube University
Krems Drucker, P. F. (1957): Landmarks of Tomorrow. New York: Harper Hansen,
M. T., Nohria, N., Tierney, T. (1991): What’s Your Strategy for Managing Knowledge?
Harvard Business Review 77, No. 2, pp. 106-11
Risku, H. & Pircher, R. (in print): Translatory Cooperation: Roles, Skills and Coordination
in Intercultural Text Design. In: Wolf, Michaela (ed.): Übersetzen – Translating –
Traduire: Towards a "Social Turn"? Münster: LIT.
Sammer, M. (ed.) (2003): An Illustrated Guide to Knowledge Management. Graz:
Wissensmanagement Forum
150

Jeannette RISSMANN
ITI Scotland
jeannette@mortispeed.plus.com
Papers
Drama Translation, Dialect and National Identity
Theatre performs an important role in any given society. Translated plays contribute to
our cultural life. New worlds open up: countries, societies, cultures, people, their ways of
living and thinking. The audience is encouraged to compare these different worlds with
and, more importantly think about, their own society. Often, this process is unconscious;
what is foremost in their minds is an entertaining and enjoyable night out. Research in
drama translation studies is rooted in practice. Scholars are researchers, practitioners and
teachers and the results of their work will have an effect on that same practice and the
training of new translators and, thus, on the day out at the theatre and, eventually on
culture and society. Why then is it possible to observe that theory does not always reflect
practice and practice does not always follow theory? Focusing on translation of drama for
the stage as defined by Johnston (1996), this paper will explore approaches to dialect
translation in theory and practice. The use of dialect in a play is not arbitrary, but
performs specific functions. What are these functions and how does the translator
approach their translation - taking into account the special nature of a play text (van den
Broeck 1980, Bassnett-McGuire 1985)? Five strategies will be discussed in detail:
neutralization of the ST dialect, translation into a TL dialect, into a combination of TL
dialect and sociolect, into an artificial language and translation into the broken language
of a foreigner. When examining these strategies, connections will be drawn to factors that
influence the translator’s choice of strategy, including such concepts as skopos,
foreignisation and ideology of translation. The discussion will seek to find answers to the
question: If scholars of drama translation recommend caution with the strategy of
translating a SL dialect into a TL dialect with or without sociolect (Rozhin 2000, Kolb
1998) - why is this strategy frequently encountered? Based on Aaltonen’s (2000) assertion
that the choice of a non-standard by a playwright may be political, it will be argued that
this may also be true for the translator’s choice. A case in point, which will be explored in
detail, is the work of Quebecois playwright Michel Tremblay (others are Jeanne-Mance
Delisle and Molière) which was translated into Scots rather than English for what are
essentially political reasons.
Long (forthcoming, 2007) points out that the use of the vernacular in translation gives it
status and, thus, supports the establishment of a national identity in the formation of
nation states as well as in the assertion of regional identities. This paper will argue that
similar processes can be observed in Scotland, that the translation of plays into Scots
performs an important role in establishing a specifically Scottish national identity separate
from that of a generalized sense of Britishness. Given the collapse of the Eastern
European bloc in the not so distant past and the surge in the development of new nation
states it remains to be examined if the translation of SL dialect into TL dialect can be
encountered to a similar extent in other countries. What is the effect of TL dialect on the
audience: does it seem outright wrong, awkward, is it even noticed or simply accepted
and seen as natural? And if the latter is the case, would that mean it is time to revise or
at least qualify above recommendation to not translate ST dialect in a play text?
151

Papers
Jales ROCHA
Sorbonne Nouvelle
jalesrocha@gmail.com
Translation of Musicals
The Example of “Les Misérables”
Although relatively little has been written about the translation of musicals, this is not an
uncommon practice in the theater world. In some parts of the world (such as Asia),
subtitling seems to be the norm, and the same happens in musical films – in this
particular case, subtitling tends to be used systematically in most areas of the world.
However, when musicals in theatrical format are taken overseas, they are often translated
to be sung and acted out in the local language.
In Brazil, musicals regained popularity in the early 2000s, and several productions have
been translated from English into Portuguese for performance ever since, such as “Les
Misérables”, “The Beauty and the Beast”, and “The Phantom of the Opera”. The 2002
translation of “Les Misérables” from English into Brazilian Portuguese constitutes the
corpus used in the research associated with the paper. Alongside recent publications
related to vocal translation, such as the ones edited by Gorlée (2005) and Marschall
(2004), the main theoretical frame used in the study is the Interpretive Theory of
Translation (ITT), developed at the Higher School of Interpreters and Translators (ESIT),
of the Sorbonne, Paris, France. This theory, initially restricted to conference interpreting,
was later extended to translation in general. It focuses on the translation/interpreting
process and its different phases and it claims that translation involves both cognitive and
affective components.
The translation of musicals is one of the fields not yet explored in the light of this theory
started in the late 1950s. In the process of translating a musical, both notional and
emotional elements must be taken into account, as the same story needs to be retold in a
different language (which limits adaptation), and the new public needs to feel similar
aesthetic sensations (and this requires artistic writing). All these aspects are common to
literary translation in general, but musicals – as well as operas – offer additional
challenges, as they also have musical and dramatic constraints. Therefore, several verbal
and non-verbal aspects must be considered. Elements such as length of words (as they
need to fit into the melody), rhyme, syllabic prominence, and choice of vowels are some
of the formal aspects that cannot be neglected — not to mention the strategies needed to
convey the message clearly and effectively. These aspects are developed in the paper
through practical examples taken from “Les Misérables”, which constitutes part of the
author’s ongoing Ph.D. research project.
Main Bibliographical References
Apter, Ronnie. 1989. “The Impossible Takes a Little Longer: Translating Opera into
English.” Translation Review 30/31: 27-37.
Gorlée, Dinda L. 2005. (ed.) Song and Significance: Virtues and Vices of Vocal
Translation. Amsterdam and New York: Rodopi.
Gorlée, Dinda L. 1997. “Intercode Translation: Words and Music in Opera.” Target 9/2:
235-270.
Etkind, Efim. 1982. Un Art en crise. Essai de poétique de la traduction poétique,
translated into French by W. Troubetzkoy. Lausanne: L’Âge d’Homme
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Papers
Grandmont, Suzanne de. 1978. “Problèmes de traduction dans le domaine de la poésie
chantée.” Meta 23/1: 97-108.
Israël, Fortunato. 2001. “Pour une nouvelle conception de la traduction littéraire : le
modèle interpretative.” Traduire 190/191: 158-167.
Lederer, Marianne. 2003. Translation: the Interpretive Model. Manchester: St. Jerome
Publishing.
Marschall, Gottfried. (ed.) 2004. La traduction des livrets : Aspects théoriques, historiques
et pragmatiques. Paris: Presses de l’Université Paris-Sorbonne
Nida, Eugene A. 1964. Toward a Science of Translation, with Special Reference to
Principles and Procedures Involved in Bible Translating.
Leiden: E.J. Brill. Seleskovitch, Danica. 1987. “Traduction technique et traduction
littéraire, différence ou opposition ?” Traduire 4: 88-99.
153

Jonathan ROSS
Bogazici University
jonathan.ross@boun.edu.tr
Papers
Translatological Turns?
The Spread of Ideas beyond Translation Studies
Since 1972, when James Holmes took the bold step of defining ‘The Name and Nature of
Translation Studies’ in his groundbreaking paper at the Third International Congress of
Applied Linguistics, Translation Studies has come a long way as a discipline in its own
right. Departments and programmes dedicated to the practice and study of written and
oral translation have been set up in educational institutions worldwide, and scholars from
these and other departments have produced a wealth of research and literature on
translation and translations. Several academic associations have been founded, as have
numerous field-specific periodicals, and the amount of conferences, seminars and
workshops devoted to Translation Studies and its manifold branches seems to increase
every year.
All this does not mean, of course, that Translation Studies is a hermetic discipline. This
has never been the case and, presumably, never can be. A large number of scholars who
teach, and research into, translation find themselves employed not in departments of
Translation Studies, Translation and Interpreting, or their counterparts in other languages
and cultures, but in longer-established disciplines, especially linguistics, language and
literature, and comparative literature. In their theorising and research, moreover,
translation and interpreting scholars draw heavily on notions, paradigms and
methodologies originating in these and other disciplines, such as cultural studies,
sociology and psychology. Indeed, at the same time as Translation Studies is underlining
its credentials as a discipline in itself and gaining wider recognition within the academic
world and society at large, scholars associated with this discipline are increasingly opting
to conduct interdisciplinary work.
While appropriating models and findings from various disciplines and thereby potentially
paving the way for further ‘turns’ within Translation Studies, they are also enriching other
areas of study by showing what can be gained in these by applying ways of thinking
about, and looking at, translation(s). No longer does translation research focus almost
exclusively on literary translation, and interpreting research on conference interpreting.
Researchers are now devoting attention to a much wider range of written and spoken
texts and, moreover, considering not only what Roman Jakobson termed ‘interlingual
translation’ but also non-linguistic or not-purely-linguistic products and processes in which
things are ‘carried across’.
The refreshing extroversion of recent work in Translation Studies has apparently not gone
unnoticed. Ideas and methods developed and debated within the Translation Studies
community are having an impact, albeit still a modest one, on scholars primarily involved
in other areas. Through bibliographic research carried out using, among other tools, the
Arts and Humanities Citation Index, I have ascertained that invocations of the works of
translation scholars can be found in publications by researchers in fields as diverse as
Business Studies, Landscape Architecture, Public Health, History of Religion, and
Information Science.
My paper will examine the deployment of notions of translation and methods from
Translation Studies in a selection of these publications. It will describe how
translatological ‘conceptual and methodological tools’ have been adopted and adapted
(Schäffner 2004: 6), in other words ‘translated’, to suit the needs of the authors in
question and to illuminate the (inter)disciplines to which they belong.
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It will also evaluate the significance of this contact with Translation Studies for the
disciplines in question, as well as for future inter- and multidisciplinary work with a
translational dimension.
References
Chesterman, Andrew. 1997. Memes of Translation: The Spread of Ideas in Translation
Theory. Amsterdam and Philadelphia: John Benjamins.
Gentzler, Edwin. 2003. ‘Interdisciplinary connections.’ Perspectives-Studies in
Translatology 11.1: 11-24.
Schäffner, Christina. 2004. ‘Researching Translation and Interpreting.’ in Christina
Schäffner, ed. Translation Research and Interpreting Research: Traditions, Gaps and
Synergies. Clevedon, Buffalo and Toronto: Multilingual Matters. 1-9.
155

