Translation and the dilemmas of crosscultural research in a development
context.
Dr Kate Maclean
Department of Geography, Environment
and Development Studies,
Birkbeck, University of London
Lecture Outline
• Is translation impossible?
• Particular issues with translation in a post-colonial,
development context
• Translation techniques
• Translation and deconstruction: citizenship and
identity categories
• A framework for speaking with
Is translation impossible?
The ‘Sapir–Whorf
hypothesis’
The ‘indeterminacy of
translation – Quine 1960
‘Word and Object’
Colonialism and language
http://www.michellehenry.fr/geomap.htm
Are we speaking for the ‘other’?
• Politics of research
• Politics of language
• Should we step aside?
• Are we condemned only to describe?
Translation techniques: Direct
Translation
• Word for word/ dictionary translation
• Early computer translation programs
Functional Translation
• What a person from the target language
would say in the same situation
• Learn whole phrases in role plays rather
than vocabulary lists
• Can ‘change register’ – for example from
formal to informal
Logic and Rhetoric
• Spivak, The Politics of Translation
“Mahasweta Devi's "Stanadayini” is available in two
versions. Devi has expressed approval for the
attention to her signature style in the version entitled
"Breast-Giver”. The alternative translation gives the
title as "The Wet-Nurse," and thus neutralizes the
author's irony in constructing an uncanny word;
enough like "wet-nurse" to make that sense, and
enough unlike to shock.”
‘Difficult’ languages: Aymara and time
http://ucsdnews.ucsd.edu/archive/newsrel/soc/backsfuturedetail.asp
Translation and Grounding theory:
‘Indigenous Women’s Citizenship’
•Citizenship
•Race
•Gender
Untranslatable words
‘This is tumbao culture. Tumbao means that I’ve toppled you, I win, I’m the
most important, and if you don’t know that it was me that did it, even
better….He is the man, that’s how Pablo worked. That’s how he got what he
got, because he was determined to beat everyone else. Ese es el macho, ese
es Pablo Escobar’. (Medellín Councillor, Interview, 16th July 2012)
The culture of leadership among political and business leaders was also
referred to as tumbao, which is difficult to translate. A related meaning of the
word comes from its origins as a Caribbean dance, and it can refer to a
particularly confident way of walking – a ‘swagger’ or a ‘strut’ for men, and a
certain ‘sway’ for women. At the same time, tumbao can mean a con, or
even a robbery, and it is also related to the Spanish verb tumbar, which
means to overthrow or knock out. It is associated with another leadership
value – being ‘vivo’ - which means being smart, even crafty, and taking
advantage of people, preferably without them knowing. (Maclean 2015: 4950)
Translation as a resource
• ‘Grounding’ ideas/ concepts/ theories
• Power dynamics
• Deconstruction, abuse and a groundwork
for speaking with
Techniques of translation
• Back translation
• Piloting questions/ interview prompts
• Discussion and collaboration with translators
– Taking into account their position/positionality and
influence on research interactions
– Online fora
• Making decisions clear
Conclusion
• Power dynamics, dilemmas and barriers
inherent in cross-cultural research
• Translation and translators can be a
resource
• Good translation practice