Equivalence at word level Chapters 1 and 2 In other words: a coursebook on translation Baker, M. (2011) Translation • Why is it important to have academic knowledge about what we do – and more specifically about translation? – Helps us identify what we already know • What do you (we) already know? – Helps us explore the advantages and disadvantages of various ways of doing things • What are some advantages and disadvantages of having academic knowledge of the interpreting profession? – It is impossible to perform unless we have a thorough and intimate knowledge of the objects and tools of our work Translation Community • How is the translation community like the ASL interpreting community? (page 2) – We underestimate the value and complexity of the translation (and interpretation) process – We don’t believe that formal professional training in the field is needed (due to the underestimation of the value and complexity of the work) – Numerous programs have been established within the recent past – It has become a highly attractive career for people with a love of languages Translation Community • Why is formal training important (for both translators and interpreters)? • Can you list 3 arguments for getting a degree in interpreting? Back Translation • What is back translation? – Translating the target text back into the source language from which it was originally translated. – List 2 reasons as to why back translation would be a good exercise with ASL-English (or vice versa). – Back translation exercise! Back Translation Exercise • Find a partner; sit facing each other • One of you will read the English and translate into ASL (without your partner seeing the English) NO cheating! • After the translation (you can do it twice), the audience member (person receiving the translation) will write the translation in English – as a back translation. • Once the translation is done, answer the following questions: – Was the message conceptually accurate? On a scale of 1-5 (with 5 being completely conceptually accurate, give the translation a score. – Were there omissions from the original message? If so, how important were the ideas/concepts that were omitted? On a scale of 1-5 (with 5 meaning the omission did not seriously affect the message, give the translation a score. – Were there additions to the original message? If so, how important were the ideas/concepts that were added? On a scale of 1-5 (with 5 meaning the added did not seriously affect the message, give the translation a score. Back Translation Exercise • I need to call the plumber; the kitchen faucet is leaking and has been since last Saturday. Our water bill will be outrageous. • The fight that broke-out in the school parking lot was never reported to the principal. She found out through gossip. • My Mom and Dad are celebrating their 49th wedding anniversary on a yacht with my Mom’s brother. They are sailing near Vancouver, Canada. • My sister and brother-in-law, Heidi and Mike are coaches of girls’ basketball at Rushville High School. They traditionally have a very good girls’ basketball team. • The doctor told the patient to take 3 pills a day, all with food. One in the morning, one at noon, and one in the evening. There were no known side effects of the medication. • My youngest sister, Leah, is adopted from South Korea. We got her when she was 6 months old. Her Korean name was Duk Kee Lee. What is a word/sign? • Give a definition of what a word is in English. • Give a definition of what a sign is in ASL. • Are there one-to-one correspondences with an orthographic representation of a word between two languages? – Rebuild, disbelieve (in English) – DEAF – HEARING Morphemes • • • • • • • • • Morpheme vs. word/sign Teach Teacher Teaches Cat Cats Believe Believable Unbelievable Lexical Meaning • Propositional meaning – we can judge an utterance as true or false. – For example: shirt, table, person, etc. Expressive meaning – cannot be judged as true or false; it relates to a speakers/signers feelings, attitude, or opinion For example: what is the difference between “don’t complain and don’t whine”? Words/phrases/signs can have the same propositional meaning but differ in their expressive meaning. Lexical Meaning • Evoked meaning: – Comes from dialect and register variation. • What is dialect? Can you give examples in ASL and English? • What is register? Can you give examples in ASL and English? • Why is providing an equivalent evoked meaning potentially challenging for an interpreter? Semantic Fields • Fields are abstract concepts that are built around concepts and “built” by a linguistic community. • The more detailed a semantic field is in a given language, the more different it is likely to be from related semantic fields in other languages. – – – – Verbs of speech Emotion Academic subjects Medicine Strategies for non-equivalence • Translation by a more general word(s) – Interstate – Orbits – Antiquated • Translation by a more neutral /less expressive word – – – – Mumbles Archaic Exotic Mystery • Source and target languages make different distinctions in meaning • Target language lacks a superordinate • Target language lacks a specific term Strategies for non-equivalence • Translation by cultural substitution – This strategy involves replacing a culture-specific item or expression with a target-language item which does not have the same propositional meaning but is likely to have a similar impact on the target audience. – The decision on what to use is based on • Purpose of translation • Translator’s own judgment – Ex: Deaf, hearing, residential school for the Deaf, hard of hearing, hearing impaired, ASL, cochlear implant – Did you get up on the wrong side of the bed? – Things have just run amok! – Break a leg! Strategies for non-equivalence • Translation using a loan word or loan word plus explanation. – When would you want to use the exact word, phrase from the target language? – Examples? Strategies for non-equivalence • Translation by omission – This strategy may seem rather drastic, but in fact it does no harm to omit translating a word or expression in some contexts. If the meaning conveyed by a particular item or expression is not vital enough to the text to justify distracting the audience with a lengthy explanation, translators can and often do simply omit the word or expression in question. • Deaf, hearing impaired, translator vs. interpreter, ASL vs. signed language, the n-word, Back Translation Exercises • I grew up being the only Deaf person in my family. I also went to the Deaf school. • My mother and father want me to get a cochlear implant; I don’t want this. It will hurt my future. • All of my family are hearing. I am the only Deaf person. No one can communicate with me. • I don’t understand English; my school didn’t teach me enough about it. • ASL is my language. I want an ASL interpreter for this meeting. • I am so lucky; all of my family is Deaf. • I didn’t realize you were hearing impaired and use that gesture language stuff. • Why are you in such a bad mood? I think you got up on the wrong side of the bed. • The doctor’s office needs the phone number of the Deaf patient. • I suck at math, but I really love theatre.