Lucia RUIZ ROSENDO
University Pablo de Olavide
lruiros@upo.es
156
Papers
Profesión y formación en el ámbito de la medicina
Estudio exploratorio desde la perspectiva del
intérprete y del usuario
Universidad Pablo de Olavide Las reuniones de medicina internacionales constituyen en la
era actual uno de los acontecimientos celebrados con más frecuencia en España, y los
organizadores suelen recurrir a los servicios de interpretación ante la confluencia de
distintas lenguas y culturas. Por consiguiente, la medicina representa un ámbito de
especialización que ofrece amplias posibilidades a los intérpretes en formación,
especialmente a aquellos cuya combinación lingüística es inglés-español, ya que en las
últimas décadas se constata el auge del inglés como lingua franca de la comunidad
médica internacional. No obstante, son pocos los estudios realizados en este ámbito,
especialmente aquellos que tratan de profundizar en el mercado para adaptar la
formación a las necesidades profesionales reales.
Por este motivo, decidimos realizar un estudio exploratorio cualitativo a través de
cuestionarios retrospectivos distribuidos por muestreo aleatorio simple con el objetivo de
conocer la percepción de los dos grupos de actores más implicados en el proceso de la
interpretación: por un lado, los intérpretes profesionales y por otro los médicos usuarios.
El estudio analiza una serie de aspectos que podríamos considerar cruciales en la
formación y profesión de la interpretación: en primer lugar, los factores contextuales de
los congresos de medicina partiendo de la base del concepto de hipertexto de Pöchhacker
(1992) (eventos multilingües médicos y temática más frecuentes, modalidades de
interpretación más utilizadas, zonas geográficas, tipología de los participantes y
elementos verbales y no verbales).
En segundo lugar, la preparación de un congreso de medicina (aceptación de un
determinado encargo, nivel de especialización, proceso, preparación terminológica y
conceptual, fuentes documentales). Por último, aspectos relativos a la comunicación y
evaluación de la calidad en los congresos de medicina (reticencia de oradores y
participantes hacia un intérprete no especialista en medicina, grado de comprensión del
mensaje original necesario para realizar una interpretación de calidad, elementos no
verbales que ayudan a la comprensión y parámetros de calidad más valorados). Incluimos
igualmente datos relativos al perfil del intérprete que trabaja frecuentemente en
congresos médicos (experiencia, formación, afiliación a asociaciones profesionales,
desarrollo de la profesión) y del médico usuario (experiencia previa con la interpretación,
expectativas, intereses, entre otros).
La relevancia del presente estudio estriba en su aplicación en la formación y en la
profesión ya que trata de profundizar en el mercado para adaptar la formación a las
necesidades profesionales reales. Desde el punto de vista de la formación, consideramos
que ayuda a conocer las necesidades, requisitos y exigencias tanto de intérpretes como
de usuarios facilitando y encaminando la preparación del futuro intérprete especializado
de medicina. Por otra parte, desde la perspectiva de la profesión, estimamos que el
estudio pone de manifiesto los criterios de los usuarios, lo cual podría ayudar al intérprete
profesional que trabaja en congresos de medicina, sobre todo a aquellos con una menor
experiencia, a conocer a priori más aspectos sobre este mercado. Concebimos nuestro
estudio como un punto de partida sólido a partir del cual seguir investigando en el futuro
para obtener una visión sólida de la estructura, características y necesidades del mercado
de la interpretación médica no solo en España sino en otros países en los que se destaque
la celebración de este tipo de reuniones.

Papers
Por lo tanto, el objetivo de este estudio es proporcionar una idea general de la situación
de la práctica profesional de la interpretación médica, desde la perspectiva de intérpretes
y médicos usuarios, que sirva de punto de partida a investigaciones futuras en este
ámbito, ya sea en España o en otros países en los que se celebren frecuentemente
reuniones médicas internacionales.
157

Susana SANTOS ÂNGELO SALGADO VALDEZ
Faculty of Letters, University of Lisbon
valdez.susana@gmail.com
Papers
The Unaccredited Writer
The Journalist Role in the Translator’s Invisibility
A Portuguese Case-Study
There is a perceptible difference between the translator’s image in the eyes of the
Portuguese community and the role played by the translator as a cultural mediator. What
is the function of the journalist’s perspective in this dichotomy? In which way it
contradicts or supports the general image of the translation services provider? Does the
media promote an interest and awakens an awareness of the translator’s role or, on the
contrary, disregards that the text in question is even translated? In short, how does the
media face the translated texts?
This paper proposes to analyze the journalistic approach towards books translated into
Portuguese in a national newspaper with high circulation. In a society where the majority
of sold/ read literature is foreigner and, therefore, translated, is the role of the translator
acknowledged or dismissed? It is known that there are publishing companies that omit
the name of the translator of their books. Does the same happen in newspapers? Is there
a concern to comment on or critic the translator's work? Or are all the translated
publications seen as the originals itself?
This paper will present an analysis of specific sections of the Saturday printed edition of a
Portuguese newspaper throughout the period of six months. The aim is not to evaluate
the translator's image from a diachronic point of view, but to study a significant corpus in
order to enlight this question. The chosen newspaper – Expresso – is, not only, very
popular, but is also consider a reference paper. On one hand, we will take a closer look at
the literature section called Livros (Books) of the section "Actual" (Current) of the
newspaper. In this section, the newspaper presents a small summary of some particular
books, some of which are translated books. In addition, in this section we can read a
literary criticism of a particular book that, some times, includes a translation criticism.
On the other hand, we will also focus our attention in the economy related section,
Economia, and, in particular, in the section “Ideias em Estante “(Ideas in the Book-Case),
where readers can get acquainted with the latest published books of the field, that are in
their majority translated, and read the summary of some books that according to the
journalist are more relevant for some particular reason.
Are there differences between the approaches of translations within the same newspaper?
And if they are, of which nature are they? Are all translators mentioned in the same way
or just a particular kind of translators? Perhaps only authors that are also translators are
mentioned. What kind of translation criticism do we have? With this paper we aim to
address the general approach towards the translator’s work in the media and, in
particular, in this newspaper, while, at the same time, answering these questions.
158

Christina SCHAEFFNER
Aston University, Birmingham, UK
c.schaeffner@aston.ac.uk
Papers
Why Translation Matters for Politics
International politics as well as bilateral political relations involve translation to a large
extent. For example, bilateral and multilateral agreements are made available in two or
more languages, press conferences with visiting heads of state are interpreted, and some
governments put translations of important documents on their websites. For informing the
public of political events and decisions, the mass media play an important role in
mediating politics, and thus also in mediating ideologies. The media report about political
decisions and events not only in their home country, but also about those that happened
in other countries. In such reports, statements by politicians are quoted on a regular
basis, often in direct speech. These quotes are provided in the language of the media,
which signals that a translation process had been involved. Articles in the media,
however, are socially and culturally determined, and as a consequence, also the ‘direct
voice’ of a politician is in fact a mediated voice. Similarly, politicians usually comment on
and react to statements made by politicians from another country, and often they react to
the text as it had been made available to them in translation. Such reactions may in turn
be quoted and commented on in the mass media, e.g. in news reports or editorials. In
such cases, the mediation of voices is even more complex.
In Critical Discourse Analysis, the concept of ‘recontextualisation’ is used to study the links
between a text and pre-existing discourses the text draws on. In this way, discourses
spread between genres and fields, linking to form textual chains, or chains of discourse.
Recontextualisation always involves the transformation of information and arguments,
which comes in the form of additions, deletions, rearrangements, substitutions,
elaborations. The kinds of transformations that occur as texts move along the political and
media chain are dependent on the goals, values and interests of the contexts into which
the discourse is being recontextualised. The same applies to contexts in which
recontextualisation involves translation. This paper will illustrate examples of
transformations that occur as a result of recontextualisation of translated political
discourse, illustrated with reference to media reports about (reactions to) political
speeches and interviews with politicians (language pair: English and German). As previous
research into news translation has shown (cf.
http://www.warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/BCCS/research/AHRB.html), translation, although an
integral part in providing global news, seems to be absent from communicating about the
process. It is usually the journalists themselves who perform translation work, and in this
process they are guided by the values of news journalism. That is, the institutional
context of news agencies and mass media (in particular time constraints and the hybrid
nature of the linguistic processes involved in creating global news) determines
recontextualisation strategies. Political institutions (such as governments, ministries,
political parties) are other examples of institutional contexts which pose challenges to
Translation Studies. In certain cases, it is politicians themselves who produce translations
(for example, joint statements or declarations between political parties).
This paper will therefore link the data analysis to questions such as: who produces
translations of speeches and interviews by politicians and of similar political documents?
Do governments have their own in-house translation services? Are press releases made
available to foreign journalists in translation? Do journalists use these prepared texts for
their reports, or do they prepare their own translations? Are feedback mechanisms in
place to check what transformations occur in recontextualisation processes (e.g. media
reports about political discourse)?
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Papers
Anne SCHJOLDAGER, Kirsten WØLCH RASMUSSEN
Aarhus School of Business
asc@asb.dk, kwr@asb.dk
How Does Revision Contribute to Translation Quality?
How does revision contribute to translation quality? Inspired by the Interim Report of the
IAMLADP Working Group on Training of Language Staff (20 June 2001), we decided to
carry out a small-scale study of professional practice within précis-writing, revision and
editing in Denmark and other European Countries (Schjoldager, Rasmussen and
Thomsen. In press) in connection with the development of a pilot module for the
European Master in Translation (EMT). With the kind help of the Standing Committee of
IAMLADP as well as a few of our own contacts, a web-based questionnaire yielded many
eye-opening and interesting responses from a sample of European practitioners and
decision-makers within the translation industry. These findings were supplemented nicely
by a focus-group interview with the translator-editors of the English Language Editing
Service of Direction Générale de la Traduction. In general terms, our survey confirmed the
findings of the IAMLADP report, namely that there is a particular need for translators to
be trained to carry out revision, editing and précis-writing, and it offered much useful
input on how to proceed with this training. The survey also helped us to pinpoint
confusing terms and their meanings: Whereas most respondents seemed to distinguish
conceptually between the correction/improvement of original texts, on the one hand, and
a similar process in connection with translations, on the other, there was no
terminological consensus. A review of the literature soon revealed that most scholars
make similar distinctions and use a variety of terms to refer to them (see, for instance,
Lee’s (2006) review of revision theory). For our pilot module, we chose to employ
Mossop’s (2001) distinction between editing, for the correction/improvement of original
texts, and revision, for a similar process in connection with translations, because it is both
logical and operational. This distinction is also made in the present paper. Our work with
the EMT module made us painfully aware that the area of professional revision (as
defined by Mossop 2001), in particular, lacks necessary in-depth empirical research. We
have therefore decided to investigate further the reality of professional revision, using the
current situation in Denmark as a case in point. Based on a review of the literature and
the above-mentioned surveys, we shall assume that revision is carried out in order to
improve translation quality and shall explore to what extent revision actually improves
translation quality and how it is achieved (or not, as the case may be).
We intend to explore this from three angles:
(a) Revision policies Questionnaires will be sent to the managers (decision-makers) of
major (i) translation agencies and (ii) companies with an in-house translation section. This
part of the investigation will attempt to answer questions such as: How is revision
defined? Why is it carried out? How often? What kinds of revision are carried out? Who
are the revisers? What are their qualifications? Who are the translators? What are their
qualifications? What translations are revised? What are the procedures? What are the
guidelines? Are they explicit? How is the relation between quality and revision perceived?
(b) Revision practices Based on the results of the questionnaire investigation, a few
translators and revisers will be selected for focus-group interviews (a method also
employed within translation studies by Schjoldager and Zethsen 2003). Here our aim is
explore the reality of revision from a practitioner’s point of view.
(c) Samples of revision In order for us to study actual revision products, respondents
will be asked to provide samples of their own work.
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The study of these should include analyses of (i) the target-text brief, (ii) the revision
brief, (iii) actual working procedures, (iv) the source text, incl. its genre, (v) reviser’s
corrections/improvements, and (vi) the quality of the end product. In the final phases of
the project, we shall attempt to determine how the evidence of our empirical investigation
relates to available theories within translation studies, exploring if a modification of
available theories is necessary and attempting to suggest a best-practice guide that might
modify practice.
For the present paper, we shall concentrate on these general research questions:
(1) To what extent does revision contribute to translation quality?
(2) What are the obstacles experienced by decision-makers, revisers and translators?
(3) How may these obstacles be overcome?
(4) How do our findings relate to available theories within translation studies?
References
IAMLADP Working Group on Training of Language Staff (20 June 2001), Interim Report of
the (2001): United Nations System: Restricted distribution.
Lee, Hyang (2006): ”Révision: définition et paramètres”. Meta 51: 2. 410-419.
Mossop, Brian (2001): Revising and Editing for Translators [Translation Practices
Explained]. Manchester:, UK/Northampton, MA: St. Jerome.
Schjoldager, Anne and Karen Korning Zethsen (2003): “How skopos is established by the
professional translator: Preliminary results of a focus group”. In Veisbergs, Andrejs (ed.).
The Third Riga Symposium on Pragmatic Aspects of Translation. Proceedings. Riga:
University of Latvia & Aarhus School of Business. 140-152.
Schjoldager, Anne, Kirsten W. Rasmussen and Christa Thomsen (In press): “Préciswriting,
revision and editing: Piloting the European Master in Translation”. To appear in:
Meta.
161

