READING 1

Unit 2: What is interpreting?

During this week's class, we will be discussing what we understand as "interpreting".

We will be discussing the following issues:

 The complexity of the practice

 The different modes of interpreting that have been identified in the
literature 
 The different skills that one must master in order to be able to perform
this practice.
 Different ways of conceptualizing interpreting and what these
conceptualizations bring to the discussion on interpreting

Assigned reading: Mikkelson (2009) "Interpreting is interpreting – or is it?"

Some questions for discussion:

1. Who wrote the article and when? Is it contemporary? Is it relevant today?

2. Where is the author of the article from? Could this affect her view on
"interpreting"? Or are her views fair generalizations?
3. Are there any specific arguments in this article that can only be applied
in particular contexts of interpreting? Or do you think that these
arguments can be universally employed in all contexts of interpreting?
4. What are the main points or arguments that the author wants to make in
this article?
5. What kind of information or data is the author drawing on to make these
points or arguments?
6. What is your reaction to the reading? Do you understand the arguments
the author is making? Do you agree with these arguments?

What is interpretation:

- What are interpreting studies? Any área of researc that studies interpretation. The
practice
Can translation be orality? Yes. Literature translation, sight translation

Orality = is not unique to interpretation

Can Immidiecy be universaly represented in interpretation?

Is any whay to aply it to translation? Sight translation

Lack of revision = fundamental characteristic of interpretation, because is very few possibilities

of revision in interpretation. You can correct an error immediately if you realize it in that
moment, but you cannot revise your interpretation to do it again. Sight translation is an
example.

Both orality and lack of revision can be applied in translation.

Social interaction

Purpose of communication: we have to take that into account when we perform into
interpretation.

Different ways

At what kind of interpretation we produce in a discourse level?

Discours level = We approach the whole speech at We listen a speech and we produce it as a
same speech. The content is the same but the structure may not necessary be the same. We
take an idea and we transformed into another message with the same porpous or intention
but we don’t focus in the structure.

Take notes, memorize the speech and produce a text that it is more or less the same.

- Mirar-me els diferents tipus d’interpretació (simultaneous and consecutive) i saber

què són cada una.
- Mirar què vol dir cada concepte del power i saber-ne la definició

Intersocial interpreting tends to happend at a global level.

Parameters:

- Language modality
- Working mode
- Directionality
- Use of technology
- Professional status