THE CIRIN BULLETIN
Conference
Interpreting Research
Information Network
An independent network for the
dissemination of information on
conference interpreting
research (CIR)
__________________________________________________________________
BULLETIN n°35
December 2007
Editor: Daniel Gile
Contributors to
this issue:
Al-Zahran,
Aladdin (AZA),
Editorial address:
D. Gile, 46, rue d'Alembert,
92190 Meudon,
tel/fax +33 1 45 34 83 84
e-mail: daniel.gile@yahoo.com
Web site: http://www.cirinandgile.com
This Bulletin aims at
contributing to the dissemination of information on conference interpreting
research (CIR) and at providing useful information to members of the CIR
community worldwide. It is intended to achieve maximum coverage of research
into this sub-field of interpreting, and only occasionally refers to research
and publications in other sub-fields. The Bulletin is published twice a
year, in December and June. For further information and electronic or paper
copies of early issues (the last issue is available on the Web site at any
time), please contact D. Gile.
Note: the
mini-abstracts are followed by the initials of the contributors who sent in the
information, but the text may also be written or adapted from the original text
by D.Gile, who takes responsibility for the comments and for potential errors
introduced by him.
* *
*
Ninety one new references are listed in this Bulletin. At this time, the total number
of references in the CIRIN database for 2006 is above 150 and the total number
of items for 2007 is above 70 - these numbers will be updated in the next years
as more information comes in, but already show that the general level of
research activity remains high. Note in particular the large number of theses
and articles from
Daniel
Gile
Bartłomiejczyk,
* Retrospective verbal protocols were applied to
investigate interpreting strategies used by 36 trainee subjects working in both
directions between English (B) and Polish (A). Approximation proved to be the
most popular interpreting strategy among 21 strategies and was reported considerably more often for A-into-B
interpreting. A qualitative analysis of all the reported cases suggests that it
is a successful strategy.
Bartłomiejczyk,
* This paper discusses
quality assessment of the performance of both professional and student
interpreters working in various contexts, using a wide range of methods. It
then focuses on self-evaluation by trainee simultaneous interpreters as
examined in two empirical studies. The first project applied retrospective
verbal protocols to investigate interpreting strategies used by 36 advanced
student interpreters working in both directions between Polish (A) and English
(B). The results concerning self-evaluation, which are presented here, were a
by-product of this first study, but they gave rise to questions that are
further explored in the second project. Eighteen subjects at the same stage of
training were asked to interpret a text from English into Polish and to evaluate
their own performance, linking it to the strategic processing they had applied.
The results suggest a significant trend towards negative assessment, combined
with most attention being devoted to faithfulness to the original message and
to completeness. Issues of presentation (including monotonous intonation,
hesitant voice and long pauses), on the other hand, were hardly ever mentioned.
CHANG, Chia-chien & Diane L. Shallert. 2007. The impact of directionality on
Chinese/English simultaneous interpreting. Interpreting
9:2. 137-176.
* A particularly interesting study. Ten professional interpreters, some
of whom had dominant Chinese and others dominant English, were asked to
interpret 4 speeches each, 2 from English into Chinese and 2 from Chinese into
English, one ‘slow’ (100 wpm) and one ‘fast’ (130 wpm). Each interpretation was
followed by a retrospective stimulated interview (with a transcript of the
source speech and a dual-track recording of the speech and the target-language
output), and after the four operations were completed, a general interview was
conducted. The interviews were recorded and transcribed. The output was also
transcribed and assessed, both for propositional accuracy and for language
errors. On the basis of the transcripts, a model of interpreting was developed
following the grounded theory approach to analyze strategies used. Results
suggest, in line with other studies on directionality, that interpreters tend
to develop different strategies when interpreting from A into B and from B into
A. It also transpired that the interpreters, almost all of whom were
interpreting instructors themselves, were aware of a number of
communication-oriented norms which guided their behaviour, and that they
adapted their strategies to the needs and resources over time. Their comments
also show they are aware of language availability problems and of limitations
in available attentional resources and their consequences (which they describe
in terms very similar to failure sequences described in the Effort Models).
Interestingly, they also feel that some language/culture specific features are
relevant. In this case, they refer to the lack of explicitness of Chinese
discourse which needs to be ‘interpreted’ more than English discourse. Also
interestingly, Chinese A-interpreters produced more accurate renditions into
Chinese than English A-interpreters, but there was no directionality-related
difference in propositional accuracy in English A-interpreters. The speed
effect was significant, with better performance with the ‘slow’ speeches.
Interesting methodology, interesting information.
FENG, Jianzhong. 2007.
Professional Ethics: An Indispensable Part for CATTI (in Chinese). Foreign
Languages Research 2007:1(No.101). 53-55.
Abstract:
Gumul, Ewa. 2007. Explicitation in
conference interpreting. In Thelen, Marcel and Lewandowska-Tomaszczyk, Barbara Translation
and Meaning. Part 7,
* The main goal of the study is to detect possible
differences concerning explicitation in simultaneous vs. consecutive
interpreting. 48 trainee subjects interpreted two source texts from English (B)
into Polish (A) in both the modes. The overall number of explicitating shifts
in consecutive proved considerably
higher than in simultaneous interpreting. The most frequent form of
explicitation in both the modes was adding connectives, followed by replacement
of referential cohesion with lexical cohesion. (BM)
Laskowska, Patrycja. 2006. O
antycypacji w tłumaczeniu symultanicznym [On anticipation in simultaneous
interpreting]. In Tryuk 2006, 11-30.
* A thorough theoretical discussion of anticipation
followed by a very brief account on the author’s empirical research.