Mojca SCHLAMBERGER BREZAR
University of Ljubljana
mojca.brezar1@guest.arnes.si
Papers
L'analyse contrastive et son utilité pour les études de
traduction
Le cas du gérondif et du participe français et ses
équivalents en slovène
L'analyse contrastive, qui a pour le but d'analyser les différences et les similitudes de
plusieurs langues au niveau phonologique, morphologique et syntaxique aussi bien qu'au
niveau de la sémantique et du lexique a vu ses meilleurs temps dans les années '50 avec
La Stylistique comparée du français et de l’anglais (1958) de J.-P. Vinay et J. Darbelnet.
Aujourd'hui l'analyse contrastive est au programme de toutes les écoles de traduction,
soit comme le cours théorique prenant en compte les différences et les similitudes entre
deux langues, soit comme partie importante des travaux dirigés où il s'agit de la pratique
de la traduction. Pourtant l'intérêt scientifique pour elle ne va pas croissant – elle tend à
être remplacée par les études pragmatiques sur le contexte de la communication qui
renoncent au structuralisme grammatical et où le contexte devrait fournir l'explication de
toutes les différences qui apparaissent entre deux langues. Nous voudrions démontrer
tout de même que l'importance de l'analyse contrastive dans le cadre des études de
traduction et la traductologie reste assez grande aujourd'hui et qu'elle peut être
considérée comme la base des études même dans une société impregnée de la
pragmatique. En plus, elle peut jouer le rôle d'util d'analyse dans la branche la plus
récente des études de traduction, notamment l'analyse des corpus parallèles et
comparables. Pour cette démonstation, nous avons choisi l'exemple du participe et du
gérondif français et ses équivalents slovènes. Le gérondif et le participe en français, qui
s'utilisent largement dans les phrases avec les sujets identiques ainsi bien que dans
l'usage absolu et véhiculent plusieurs relations logiques, notamment le temps, la cause, la
condition, l'hypothèse, peuvent être traduits par les mêmes moyens vers le slovène, mais
cette traduction, qui pourrait être de règle au XIXe siècle, n'a pas de confirmation dans
les textes originaux du slovène contemporain. Ils Nous avons constitué un corpus assez
varié dans les deux langues à la base des textes politiques, journalistiques et littéraires.
Nous avons élaboré des corpus parallèles dont l'original était en français et la traduction
en slovène dans le cadre des textes politiques et littéraires. Nous avons choisi les
traductions qui existaient déjà. Nous avons aussi fait un choix des textes comparables
pour les textes politiques et littéraires. L'analyse des textes journalistiques se faisait
uniquement dans le cadre des corpus comparables. Il s'en est suivi de l'étude des corpus
parallèles que le gérondif et le participe sont parfois traduits par la structure
correspondante en slovène, c'est à dire le gérondif (deležje) et le participe (deležnik).
Cette tendance a surtout été soulignée dans les corpus parallèles des textes politiques.
Dans les corpus comparables où les textes comparés ont été les originaux dans les deux
langues, nous n'avons presque jamais trouvé cette structure en slovène contemporain. La
fréquence des gérondifs dans les textes originals en slovène a été vérifiée dans le cadre
du corpus général de la langue slovène FIDA. La grammaire contrastive, qui trouve ses
vérifications dans l'analyse des corpus, peut fournir des preuves de fréquence aux
traducteurs aussi bien qu'aux traductologues et les aider à prendre des décisions.
162

Dieter Hermann SCHMITZ
Papers
The Finnish Association of Translators and Interpreters
trdisc@uta.fi
Die Kirche im Dorf oder die Regierung im Wald lassen
Zum Übersetzungsproblem der Namen von Ämtern,
Einrichtungen, Institutionen und Vereinen
Auf die (provokant zugespitzte) Frage, warum die Translationswissenschaft von
Bedeutung ist, lässt sich m.E. am ehesten mit ihrem praktischen Nutzen im
Translationsprozess antworten, ihrer Anwendbarkeit und der Hilfestellung, die sie bei
konkreten Übersetzungsproblemen bietet. Während man deskriptiven Ansätzen
„vorwerfen“ könnte, im Statischen des bloßen Beschreibens zu verharren und
konsequenzenlos zu sein, und man der Theoriebildung „anlasten“ könnte, sich in oft
fruchtlosen Streitereien um die Hoheit einzelner Schulen, ihrer Begriffssysteme und
Perspektiven zu verlieren, bietet die angewandte Translationswissenschaft zumeist
‚handgreifliches’ Werkzeug etwa in Form von Vorgehensmustern, Strategievorschlägen
und Verfahrensmodellen, die letztlich immer auch perspektiv angelegt sind und somit dem
Translator Handlungssicherheit vermitteln und bewusste Enscheidungshilfen bieten.
Probleme, wie sie beispielsweise beim Übersetzen der (Eigen-)Namen von Ämtern,
Institutionen, Gesellschaften, Organisationen usw. auftreten können, sollten nicht
unsystematsich aufgrund von Intuition und Gefühl gelöst werden, sondern vom
Übersetzer resp. einem Studenten der Translationswissenschaft als bewusste
Entscheidung nach bestimmten Kriterien bewältigt werden. Der Grad an Bewusstheit und
die Art des systematischen Vorgehens mit klaren Begriffen unterscheidet wohl am ehesten
den professionell geschulten Translator vom Gelegenheitsübersetzer oder Autodidakten.
In meinem Beitrag diskutiere ich das erwähnte Problem der Übersetzung von
„Ämternamen“ im Sprachenpaar Finnisch-Deutsch für Nachrichtenzwecke. In der
Fachliteratur, in Handbüchern und Ratgebern werden für solche und ähnliche Fälle – in
Abhängigkeit von der Funktion der Übersetzung, dem Auftrag, der
Kommunikationssituation, dem Sprachenpaar, den ZT-Rezipienten sowie einer Reihe
weiterer Faktoren – unterschiedliche Lösungsmöglichkeiten angeboten: Die Palette reicht
von der Verwendung eines funktionalen Äquivalents (Bsp.: DE: „Amtsgericht“ vs. FI:
käräjäoikeus) und dessen möglicher Erweiterung mithilfe lexikalischer Mittel, über
Paraphrasierungen, erklärende Umschreibungen sowie dem Rückgriff auf
Editionstechniken, hin zu Generalisierungen oder formalen Äquivalenten, bis zur
Fremdwortentlehnung oder gar der Neuschaffung eines Ausdrucks (vgl. Kinnunen 2006).
Hinzu kommen verschiedene Mischformen sowie – als weitere Alternative im
Übersetzungsprozess – die Auslassung, die aber nur sehr bedingt verwendbar ist. Doch
was tun mit Namen von Einrichtungen wie „Suomen Ääni- ja kuvatallennetuottajat“
(Glied-für-Glied: Suomen+ Ääni-+ ja+ kuva+ tallenne+ tuottajat ≈ Finnlands/ Finnische+
Geräusch/ Klang/ Stimme/ Laut+ und+ Bild/ Foto+ Aufzeichnung/ Aufnahme+ Hersteller/
Produzent/ Erzeuger)? Oder „Säteilyturvakeskus“ (Glied-für-Glied: Säteily+ turva+ keskus
≈ Strahlung/ Ausstrahlung+ Schutz/ Schirm/ Obhut+ Mitte/ Zentrum/ Zentrale)? Die
weiter oben erwähnten Möglichkeiten zeigen zwar grundsätzliche Lösungswege auf,
erwecken aber z.T. den etwas trügerischen Eindruck, als würde jeder Übersetzer
gleichsam wieder bei Null anfangen.
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In der universitären Lehre sollte angehenden Übersetzern (im persönlichen Falle:
Studierende im Sprachenpaar FI-DE mit Deutsch als B-Arbeitssprache) zwar eine kritischreflektierende
Herangehensweise und der Mut zu eigenen Entscheidungen vermittelt
werden, doch zugleich empfiehlt sich im beschriebenen Problemfall die Rückversicherung
bei Autoritäten, die Suche nach dem „translatorischen Präzedenzfall“ und dessen
Evaluierung sowie eine Einschätzung, was an Übersetzungen möglicherweise schon
bekannt und etabliert ist.
Vereinfacht ausgedrückt: Statt abzuwägen, wie übersetzt werden könnte, sollte die
Problemlösung beginnen mit der Recherche danach, wie bereits – mit Rücksicht auf die
Situation – übersetzt worden ist. Eine besondere Rolle spielt dabei die Besprechung mit
Betroffenen oder – wenn man so will – die Konsultation des Denotats. D.h. vor
Verwendung eines übersetzten Namens für eine Organisation, Gesellschaft, Institution
etc. wäre selbige evtl. zu kontaktieren und Lösungsmögichkeiten abzusprechen.
Auf Grundlage dieser Überlegungen stellt der Beitrag das Arbeiten und die
Entscheidungsabläufe im Rahmen eines Kurses vor, in dem für einen Radiosender
Nachrichten von Studenten vom Finnischen ins Deutsche übersetzt werden.
164

Jürgen F. SCHOPP
University of Tampere
jurgen.schopp@uta.fi
Papers
Auf dem Weg in die Professionalität?
Anmerkungen zur europäischen Übersetzungsnorm
DIN EN 15038
Die im Jahr 2006 in Kraft getretene Europäische Norm EN 15038 Translation services –
Service requirements (Deutsche Fassung: DIN EN 15038 Übersetzungs-Dienstleistungen –
Dienstleistungsanforderungen), erstellt vom Technischen Komitee CEN/BT/TF 138
Translation Services, soll in den 29 beteiligten Translationskulturen vom Nordkap bis
Sizilien, von Island bis Zypern der Qualitätssicherung und Zertifizierung von
Übersetzungsdienstleistungen dienen. Dies basiert auf „Festlegung und Definition von
Anforderungen, die für das Erbringen einer qualitativ hochwertigen Dienstleistung durch
Übersetzungsdienstleister erforderlich sind“ (DIN EN 15038, S. 4). Durch Beschreibung
und Festlegung der gesamten Dienstleistung, ihrer Arbeitsprozesse und Anforderungen
soll Übersetzerinnen und Übersetzern geholfen werden, „den Bedürfnissen des Marktes
gerecht zu werden“ (ibid.). Darüber hinaus werden von den Urhebern als mittelbare Ziele
genannt: „das Vertrauen in die professionelle Leistung unseres Berufes steigern“ sowie
„Image und Lobby des Übersetzerberufes auf eine mit anderen Berufen vergleichbare
Ebene anheben“ (so der Obmann des deutschen Ausschusses Enrique López-Ebri in MDÜ
6/2004:11). Dies ist als Eingeständnis zu werten, dass mancherorts die Ausübungsformen
schriftlicher Translation noch nicht als vollgültiger Beruf angesehen werden bzw.
angesehen werden können, m.a.W., dass wesentliche Merkmale eines Berufes (wie
strukturierte Ausbildung und Aneignung von relevanten Kenntnissen und Fertigkeiten,
öffentlich anerkannter Qualifikationsnachweis, Autonomie des Handelns, Know-how-
Vorsprung) auf das Übersetzen (noch) nicht zutreffen bzw. diesem nicht zugestanden
werden.
Eine genaue Analyse von Begriffsinventar und Inhalt der Norm zeigt deutlich deren
Kompromisscharakter, bedingt durch die große Zahl von beteiligten Translationskulturen
mit ihren z.T. erheblich differierenden Arbeitsprinzipien und -konventionen. Deutlich wird
auch das in vielen der beteiligten Translationskulturen nicht ausreichend reflektierte
berufliche Selbstverständnis. Letzteres muss einerseits als Folge des inhomogenen
Zugangs zum translatorischen Tätigkeitsfeld gesehen werden, ist andererseits aber auch
auf die unter Auftraggebern, Applikatoren und Nutznießern von Translaten weit
verbreiteten unrealistischen Vorstellungen vom Übersetzen als rein fremdsprachlicher
Umkodierungsakt und schließlich auf einen nicht ausreichenden Praxisbezug vieler
universitärer Ausbildungsstätten zurückzuführen.
Vor dem Hintergrund eines funktional-kommunikativen Übersetzungsbegriffs –, der
schriftliche Translation weniger als interkulturelle Kommunikation per se sieht, sondern als
professionelle Tätigkeit zur Herstellung funktionsgerechter Kommunikationsmittel auf der
Basis eines Auftrags und ausgangskulturellen Materials –, und basierend auf einer Analyse
der personellen und fachlichen Grundlagen versucht dieser Beitrag anhand der Begriffe
„Korrekturlesen“ und „Mehrwertdienstleistung“ aus der Norm darzulegen, inwieweit diese
geeignet ist, die anfangs genannten Ziele zu erreichen und Missständen auf dem
Translationsmarkt abzuhelfen.
165

Daniel SIMEONI
York University (Toronto)
dsimeoni@yorku.ca
Papers
The Babelian Status of Method
The Case of Research in Translation Studies
Research in Translation Studies raises inevitably the question of method. Although orderly
approaches to translational phenomena abound, it is only in the latest decade that issues
of method have become topics of interest for the field. The most detailed and useful
propositions so far have focussed on the methodological aspects of research (Pym 1998;
Williams & Chesterman 2002). Given the unprecedented expansion of Translation Studies
worldwide, the time has come to consider the cultural dimensions of method building.
Certainly, the field as it exists today is overwhelmingly dominated by the use of English as
koinè, thus inviting a convergence of purposes and practices. However, the diversity of
possible approaches to translational phenomena far exceeds the array of methods
classically conveyed in English through the usual binary oppositions of
quantitative/qualitative; nomothetic/idiographic; analytic/hermeneutic,
empirical/postmodern etc. It matters in the present configuration of Translation Studies to
consider method, not only as an exercise in the application of proven, past or existing
models in the disciplines of the social sciences and the humanities but, potentially, as
manifestations of culturally habituated modes of thinking. Equally valid yet differentiated
worldwide, alternative modes of thinking and doing research need to be sought after and
positively recruited. Spivak’s famous critique (1992) “that ‘epistemes’ (ways of
constructing objects of knowledge) should not have national names” is a salutary
reminder – such correlations entail a reduction of autonomous, agentive thinking – but it
is difficult also to ignore that the social sciences grew out of Europe in the 19th century in
a climate of intense nationalistic fever, or to overlook the fact that the postcolonial
emergence of new scholarships in Asia and in Africa could not be expected to indulge in
method-building in the usual terms. Neither can European practices be reduced to the
types of binary choices cited above.
My personal experience of those issues has been the result of my position in a translatortraining
institution shaped by the French/English model of Canada’s official bilingualism. I
will explore some of the challenges arising from increasingly multicultural, consciously
globalized landscapes, typical of metropolitan identities built in the past around
monolingual, monocultural cores and, currently, constitutive of microcosmic situations. In
this context, issues of method take on a truly epistemic importance, where the widest
range of variation is to be hoped for, by virtue of its being factually and ethically justified.
Further, I will argue that it is by enlarging the scope of the discussion from issues of
methodologies to considerations of method that Translation Studies will be in a position to
free itself from the cast of secondariness which, despite its evident success, has
characterized its development for most of the past 30 years. Approaches to translation
have been consistently second in their discussion of method, applying interpretative
models developed earlier in other disciplines or branches thereof: literary studies, applied
linguistics, semiotics, hermeneutics, cognitive psychology, cultural studies, sociology,
history and, lately, trying to make the most of a so-called ‘business ethics’. The Babelian
quality of translation is also that of its methods. Recognizing the specificity of the field
would not only help to construct more relevant and more creative scholarships, thus
serving the interests of new TS scholars. It might also contribute a model of inquiry to
many disciplines in the social sciences and the humanities currently undergoing an overtly
acknowledged crisis (see e.g. Spivak 2003 and Wallerstein 2004).
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Papers
References:
Pym, Anthony. 1998. Method in Translation History. Manchester: St. Jerome Publishing.
Spivak, Gayatri Chakravorty. 1992. “The Politics of Translation”. In Outside in the
Teaching Machine. London & New York: Routledge.
Spivak, Gayatri Chakravorty. 2003. Death of a Discipline. New York, Columbia University
Press.
Wallerstein, Immanuel. 2004. The Uncertainties of Knowledge. Philadelphia: Temple
University Press.
Williams, Jenny and Andrew Chesterman. 2002. The MAP. Manchester: St. Jerome
Publishing.
167

Mary SNELL-HORNBY
University of Vienna
mary.snell-hornby@univie.ac.at
Papers
Is Translation Studies Going Anglo-Saxon?
Critical Comments on the Globalization of a Discipline
The paper focusses on the importance of Translation Studies within society as a whole
and in a world that would no longer function without translation and interpreting. In this
context translation (and with it interpreting) is seen essentially as an act of
communication, whereby we need to distinguish between translation in the globalized
world of commerce, technology and international institutions (the latter described in
Koskinen 2004 as discourse systems) and translation as dialogue across cultures.
In the first area we are concerned particularly with pragmatic texts, specialized translation
(and conference interpreting), needing subject area expertise, in the latter with operative
and expressive texts (and dialogue interpreting), needing cultural expertise and sensitivity
(all seen prototypically, the borderlines are of course fuzzy). All these fields are included
in the interdiscipline of Translation (and Interpreting) Studies. Our problem lies in a
striking development of the last few years, and that is the overwhelming use of English as
a global language, both in the form of a lingua franca, and as a language of publication
and conference presentation. This also applies for Translation Studies, and for the
scientific community, the discipline and its metadiscourse it involves specific problems:
the danger is increasing that the language English is not only used as a means of
communication, but is actually becoming part of the object of discussion, with publications
or international conferences largely – or even exclusively – in English, concerning texts in
languages contrasted to English and with English examples. This inevitably means that
Anglo-American discourse has an advantage over that in other languages and cultures,
thus defeating the very purpose of Translation Studies (see Snell-Hornby 2006 and
forthcoming).
A further issue is the nature and quality of the English used, particularly when it is a
second or foreign language or a relay language in translation and interpreting: the
“pseudo-English” of EU “hybrid texts” as defined by Schäffner and Adab (1997) and the
UN texts described by Didaoui (1995) are a case in point, often leading to confusion and
conflict. There are a number of possible solutions, and these will be presented in the
paper and their feasibility discussed. One is the concept of “passive multilingualism”, quite
common among literary translators, and as was already discussed for the European Union
in the early 1990s (cf. Finkenstaedt and Schröder 1992). Research is currently in progress
investigating the possibility of “bridge languages” (e.g.. one prototypical or relatively
simple Slavonic, Germanic or Romance language) which would facilitate passive listening
and reading skills for other languages in the family concerned. This would provide a
forum for multilingual conferences and publications, thus encouraging a form of
communication which respects cultural differences and does not depend on a single lingua
franca. This in turn might promote better interlingual and intercultural communication –
which after all is what matters in Translation Studies.
168

Papers
References
Didaoui. Mohammed. 1995. Communication interferences in a multilingual environment.
The role of translators. Vienna: unpubl. doctoral thesis.
Finkenstaedt, Thomas and Schröder, Konrad. 1992. Sprachen im Europa von morgen.
Berlin: Langenscheidt.
Koskinen, Kaisa. 2004. “Shared culture? Reflections on recent trends in Translation
Studies”. Target 16 (1): 143-156.
Schäffner, Christina and Adab, Beverly. 1997. “Translation as intercultural communication
– Contact as conflict”. In Translation as Intercultural communication. Selected Papers
from the EST Congress – Prague 1995, ed. Mary Snell-Hornby, Zuzana Jettmaróva and
Klaus Kaindl, Amsterdam: Benjamins, 325-337.
Snell-Hornby, Mary. 2006. The Turns of Translation Studies. New paradigms or shifting
viewpoints? Amsterdam: Benjamins. Snell-Hornby (forthcoming). “What’s in a name?” On
metalinguistic confusion in Translation Studies”. Target.
169

Ubaldo STECCONI
European Commission
ubaldo.stecconi@ec.europa.eu
Introduction
Papers
What Do We Talk About When We Talk About
Translation?
In the past three decades, translation research has used ideas from several neighbouring
disciplines including linguistics, literary theory, game theory, cultural studies, sociology,
and memetics. However, in spite of repeated attempts to stake their claim in the
humanities and the social sciences, translation scholars have yet to find a common core of
premises and principles of their own.
As a result, centrifugal forces are stronger than centripetal forces and the would–be
discipline cannot even give a stable account of its own object of study. Translation Studies
urgently needs to fill its hollow theoretical core if it is to fulfil its promise. The present
paper is intended precisely as a contribution in this direction.
A semiotic “foundation” of translation is proposed based on insights drawn from Peirce’s
theory of signs. The foundation is composed of three logico–semiotic conditions—
similarity, difference, and mediation—which make up an ordinary Peircean triad.
Together, these characters can help researchers ascertain whether an identifiable form of
sign–action belongs with translation semiosis or not. Here follows a brief description of
the proposed model in seven propositions.
Seven propositions
(1) The starting hypothesis is that there exists a form of sign–action which is specific to
translation. Sign–action is also called ‘semiosis’, so this special form can be called
‘translation semiosis’ or T–semiosis for short.
(2) It is possible to state the logico–semiotic conditions to T–semiosis. Much of the
presentation will be devoted to argue that these conditions are similarity, difference, and
mediation.
(3) The three characters are existential conditions, therefore they are related to but not
determined by the cultural and historical settings in which translating occurs. Together,
the three characters constitute the foundation of translation.
(4) The foundation describes translation in potential terms; it is a negative–general
conception, so to speak. Full accounts of translation would require two additional and
familiar conceptions: events and norms. Translation events are particulars such as a
translator at work, a translation project, and a translated text. These events in turn are
regulated by translation norms as they are currently understood in the literature. Norms
are again general conceptions, but this time of the positive sort. The resulting picture is a
two–layered model.
(5) The six conceptions included in the diagram below can be used to trace an edge in
the semiosphere around T–semiosis. However, the foundation (and its characters),
events, and norms play different roles. If one wished to use this model to decide whether
a given event belongs with T–semiosis, the foundation would not give a positive answer,
only a negative one. It would tell one what translation is not, rather than what it is.
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Papers
Norms
Mediation
Foundation
Events
Similarity
Difference
(6) Proposition no. 5 implies that T–semiosis is an event–like entity rather than an object–
like entity. Although T–semiosis cannot exist apart from object–like entities such as
words, images, and sounds, it cannot be identified with any of them either. Translating
and translated signs merely manifest T–semiosis.
(7) The model does not entail that translating necessarily involves natural languages.
However common interlinguality may be in actual translating, T–semiosis is not
existentially defined by verbal signs: translating is not something we do with words, but
something we do to words and to other kinds of sign as well.
Essential bibliography
Chesterman, Andrew. 2006. “Interpreting the Meaning of Translation”, in A Man of
Measure: Festschrift in Honour of Fred Karlsson on his 60th Birthday. Mickael Suominen,
Antti Arppe, Anu Airola, Orvokki Heinämäki, Matti Miestamo, Urho Määttä, Jussi Niemi,
Kari K. Pitkänen and Kaius Sinnemäki (eds.). Special supplement to SKY Journal of
Linguistics vol. 19. 3–11. Also available at
http://www.ling.helsinki.fi/sky/julkaisut/SKY2006_1/1FK60.1.1.CHESTERMAN.pdf
(accessed 19 February 2007)
Cosculluela, Cécile. 2003. “Semiotics and Translation Studies: An Emerging
Interdisciplinarity”. Semiotica 145 (1–4). 105–137.
Eco, Umberto and Siri Nergaard. 1998. “Semiotic Approaches”, in Routledge Encyclopedia
of Translation Studies. Mona Baker (ed., assisted by Kirsten Malmkjær). London and New
York: Routledge. 218–222.
Gorlée, Dinda L. 1994. Semiotics and the Problem of Translation: With Special Reference
to the Semiotics of Charles S. Peirce. Amsterdam and Atlanta: Rodopi.
Petrilli, Susan, ed. 2003. Translation Translation. Amsterdam and New York: Rodopi.
Stecconi, Ubaldo. 2004. “A Map of Semiotics for Translations Studies”, in Similarity and
Difference in Translation. Stefano Arduini and Robert Hodgson (eds.). Rimini: Guaraldi
and New York: Nida Institute of Biblical Scholarship. 153–168.
Stecconi, Ubaldo. 2004. “Interpretive Semiotics and Translation Theory: The Semiotic
Conditions to Translation”. Semiotica 150 (1/4). 471–489.
Torop, Peeter. 2002. “Translation as Translating as Culture”. Sign Systems Studies 30 (2).
593–605.
Toury, Gideon. 1986. “Translation. A Cultural-Semiotic Perspective”, in Encyclopedic
Dictionary of Semiotics. Thomas A. Sebeok (ed.). Berlin and New York: Mouton de
Gruyter. 1111–1124.
van Kesteren, Aloysius. 1978. “Equivalence Relationships between Source Text and Target
Text: Towards a Typology on the Basis of Semiotics”, in Literature and Translation: New
Perspectives in Literary Studies, James S Holmes, José Lambert, Raymond van den
Broeck, Marcel Janssens and André Lefevere (eds.). Leuven: Acco. 48–68.
171

Radegundis STOLZE
EST, University of Technology Darmstadt
radi.stolze@t-online.de
Papers
A Systemic Model of Translation
There is complaint about the fact that the translator’s status were not adequately
perceived in public. To improve this we propose seeing the profession in a systemic
model. Translating means to communicatively act as a historically rooted person in the
social field, in order to enable communication among people of different languages. The
translating person looks out for orientation in the respective worlds of cultures and
languages. Understanding as a prerequisite of translation is not a matter of fact, and
individual aspects of translational action have their impact on other acts, within the
overall procedural system. Within the field of TS there are numerous studies on various
aspects of translation, such as teaching, contrastive linguistics, software tools,
terminology, audiovisual requirements, comparative literature, mental activities, etc. The
question is: What is the hidden link among all those studies, how can all this be brought
together in order to constitute a visible discipline of TS?
Integration is seen in a systemic view of the translator in his or her personal development
by the professional activity performed. Living systems are constantly changing, as they
grow in a permanent interaction with their environment. The paper will reflect four
aspects of translation by human beings, different from the computer: the emotional
motivation, the material outfit, the cognitive process, the intellectual enrichment.
Development, impact, and mutual interaction of those factors are being discussed. This
approach is based on the hermeneutic theory of translation which places the translator as
a person in the centre. Understanding and communication include a wider range of
factors than have been discussed so far as elements of translation competence (Neubert
2000:10): (1) language competence, (2) textual competence, (3) subject competence, (4)
cultural competence, (5) transfer competence. We might ask how all those “competences”
are being developed in the life of translators. Others call for a “multidimensional
translation” (MuTra Project) focusing on the situational embedding of translation, such as
LSP, interpreting, audio-visual media, project-management, etc., neglecting the
translator.
The translator’s perspective on media and texts, though, is varying. The systemic
evolution of a translation competence proves to be a helical movement integrating
complex input, rather than a linear process. Strategies of translation and solutions found
are influenced by the translator’s knowledge base and the professional equipment, rather
than by the structures of a text to be translated. The translator’s growth is one of the
most decisive factors in the whole procedure of translating.
The various factors of the model might even render new insights for translation criticism.
Creative translational decisions can be judged against a wider background and better
understood in their causes. There is never only one linguistic feature provoking a
translational reaction, as was long supposed in TS. A widening of the theoretical horizon
integrating extra-textual elements as well may be fruitful.
References
Neubert, A. 2000. “Competence in language, languages, and in translation.” In:
Schaeffner, C. & Adab. B. (eds.) Developing Translation Competence.
Amsterdam/Philadelphia: Benjamins, 3-18.
Stolze, R. 2003. Hermeneutik und Translation. Tübingen: Narr.
172

Kayoko TAKEDA
Papers
Universitat Rovira i Virgili, Monterey Institute of International Studies
kayokot@msn.com
Why Translation Studies Matters
Comments Based on a Dissertation
As a PhD student working on my dissertation, I would like to discuss why my dissertation
should matter to others in response to the theme of the 5th EST Congress, “Why
Translation Studies matters”. My dissertation examines sociopolitical aspects of
interpreting at the International Military Tribunal for the Far East (IMTFE, commonly
known as Tokyo War Crimes Tribunal, 1946-1948). I am focusing on the fact that three
socially and ethnically different groups of people were chosen to engage in three separate
functions in the interpreting process: Japanese nationals as interpreters; Japanese
Americans as monitors; and U.S. military officers as “language arbiters” who ruled on
disputed interpretations and translations. I am also analyzing the interactions among the
court participants and those involved in the interpreting process during the interpreted
testimonies of Japanese witnesses. This is intended to examine the hypothesis that
interpreters’ awareness of their standing in the power constellation of the setting in which
they operate affects their behavior and strategies in interpreting.
I believe that my research will contribute to the field of Translation and Interpreting
Studies by adding new information and providing materials for others to work with since
there has been very little research done on the unique features of interpreting at the
IMTFE. In addition, I hope that my focus on sociopolitical aspects of interpreting will
broaden the scope of research which applies sociocultural approach, as it represents the
latest “turn” in Interpreting Studies. Will my dissertation also matter to people outside the
realm of translation and interpreting research? First, historians and political scientists may
appreciate new information my work might offer them in the accounts of the IMTFE. In
particular, my finding of the link between the interpreting problems in the military trials in
Manila and the decision to use Japanese nationals as interpreters at the IMTFE should
throw new light on the course of post-war events concerning Japan and the U.S. policy on
the occupation of Japan.
If my dissertation attracts attention from people outside academia, it would be from those
interested in the experience of Japanese Americans during World War II and the role of
military linguists (interpreters and translators) in general. The Japanese Americans who
worked as monitors and translators during the IMTFE were among those who were
forcibly relocated to internment camps after Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor. The U.S.
Army recruited them from the camps to train for military intelligence in its Japanese
language school while their families stayed in the camps as “enemy aliens”. These military
linguists were sent to the Pacific to work as translators and interrogators, and after the
war they worked in various activities of the occupation forces in Japan, including war
crimes trials.
My investigation on the sociopolitical background of these Japanese American linguists
should reveal some aspects of the U.S. language policy and the psychological complexity
applicable to military linguists who work in settings that are adversarial to their heritage.
This is a relevant and important topic in the context of today’s “war on terror”, in which
the U.S. government recruits speakers of Arabic, Farsi and Pashto, etc. for the wars in
Iraq and Afghanistan. I hope that my work will serve as a reference in the current
discussion on the recruitment and activity of linguists who work in intelligence and on the
warfront.
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Papers
In summary, if my dissertation does matter to people outside the field of Translation and
Interpreting Studies, it would be because it views interpreting as a socially situated
activity and focuses on the social, cultural and political contexts of the setting in which
interpreters work. Such an approach can provide a different perspective in the
observation of human activities and contribute to a deeper and fuller understanding of
such activities.
174

Arvi TAVAST
Tallinn University
at@nu.ee
Papers
On Translation Practice, Translator Attitudes and
Customer Requirements
Even if most translators do not consciously follow any particular translation theory when
translating, they have internalised beliefs about what translation is and what is expected
from or allowed to a translator. In a particular project, these beliefs may or may not
correspond to what is actually expected from the translator by the customer or their
validator (an independent contractor commissioned to evaluate the translation product
and/or the translator's work). Moreover, these beliefs may or may not be expressed in the
actual translation produced.
For the purposes of this paper, beliefs about translation are divided in two broad groups:
text-based (the translator is turning the source text into the target text) and performative
(the translator is using the target text to do things with words). It is hypothesized that the
latter produce texts that are in better agreement with customer requirements, although
there is a significant number of translators who proclaim performative beliefs, but still
translate in a text-based way. The first pilot stage of the study concentrated on finding
out what the prevailing beliefs are, and comparing them to the educational background
and translation experience of the respondents. Translation samples were only available
for a limited number of respondents and not specially selected for the text-based vs
performative distinction.
This paper reports on the second stage of the study, where all respondents are asked to
translate a short but problem-ridden text and, after finishing the translation, answer
questions about how they translated, what they tried to achieve, and what they believe
about the nature of translation. The test translation is a consumer-oriented IT text of the
type where customer requirements are relatively well established and in many cases also
documented in translation briefs, translation vendor contracts or quality assurance
guidelines. The simulated translation environment is typical of the IT translation field with
less than perfect communication between translator and customer, tight deadlines and a
lot of independent decision-making by the translator. Rather than being metatexts or
linguistic studies about the original, such translations are meant to achieve something on
their own, calling for a covert (House), instrumental (Nord) or performative (Robinson)
translation. The translator is expected to behave as a responsible human communicator,
not as a mechanical transcoder of texts. The test translation contains problems that
depend for their solution upon beliefs about the nature of translation:
- Full synonyms used in the source text. After applying sufficient subject-field knowledge
to recognise their identical meaning, the translator has to decide whether to translate
them with one word or to find two target-language synonyms.
- Typing errors that change the meaning of the source text to something that can't
possibly be true. Some translators base their translations on what they believe is true,
some on what they believe is written in the source text.
- Poor style, e.g. unnecessary repetitions and exceedingly complex or monotonous
sentence structure. The choice is between retaining the style of the source text and
writing a fluent translation. Any correlation between translation solutions adopted and
beliefs about which solutions should be adopted, as well as the comparison of both to
customer requirements, can be used to set objectives for translator training.
175

Gaby THOMSON-WOHLGEMUTH
University of Surrey, UK
indico@asgard1.freeserve.co.uk
Papers
Rewriting Of Literature
What Happened with English-Language Books for
Young People in East Germany?
“When the children in the GDR read a book by a foreign writer, they ought to hear
something about life in other countries. Things that differ from the immediate sphere of
experience of the children in our country will be the most interesting for them”, these
words can be found in the print permit files commenting on the book Janey by Bernard
Ashley (DR1/2305). This quote appears to embrace Otherness and to welcome new
concepts into the East German culture. However, East German reality was quite the
opposite and the outlook for foreign literature was bleak. Xenophobic notions, hostile of
Western mentality, did not allow the child readers to see the full picture of the West, but
only what the state wished them to see. And this image, which the German Democratic
Republic (GDR) was eager to convey to young people, exhibited a Western world that was
evil, destructive and doomed to demise.
This paper presents some of the results from a completed PhD thesis, dealing with the
translation of English-language literature for children and adolescents in the GDR. It
explores the effects of ideology on the translation process with respect to choice of books
and manipulation of the texts. Drawing on Andre Lefevere’s concept of rewriting, this
paper will describe rewriting strategies as employed in the GDR. When Lefevere wrote,
“the rewriter will frequently adapt works of literature until they can be claimed to
correspond to the poetics and the ideology of their age” (1985:226), this perfectly fits the
East German scenario. There, rewriting took place in various shapes and forms, in order
to align foreign books with the indigenous production and make possible a print permit.
The fact that, after the fall of the Iron Curtain, the entire documentation between
publishers and censorship authority was made publicly available, enables researchers to
recognise the extent of rewriting and also the criteria according to which literary texts
were rewritten. “A literary system also operates with a code, which makes [...]
communication between author and reader possible” (Lefevere 1985:229). Researching
the files, the existence of such a code becomes immediately visible. In an application for a
print permit, clear and unambiguous communication was essential. It was vital to use a
code that would demonstrate to the censor the ‘socialist qualities’ of the text and make
him or her classify it as belonging to the existing canon of socially accepted children’s
books. The full implications of the necessity of using such codification becomes more than
evident in the publishers’ attempt to integrate a whole new genre into East German
society; a genre that used to be frowned upon for three decades but, with the gradual
widening of literary boundaries, had come into reach for potential publication.
Hence, this paper investigates the set of criteria that was used at various levels to make
books appear to conform with the East German literary paradigms and, as a result, allow
them to pass the socio-cultural border. Examples will be provided from the discourse in
the print permit files, also incorporating the description of a genre added to the children’s
literary canon in the 1980s.
176

Luc VAN DOORSLAER*, Yves GAMBIER**
Papers
* Lessius University College, Translation Studies
luc.vandoorslaer@lessius.eu
** University of Turku, Finland
yves.gambier@utu.fi
Does Meta Matter?
Some Aspects of the Use of Metalanguage(s) in
Translation Studies
Every scholarly discipline at certain stages in its development is confronted with the
limitations and irregularities of its metalanguage. Problematic variations of usage and
conceptualization also exist in the theory and practice of translation. This issue directly
relates with the central topic of this conference, since it raises a set of questions about
the role of translation and Translation Studies (TS), the influence from other disciplines,
the "mapping" of translation concepts, the consistency of metalanguages, the usefulness
of a metadiscourse, the possible contribution of a metalanguage to the social status of
translators, etc.
Though the compilation of anthologies, dictionaries, encyclopaediae and bibliographies,
TS has already dealt with the phenomenon of metalanguage(s). Nevertheless, all of these
publications are based on models and criteria, sometimes implicitly, sometimes explicitly.
They have all supported the visibility of the discipline, but what have been the
consequences for the readability and the understandability?
This presentation will focus on several aspects of the conceptualization and
the metadiscourse in the field of TS for several types of interaction. * Translation scholars
have different backgrounds, sometimes they use the same term but with different
meanings. For example, does "text" mean the same to researchers in translation,
interpreting, media studies or linguistics? Do the same problems occur in a
transdisciplinary situation, communicating with non-translation scholars?
- To what extent does the academic situation (working in networks, in scholarly
communities, through journals and conferences)require an "appropriate" terminology?
- How can experts in a training or teaching situation meet the expectations of the trainees
to use a "clear" language? Is quality improved by the standardization of concepts?
- How does the metalanguage influence the bidirectionality in scholar-to-
practitioner communication? Do we need a "common" language for the attempts to
correlate evaluation and quality? - What metalanguage do/can scholars use in their
contacts with decision makers,like publishers or bureaucrats deciding on grants or
subsidies? - Is there a need for a conceptual potential to popularize the discipline, since
journalists, literay critics, etc., ask for appropriate concepts when they refer to questions
of translation? What can be the role of metaphors in the popularization?
- What are the consequences of the use of English as a lingua franca in international fora
for the metadiscourse in other languages and how can this be dealt with?
- How do new technologies and new media affect and/or mark the metalanguage of TS?
We will tackle these questions, with our experiences as scholars, teachers and editors.
177

Sonia VANDEPITTE
University College Ghent, Belgium
sonia.vandepitte@hogent.be
Papers
Translation Strategies versus Reformulation
Techniques versus Meaning Shifts
A Triadic Description Framework for Text-Oriented
Translation Studies
The present paper deals with the question of how to describe data in text-oriented
translation studies. In 1997 Chesterman presented a heuristic classification of textual
strategies (1997 Ch 4, repeated in Chesterman and Wagner 2002: 60-63). This
categorization - based on two linguistic types of features, the syntactic and semantic
ones, combined with a category of pragmatic strategies – can, however, also be used to
describe the results of the translation process. Unfortunately, it contains some conceptual
problems that are already announced by Chesterman himself. For example, the three
categories are not mutually exclusive: some strategies from one category also belong to
another (the phrase structure changes of modification and definiteness strategies can also
be seen as ‘semantic strategies’ since they concern meaning).
Secondly, some of the strategies (even within one category) seem to be of a totally
different nature: literal translation, paraphrase and cultural filtering are applied for
reasons that are different from those underlying the application of, e.g., transposition,
synonymy and illocutionary change, respectively. So, if “[w]e are only beginning to
establish the conditions under which a particular strategy is used (or rather: used
successfully)” (Chesterman and Wagner 2002:64), it is probably not only the complexity
of the facts that plays a role, but also these weaknesses with the categorization of the
conceptual tools available. Molina and Albir (2002) already propose a remedy for the
second weakness: they clearly distinguish between translation method and strategies to
describe larger and smaller textual and contextual process-oriented features, on the one
hand, and translation techniques to refer to result-oriented characteristics of a translation
at a small level, on the other hand. Applying the literature critically and paying much
attention to underlying criteria, they present an alphabetical list of eighteen micro-level
textual techniques without any categorization going from adaptation to variation.
Unfortunately, no distinction has been made between those techniques that imply a
meaning difference and those that do not. In fact, their discussion hardly ever refers to
the semantic and pragmatic impact translation techniques have.
The present paper will therefore set up a conceptually improved approach which is triadic
in nature. The new model will distinguish between translation strategies, reformulation
techniques (taking into account findings from Brondeel 1998 and 2001, Langeveld 1986,
Vandepitte 2001 and Vandepitte 2005) and meaning shifts. Following Molina and Albir,
translation strategies will be considered as directly related to the process of translation:
they direct the translator’s choice between alternative formulations. They are not
themselves directly visible but they can be inferred systematically from the translation
choices that have been made. In contrast, reformulation techniques and meaning shifts
are directly retrievable from the source and target texts. Indeed, target texts (whether
literary or not) can be compared with their source texts in terms of their different
formulations and in terms of their meanings. Both types of descriptive analyses yield their
own results: some reformulations in a target text imply meaning shifts, while others do
not.
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The model will be illustrated with an analysis of the Dutch translation of Philip Roth’s
American Pastoral. Finally, the importance of all results will be pointed out. The results
from the techniques analysis yield relevant insights for linguistic understanding within
both semantics and syntax. Meaning shift descriptions contribute to the description of
concepts and more complex cognitive entities related to one language and their
reduplication in another language, while they are also useful for automated translation,
and yield data on translation strategies at the same time.
Finally, comparing the differences between source and target texts, and discussing the
alternative choices translators could have made, reveal translators’ strategies and their
conformity to certain conscious or unconscious norms in translation publishing.
Bibliography
Brondeel, Herman. 1998. Vertaalroutines Engels-Nederlands. TT-M Cahier, 3, 5-64.
[Online]. http://veto.hogent.be/onderzoek/publicaties/Scan0202.pdf. [31.10.2006].
Brondeel, Herman. 2001. De vertaalroutines Revisited. In: Willy Vandeweghe, Stefaan
Evenepoel, Alfons Maes & Alfons De Meersman (red.): Polyfonie. Opstellen voor Paul Van
Hauwermeiren. Gent: Mercator Hogeschool Provincie Oost-Vlaanderen. pp. 42-54.
Chesterman, Andrew. 1997. Memes of Translation. The spread of ideas in translation.
(Benjamins Translation Library, 22). Amsterdam: J. Benjamins.
Chesterman, Andrew and Emma Wagner. 2002. Can Theory Help Translators? A Dialogue
Between the Ivory Tower and the Wordface. Translation Theories Explained, Vol. 9.
Manchester: St. Jerome.
Langeveld, Arthur. 1986. Vertalen wat er staat. Amsterdam: Arbeiderspers.
Molina, Lucía and Amparo Hurtado Albir. 2002. Translation Techniques Revisited: A
Dynamic and Functionalist Approach. In: Meta, XLVII, 4, pp. 498-512.
Vandepitte, Sonia. 2001. Kritische reflectie bij Brondeels vertaalroutines. In: Willy
Vandeweghe, Stefaan Evenepoel, Alfons Maes & Alfons De Meersman (red.): Polyfonie.
Opstellen voor Paul Van Hauwermeiren. Gent: Mercator Hogeschool Provincie Oost-
Vlaanderen. 192-201.
Vandepitte, Sonia. 2005. Translation English-Dutch 1L. Unpublished syllabus. Gent:
Hogeschool Gent, Departement Vertaalkunde.
179

Martina VANKÚŠOVÁ
University of Vienna
vankusova@a1.net
Papers
Slowakisch – Brückensprache zur Slawischen Welt?
Möglichkeiten und Grenzen einer kleinen EU-Sprache
Der Beitrag beschäftigt sich mit der Bedeutsamkeit einer diversifizierten Mehrsprachigkeit
der Europäer von heute, insbesondere die der Übersetzer und Dolmetscher, die in den
diversen internationalen Institutionen, hier stellvertretend in den Sprachdiensten der
Europäischen Union, ihrem Beruf (oder vielleicht doch ihrer Berufung?) nachgehen. Die
Kommunikation innerhalb der Europäischen Union berührt fast alle Gebiete der
menschlichen Tätigkeit, was für den Wortschatz der neuen EU-Sprachen, in die übersetzt
wird, einerseits eine nachhaltige Bereicherung mit sich bringt. Einige der neuen EU-
Mitgliedsländer sahen sich im Bezug auf den Beitritt zur EU sogar gezwungen, überhaupt
eine Terminologie zu schaffen, oder, wie im Falle der Slowakei, die bestehende
Terminologie aufzubauen und zu modernisieren. A
ßerdem profitieren die neuen EU-Sprachen auch von einer auch wenn nur begrenzten
internationalen Wahrnehmung. Andererseits sendet die Europäische Union mit ihrer
sprachenpolitischen Maßnahmen auch extrem widersprüchliche Signale aus: offiziell wird
betont, dass alle 20 EU-Sprachen Amts- und Arbeitssprachen sind, Englisch, Französisch
und Deutsch mutierten aber nach der letzten EU-Erweiterung von Arbeitssprachen zu
Verfahrenssprachen (engl. procedural languages), wobei Englisch in den diversen
Übersetzungsstatistiken eindeutig in Führung liegt. Dem hohen Prozentsatz der
slawischsprachigen EU-Bürger wird auch nach dem Beitritt Bulgariens nicht Rechnung
getragen. Englisch ist weit über die Funktion einer Nationalsprache hinausgewachsen und
laut Clyne (2001) als globale Lingua franca längst „entnationalisiert“.
In seiner simplifizierten Euro-Englisch-Form ist es eine „leichte“ Sprache und in der Regel
bereitet das Übersetzen aus diesem Englisch in andere EU-Sprachen keine
Schwierigkeiten, die aber sehr wohl auftreten, sobald beispielsweise ein EU-Kommissar
aus einem neuen EU-Land für die von ihm initiierte Kampagne als Motto ausgerechnet ein
Sprichwort in seiner Landessprache wählt. Wie kann man solche translatorische
Herausforderungen angehen? Die inzwischen international mehrfach ausgezeichnete
Mehrsprachigkeitsmethode EuroCom bietet einen möglichen Ansatz, indem sie deutlich
macht, dass die meisten europäischen Sprachen keine Fremdsprachen sind. Die EuroCom-
Lernmethode baut auf einer möglichst gut entwickelten sprachlichen Kompetenz in einer
Brückensprache, die den Weg zu den verwandten Idiomen öffnen kann. Um den Zugang
zu allen slawischen Sprachen zu erreichen, wurde von der Forschergruppe EuroComSlav
das Russische als Brückensprache gewählt, denn es ist die am weitesten verbreitete
slawische Fremdsprache.
Es wird weiters an allen universitären slawischen Seminaren gelehrt, garantiert den
Zugang zu den kyrillisch schreibenden slawischen Sprachen, ist eine UNO-Sprache, hat die
meisten Sprecher unter den Slawen und scheint daher als Ausgangssprache für
EuroComSlav geradezu prädestiniert. Andererseits kann man das kyrillische Alphabet
innerhalb von wenigen Stunden lernen und auch die geographische Lage Russlands und
der dadurch begrenzter Kontakt mit den anderen slawischen Sprachen sprechen eher
gegen Russisch Als eine „typische“ slawische Sprache, um sich den Zugang zu den
slawischen Sprachen zu erschließen, empfiehlt Pfandl (1995) Slowakisch, Slowenisch oder
Tschechisch.
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Papers
In der slowakischen Schriftsprache dominiert der westslawische lexikalische Charakter,
zugleich ist jedoch auch die Bindung des Slowakischen an die südslawischen und
ostslawischen Sprachen belegbar, so das Habovštiak (1993) die zentrale Stellung des
Slowakischen inmitten der slawischen Sprachen bestätigt sieht.
Der Beitrag sieht somit in dem EuroCom-Ansatz einen wertvollen Zugang, wobei darauf
hingewiesen wird, dass man sich vor der Verwendung von kleineren Brückensprachen
nicht verschließen soll, wenn die zu überbrückenden „Sprachspalten“ einen kleineren
Durchmesser haben.
References:
Besters-Dilger, Juliane & de Cillia, Rudolf & Krumm, Hans Jürgen & Rindler Schjerve,
Rosita (Hgg.) (2003) Mehrsprachigkeit in der erweiterten Europäischen Union. Klagenfurt:
Drava Verlag
Clyne, Michael (2001) Englisch zwischen plurizentrischer Nationalsprache und
internationaler Sprache. In: Ehlich, Konrad (Hg.)(2001) Hochsprachen in Europa.
Entstehung. Geltung. Zukunft. Freiburg:Filibach
Habovštiak, Anton (1993) Zo slovensko-slovanských lexikálnych vzťahov (Zu den
slowakisch-slawischen lexikalischen Beziehungen) Bratislava: Vydavateľstvo Slovenskej
akadémie vied
Pfandl, Heinrich (1995) Zum Bonus und Malus des Russischen In: Wodak, Ruth & de
Cillia, Rudolf (Hgg.) Sprachenpolitik in Mittel- und Osteuropa. Wien: Passagen Verlag
Ondrejovič, Slavomír (1999) Slovenčina v kontaktoch a konfliktoch s inými jazykmi
(Slowakisch in Kontakten und Konflikten mit anderen Sprachen) Bratislava
Zybatow, Lew N. (Hg)(2004) Translation in der globalen Welt und neue Wege in der
Sprach- und Übersetzerausbildung Innsbrucker Ringvorlesungen zur
Translationswissenschaft II, Frankfurt am Main: Peter Lang Verlag
Zybatow, Lew N. (Hg.)(2000) Sprachwandel in der Slavia. Die slavischen Sprachen an der
Schwelle zum 21. Jahrhundert Frankfurt am Main: Peter Lang Europäischer Verlag der
Wissenschaften
181

Catherine WAY
UNIVERSIDAD DE GRANADA
cway@ugr.es
Papers
Training and Professional Practice: The Great Divide?
Very little is actually known about the relationship between translator training and the
effects it may have on professional practice. Compiling data on the daily practice of
professional translators is a minefield, often laborious, requiring a great deal of time and
the selfless collaboration of those involved. Often, it is further hampered by the lack of
research financing to pay for professional translators’ valuable time. This fact is proven by
the relatively low number of studies to date which have involved professional translators.
Nevertheless, as translator trainers, our concern for the social situation of sworn
translators in Spain, one of the professional groups that occupies many of our graduates,
has lead to a study applied to the sworn translation of degree certificates in Spanish and
English in Spain. Part of the ongoing research from this wider study (Way, 2003), aims
not only to describe what occurs in the daily professional practice of these documents in
Spain, but also to obtain valuable information which could implement changes in our
training programmes. As a result of the data compiled from the questionnaires sent to
sworn translators of English in Spain, we have been able to perceive the importance of
translator training in professional practice. Amongst the aspects which show a clear
relation between the training received and daily professional practice we will highlight
elements of instrumental competence (research skills), cultural competence (cultural and
area studies), and textual competence (the use of certain formats for sworn translation),
whist also commenting on the importance of other activities which constitute an integral
part of translator training, such as European student mobility programmes.
In this paper we will focus particularly on the training in textual competence concerning
the format and presentation of official sworn translations and its reflection in professional
practice. From the data compiled we will also be able to draw conclusions about how
professional practice may influence our training programmes. The analysis of the data
compiled also raises questions concerning life-long learning and the need for continuous
training courses to keep professional translators up to date with market changes. We
believe that this data clearly demonstrates the relationship between training and
professional practice, as well as highlighting aspects of professional practice which require
greater attention in our training programmes (professional socialization, continuous
training, links between the profession and academia). The feedback from our graduates is
an inestimable source of information for the future development of translation training
programmes and for lifelong learning courses, which could be offered to them in order to
supplement initial training and offer further training so that professional translators may
meet changes in the requirements of market demands. Our paper will demonstrate that a
closer relationship between the professional translator community and training centres is
not only necessary in order to consolidate our profession in the 21st century, but is in fact
vital and beneficial to both sectors.
182

Rachel WEISSBROD
Bar Ilan University
weissbr1@mail.biu.ac.il
Papers
Translation Studies and Mass Media Research
The object of this paper is to point out the significance of translation and translation
studies to the research of multilingualism in Israeli mass media, which is usually
conducted in the framework of sociology and communication studies. Israeli mass media
reflect and probably affect the multilingual and multicultural character of the country.
Israelis use a variety of languages. Two of them, Hebrew and Arabic, are official, though
in practice Hebrew is the dominant one. Other languages are used mainly by immigrants
(Spolsky & Shohamy, 1999). Until recently, the use of the immigrants’ languages has
been restricted by the national ideology and the melting-pot policy it has dictated. A
gradual decline of the melting-pot policy and a mass immigration from the former Soviet
Union (FSU) in the 1990s, have brought about great changes. The use of languages other
than Hebrew is no more limited to private communication and is legitimate in public
arenas as well. The decline of the melting-pot policy is part of globalization processes,
whose effect is also manifested in the penetration of English into Israeli culture. Though
few Israelis use English to communicate with each other, it is encountered everywhere -
in advertisements, street signs, names of companies, shops and restaurants, and in the
internet. English is the language of globalization (Crystal, 1997), but its penetration into
Israeli culture is also one of the symptoms of its growing Americanization (Rebhun &
Waxman, 2000; Segev, 2002). Israel’s multilingualism can be observed in various cultural
fields, including the mass media. Journals, radio stations and TV channels whose
language is other than Hebrew are no longer a rarity. This situation has been investigated
by sociologists and communication researchers (e.g. Adoni et al, 2002, 2006; Elias, 2005;
Epstein and Kheimets, 2006). They have sought answers to questions such as: Does
Israeli multilingualism as manifested in the mass media counterbalance the increasing
power of English and the Americanization of Israel? And from another perspective: does
the consumption of mass media in languages other than Hebrew lead to the segregation
of the immigrants or, on the contrary, allow for a more smooth and gradual integration?
Is one minority language preferred to another and how? In dealing with these issues,
researchers have distinguished between mass media in Hebrew and other languages,
failing to pay attention to translation which blurs this very distinction. To illustrate the
relevance of translation to research dealing with the multilingualism of Israeli mass media,
reference will be made to Israeli television. Since its launching in 1967 till the early 1990s,
it consisted of one publicly owned channel. Imported films and programs have been
broadcast with Hebrew and (usually) Arabic subtitles. Since the majority of imported films
and programs are American, the use of subtitling as the main mode of translation
(dubbing is only used in children’s programs) has contributed to the exposure of Israelis
to English. If dubbing can be seen as a sort of resistance to the growing power of English,
Israel has not manifested such resistance. Since the 1990s, Israeli television has changed
significantly. The main changes are its transformation from a one channel to a multichannel
television, the launching of commercial channels, the establishment of cable and
satellite companies which broadcast to subscribers, and the move to digital broadcasting.
These changes have affected translation norms.1 On many channels, imported films and
programs are broadcast with (usually an optional) Russian translation in addition to the
Hebrew one. Moreover, locally produced Hebrew channels (e.g., the Israeli cinema
channel of the satellite company) are broadcast with Russian translation. The modes of
translation used are subtitling and voice-over (immigrants from FSU favor voice-over
because they have become accustomed to it in their countries of origin).
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Papers
If the access to mass media in the immigrants’ languages is supposed to have an impact
on their social integration, then one should bear in mind that such an access is not limited
to mass media produced in languages other than Hebrew. Production can be in any
language, including Hebrew, and still accessible to the immigrants through translation.
The multilingualism of Israel’s mass media involves power relations between its minority
languages and here, too, translation plays an important role. In Israeli television today,
translation into Russian is more widespread than translation into Arabic, despite the status
of the latter as an official language. Taking translation into consideration is vital if one
wants to assess the relative positions of Israeli minority languages vis-à-vis Hebrew and
each other. To conclude, the multilingualism of Israeli mass media manifests itself not
only in local production in languages other than Hebrew, but also in translation into
languages other than Hebrew. Taking translation into consideration can contribute to
mass media research – in Israel and possibly in other multilingual countries - whether one
is interested in its impact on immigrants’ absorption, the relations between minority
languages, or the role of English as an agent of globalization and Americanization.
Notes
1. The notion of norms (Toury, 2000) has been applied to media translation by e.g.
Delabastita (1989) and Karamitroglou (2001).
Bibliography
Adoni, Hanna, Dan Caspi & Akiba A. Cohen, 2002. "The Consumer's Choice: Language,
Media Consumption and Hybrid Identities of Minorities", Communications: European
Journal of Communication Research 27, pp. 411-436.
--- 2006. Media, Minorities and Hybrid Identities: The Arab and Russian Communities in
Israel (Cresskill, NJ: Hampton Press).
Crystal, David, 1997. English as a Global Language (Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press).
Delabastita, Dirk, 1989. “Translation and Mass Communication: Film and T.V. Translation
as Evidence of Cultural Dynamics”, Babel 35:4, pp. 193-218.
Elias, Nelly, 2005. Media Uses as Integration Strategy: The Case of the Immigrants from
the FSU in Israel, Tel Aviv: Chaim Herzog Institute for Communication, Society and
Politics (in Hebrew).
Epstein, Alek D. & Nina G. Kheimets, 2006. “Between Globalization and Localization: The
Linguistic Diversity of the Israeli Mass-Media”, paper presented at the 5th Conference of
the Israeli Association for the Study of Language and Society, Ra’anana: The Open
University of Israel (June 4).
Karamitroglou, Fotios, 2001. “The Choice between Subtitling and Revoicing in Greece:
Norms in Action”, Target 13:2, pp. 305-315.
Rebhun, Uzi & Chaim Waxman, 2000. “The ‘Americanization’ of Israel: A Demographic,
Cultural and Political Evaluation”, Israel Studies 5:1, pp. 65–91.
Segev, Tom, 2002. Elvis in Jerusalem: Post-Zionism and the Americanization of Israel
(New York: Metropolitan Books).
Spolsky, Bernard & Elana Shohamy, 1999. The Languages of Israel: Policy, Ideology and
Practice (Clevedon: Multilingual Matters).
Toury, Gideon, 2000. “The Nature and Role of Norms in Literary Translation”, Lawrence
Venuti (ed.), The Translation Studies Reader (London & New York: Routledge), pp. 198-
211.
184

Boguslawa WHYATT
Papers
School of English, Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznan, Poland
bcwhyatt@wp.pl
Rediscovering the Value of Translation as a Game for
Bilingual Minds
As a teacher of translation courses offered for the students of English as a foreign
language (EFL) at university level for 14 years I’ve had the privilege to observe how
students learn to play the game of translation. In this paper I would like to share my
observations grounded on a small-scale longitudinal study in which 34 students were
observed throughout a yearly course of translation. Research methods used for data
collection included error analysis, questionnaire and Think Aloud Protocols (TAPs). The
study had two objectives: to provide supportive evidence for viewing translation tasks as
fitting within the game theory (see Gorlee 1994) and to observe the development of skills
needed to play the game in the participants of the study.
Although Fabbro (1999) noted that ‘translating is what bilinguals do most of the time’ I’m
more inclined to agree with Grosjean (2001) that bilinguals ‘‘choose’ (but presumably
unconsciously)’ to function in either monolingual or bilingual language mode. This
approach allows to find justification why EFL students whose proficiency is at the CAE
level feel so lost when faced with a task of translating a simple text. Most of them
although rightly classified as bilinguals have functioned in monolingual modes using either
their foreign or native language for communication or comprehension without the need to
translate the contents for other people to understand. Observing their initial
disappointment with their own bilingual skills draws attention to their inability to exercise
control (see De Groot, 2006: 189) not only over their knowledge of the two language
systems but also over their general world knowledge, common sense and experience. It is
exactly at this point that it becomes appropriate to view translation as a new game the
EFL students have to learn to play. This approach should not be perceived as undermining
the mental complexity of a translation task but as a way of encouraging students to
accept that as in any other new game the acquisition of skills and the value of knowledge,
practice and experience is essential to succeed. Translation thus as any other game we
play has some requirements and offers some rewards.
The analysis of research data reveals that for the EFL students the benefits of learning to
play the game of translation are numerous and include: putting to test their bilingual
knowledge in well-defined communicative situations, offering the excitement of searching
for solutions, overcoming problems with memory access, encouriging to extend one’s
knowledge base by searching for information in external reference material and above all
learning to exercise control over their own entire knowledge base. The analysis of TAPs
recorded by the end of the yearly course reveals how students learn to integrate their
knowledge networks in the process of translating texts. These networks include not only
the knowledge of both languages or general world knowledge but also the less
measurable components such as imagination, intuition, experience. The wrong choices
they make in their translations reveal the still neglected areas in a foreign language
classroom where too much stress is put on formal aspects of language at the expense of
language usage, levels of formality, situational appropriateness, sensitivity to context,
socio-cultural associations or cross-cultural empathy. Perhaps translation classes where
translation is viewed as a kind of mental gymnastics will help EFL students to see that
learning to use a foreign language to translate should go hand in hand with learning to
use their mind.
185

Ian WILLIAMS
University of Cantabria (Spain)
williams@unican.es
Papers
Getting the ACCENT Right in Translation Studies
In the last 20 years, developments in computer technology have contributed to a
spectacular increase in corpus and contrastive studies. These methodologies have a great
deal to offer translation studies both through empirical descriptive studies and as a means
of making and testing hypotheses on language. Enhanced computer potential has also
provided trainee and practising translators with valuable tools through translation
memories and the ability to align source and target texts in parallel corpora. It is thus
possible that theory and practice could follow separate paths, whereby theorists could
choose to carry out contrastive studies on comparable corpora to feed their speculations
on cultural divergence, whereas practitioners would prefer parallel corpus data, which
could lead to the repetition or perpetuation of translation behaviour not in keeping with
that found in comparable naturally ocurring data.
This paper presents one possible way of bringing theory and practice closer together:
ACCENT refers to the Application of Corpus-based Contrastive Evaluation for Natural
Translation. Based on a corpus with both a comparable and parallel component, this
approach yields empirical data that provide a solid basis for translation studies of a
descriptive and theoretical nature; at the same time, however, the data can also be
oriented towards translation practice. The corpus design allows the analyst to view the
data from different viewpoints: interlinguistic analysis contrasts similar text types in two
languages; intralinguistic analysis confronts the products of translation with comparable
naturally occurring texts in the target language; and comparison of source and target
texts provides insights into actual translation behaviour. In the proposed model,
quantitative methods are used to establish the statistical norm for the linguistic
phenomena under study in the two languages, and to identify areas of potential deviant
behaviour in translated texts by detecting excesses and deficits. Qualitative analysis then
examines the context to identify rhetorical environments in which the phenomena occur,
and to create linguistic profiles including collocational and colligational patterns and
semantic preferences. In a third evaluative stage, the statistical data and linguistic profiles
are used to determine appropriate use and to formulate corrective procedures. These
formulations are not prescriptive, that is they are not presented as what must be done,
but what can be done: they represent frequency-based choices or preferred options in
specific environments or contexts.
The presentation will be illustrated by the example of first-person verb use in the Results
sections of biomedical research articles. This case study is based on an extensive
specialised corpus consisting of 192 research articles (500,000 words) and containing
both comparable and parallel components. The analysis showed a similar bimodal use of
first-person verbs in the Spanish and English native texts, with about half of the texts
containing no such forms and the other half showing restricted use. However, Spanish
texts including first-person forms used them more frequently than the English texts (92
versus 30 tokens) and the rhetorical patterns and linguistic profiles were different. Actual
translation behaviour from English to Spanish revealed that no attempt had been made to
adjust texts to what was identified as the Spanish target profile. Contextual analysis
indicated that it was easier to apply corrective procedures to rectify the excesses in
Spanish-to-English translation than to overcome the deficits by creating appropriate new
first-person forms in English-to-Spanish translation.
186

Michaela WOLF
Papers
Institut für Translationswissenschaft, Graz, Austria
michaela.wolf@uni-graz.at
Dragomans in the Field
The Reconstruction of the “Social Field Of
Interpreting” in the Habsburg Monarchy
In multiethnic societies like the Habsburg Monarchy or the Ottoman Empire, the practice
of translating and interpreting played a major role. In the interplay of international forces
– and especially between these two empires – this practice turned into a particularly
delicate activity, which required high diplomatic ability. Correspondingly, the “dragoman”
not only needed to be supplied with excellent language skills and specific cultural
knowledge, but also with outstanding diplomatic expertise. The various countries involved
in frequent diplomatic interaction in the eighteenth and nineteenth century handled this
question of communication in quite different ways.
My paper will deal with the specific case of the Habsburg Monarchy, where in 1754 the
Empress Maria Theresia founded the Vienna Oriental Academy, a school for boys who
were willing to learn a series of languages which they were supposed to adopt in their
future charges within the diplomatic corps or within the civil service in relation to the
Ottoman Empire. Additionally, they were taught various subjects required for their future
positions, such as economy, history or law. The various curricula of the Oriental Academy
will be examined in detail with regard to the relevance they gave to aspects of cultural
mediation/translation. It seems as if issues of culture and their role in the mediating
process were already on the agenda of this institution. Consequently, the paper will
introspect the pupils’ social and cultural competence by way of the detailed analysis of
their family trajectory, based on thorough archive research.
I will attempt to reconstruct what can be called the “social field of interpreting” in
eighteenth-century Habsburg Empire on the basis of Pierre Bourdieu’s field theory, which
will deliver the tools for positioning the various agents involved in this field. The struggle
for recognition and the strive for gaining a promising position in the diplomatic corps in
the Habsburg Empire will be revealed by analysing the various forms of capitals
(economic, social, cultural, symbolic, linguistic, etc.) the pupils and their families invested
in the “field”. On the basis of these analyses the question arises whether the “Habsburg-
Ottoman field of interpreting” can be seen as a fundamental grounding for the
reconstruction of the relationships between the two Empires in terms of communication.
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Marija ZLATNAR MOE
University of Ljubljana
marija.zlatnar@guest.arnes.si
Papers
Register Shifts in Translations of Popular Fiction from
English into Slovene
Although most of the contemparary globally best-selling works of fiction, such as Bridget
Jones’ Diary, Harry Potter, The Da Vinci Code and similar, have been translated into
Slovene over the past years, they very often have not achieved the same immense
popularity or even cult status in the Slovene culture as they have elsewhere. While some
of the reasons are undoubtedly connected to the characteristics of the target culture and
the tastes of the Slovene readers, these are not the only reasons.
In my paper I will show how major shifts in the register - especially in the level of
formality - occur when works of popular fiction are translated into Slovene. There is a
shift towards an unmarked, formal standard language, which neutralizes the style of the
books. This shift can have two consequences. In some cases, it tends to diminish the
formality of the text. This is the case where the source text, or parts of it, are written in a
more formal, distant, or archaic way, such as the recently re-translated writings of J. R.R.
Tolkien. In other cases, it tends to make the text more formal. This is the case when the
source text has a more colloquial style, as in the case of Bridget Jones, a novel written in
the form of a diary. The level of formality is not the only feature that changes on the way
from English into Slovene. Concomitantly, class and status distinctions are blurred or
sharpened, as different fields of language shift towards the neutral standard variety. As a
result, all the characters—king or commoner, the wise old wizard or the young schoolboy—speak
the same way. Moreover, they do not employ different registers and styles of
speech regardless of whether they find themselves in a public, private or extremely
intimate situation. The result of such strategies are often either texts that are merely
stylistically neutral and hence less interesting texts, or texts that appear strange and
outright clumsy to the reader, and are subsequently judged as “badly written”.
The paper will analyze examples from novels belonging to different subgenres of popular
fiction, such as fiction for children, fantasy, thrillers, “chick lit,” romance, etc. that have
been published in Slovenia during the last decade. The assessment of translation
strategies and solutions, determined through textual analysis of the relevant passages,
will be compared with the response of the target culture at the time of publication. This
response will be ascertained through literary reviews (or their conspicuous absence), as
well as measures of reader’s enthusiasm in terms of sales figures or the frequency of
library loans. To account for differences between translations in this respect, I will explore
the choice of translators for the novels studied, as it seems that beginner translators more
often tend to a neutral style and unmarked formal register. This, namely, is the style
taught throughout the Slovene school system, and encouraged by the norms of »good
writing” as they are presented in relevant textbooks and handbooks.
188

Simon ZUPAN
University of Maribor
simon.zupan@uni-mb.si
Papers
Translation Shifts, Modality, and the Slovene
Translation of Poe’s “The Fall of the House of Usher”
The Fall of the House of Usher” is one of Edgar Allan Poe’s best known and most
characteristic stories. One of its distinguishing features is the narrator’s systematic
employment of epistemic modality, used to evoke many of the story’s gothic effects. The
basic narrative principle at work is relatively simple: by using appropriate modals, the
narrator builds pockets of uncertainty into the narrative, which in turn signal to the reader
that there exist voids in the narrator’s knowledge of the unusual phenomena and events
of the story, which thus make these events even more mysterious and frightful. The
Slovene translation of this story, first published in 1960 and reprinted several times,
features significant shifts in the way the narrator employs modality. Unlike his counterpart
in the original text, where epistemic modality expressing uncertainty is systematically
used, the “Slovene” narrator often does not add uncertainty to his propositions; instead,
he describes his experience using demodalized, polar sentences. Such microstructural
translation shifts are so common that they cumulatively affect the narrative’s meaning
potential on the macrostructural level. While in the original text the uncertainty that
characterizes the narrative reveals that the narrator is at best capable of only guessing or
speculating about the real background of most of the unusual phenomena and events he
witnessed, the narrator in the Slovene translation appears to know much more about
those phenomena and events. As a result, the text’s potential to evoke gothic effects is
reduced.
The first part of this paper presents a theoretical background using Hallidayan functional
grammar to explain notions of modality and polarity as applied to the text under scrutiny.
Some of the most characteristic examples of the narrator’s use of epistemic modality are
presented. In the second part, examples from the original text are compared with their
Slovene translations. First, the microstructural levels of each of the sentences in the pair
are examined and the microstructural shifts are described. Then the effects of individual
microstructural translation shifts in modality are examined on the macrostructural level of
both texts. For sake of clarity, demodalized sentences in the existing translation are
contrasted against other possible modalized solutions, and improvements of the existing
Slovene translation are suggested. In the final part, the cumulative effect of individual
translation shifts is assessed on the level of the translated text as a whole. The Slovene
text is again compared with the original to show that the Slovene version, with many of
the previously modalized sentences becoming polar ones through the process of transition
from one language code into another, loses some of its potential for evoking gothic
effects. Finally, the role and importance of modality as a well-established linguistic and
stylistic notion are briefly addressed with regard to translation studies.
As preliminary analyses have shown, most miscrostructural translation shifts in modality in
the texts concerned could have been avoided. The importance of a detailed reading of the
source text by the translator is pointed out, as well as a careful examination of its most
prominent stylistic features.
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