Anticipation depended on the type of source text rather than the source
language (English or French). Spontaneous texts triggered mostly linguistic
anticipation, and structured text extralinguistic anticipation. (BM)
Lenart, Sylwia. 2006. Dobór
tekstów w kształceniu tłumaczy konferencyjnych [Choosing texts for
conference interpreter training]. In Tryuk 2006, 31-48.
* A survey of 20 Polish interpreters showed the
fields in which they interpreted most frequently (economics and politics
topping the list) and typical problems they encountered (monotonous delivery, high
information density, fast speech rate). As for source text types, their
relative frequency was reported as follows: semi-spontaneous (presented on the
basis of notes), followed by spontaneous, and finally read-aloud texts. Only
10% of respondents preferred to interpret texts which were read aloud. (BM)
LI Cheng.
2007. The differences between simultaneous interpreting and consecutive
interpreting in form, tactic and cognitive requirement. Journal of
* This paper
illustrates the differences between simultaneous interpreting and consecutive
interpreting in form, tactic and cognitive requirement by relying on the
theoretical foundation of processing capacity established by cognitive
psychology and on D. Gile’s Effort Models. It discusses the limitation of
processing capacity and cognitive requirement and their influence on an
interpreter’s performance and also the due effect of formal and tactical
differences on the allocation of processing capacity.
LIN, Kevin. 2007. From what
meaning to no meaning. A speech act approach to consecutive interpreting. In
Thelen, Marcel and Lewandowska-Tomaszczyk, Barbara Translation and Meaning.
Part 7,
* A practicing interpreter uses several examples
from his own assignments (bilateral consecutive interpreting between English
and Chinese) to discuss the link between interpreting and pragmatics. The main
task of the interpreter is seen as achieving the same perlocutionary effect as
the original speaker. Several problems concerning interpreting between distant
cultures are discussed, such as conveying implicatures, cues and humour.
LIU Heping.
2007. Preparation and the quality of interpreting: an experiment. Journal of Language & Culture. No.
3: 73-76 (in Chinese)
* This article
reports an experiment of interpreting course to reveal the relation between
preparation and the quality of interpreting. The results show that preparation
conducted before interpreting is highly necessary and significant to ensure the
quality. Translation cannot be done without linguistic knowledge and cognitive
knowledge in particular. Therefore, it is an important component in
interpreting training to help students to acquire the cognitive knowledge
necessary for comprehension. (WBH)
LIU Heping.
2007. On the orientation of professional interpreter training in
* The paper,
starting from the Chinese market demands for interpreting and the requirement
of its professionalism, divides professional interpretation into 4 levels,
namely, professional conference interpreting, professional interpreting,
consecutive interpreting, and interpreting for tourism and liaison. With the
help of figures, the author analyzes the reasons for this division. She then
studies the principles and methods of consecutive interpretation training and
stresses the importance and need for a progressive improvement of professional
training in
MAO Zhongming
& CHENG Fugan. 2007. Rosch’s Prototype Theory and the Interpreter’s
Word-Searching Strategy. Journal of
* This essay,
from the perspective of Rosch’s prototype theory, makes a probe into the
strategy of using the prototype word to reach loose equivalence between TL and
SL when the interpreter cannot recall the exact word. And it goes further to
point out that, by adopting the sub-prototype word, that is, a word in an
interim state between the proto-type word and the exact word, the interpreter
can make an immediate self-correction while blurting out the prototype word so
as to improve the quality of interpretation. (WBH)
Motta, M.
Możdżonek, Anna. 2006.
Tłumaczenie symultaniczne, tłumaczenie a vista i tłumaczenie
symultaniczne z tekstem [Simultaneous interpreting, sight translation and
simultaneous with text]. In Tryuk 2006, 49-64.
* The experimental set-up involved six trainee
subjects and three source texts to be interpreted in various modes from French
(B) into Polish (A). Examples of different strategies typical of each mode are
provided, albeit without quantitative data. The author claims to have confirmed
her initial hypothesis that interpreting with text would produce better results
than without text, but fails to explain how the quality of the interpretations
was measured and compared (MB).
Nafá Waasaf,
María Lourdes. 2007. Intonation and the structural organisation of
texts in simultaneous interpreting. Interpreting
9:2. 177-198.
* A summary of
the author’s 2005 doctoral dissertation. Fifteen source speeches produced at
the European Parliament and the European Commission and their interpretation
were scrutinized for acoustic characteristics. Results suggest that both
speakers and interpreters follow intonational patterns described in the
literature, i.e. high pitch at initial paragraph boundaries and low pitch at
final boundaries.
Pałka, Alina. 2006. Dydaktyka tłumaczenia
symultanicznego na język B [Teaching simultaneous interpreting into a B
language]. In Tryuk 2006, 65-80.
* The reported experiment consisted in recording
interpretations into B (Polish-French) by five advanced interpreting trainees
and presenting them for evaluation to a French user of interpreting services to
see whether they met his expectations. The overall evaluation was positive,
although the referee noticed some errors (no examples of these are provided).
(MB)
Pöchhacker,
Franz. 2007. Quality Standards in Interpreting: Theory and
Application. Chinese
Translators Journal 28:182
(2007:2).10-16.
* Abstract: This paper explores the issue of quality in interpreting from
two main perspectives - the profession and academic research. Following a review and
illustration of conference interpreters' original aspiration to equate quality
with professional status, I will examine the contribution of academic research to the
issue of quality, with particular emphasis on survey research into interpreters'
quality criteria and end-users' expectations. It will be shown that quality can
and must be approached from multiple perspectives and with reference to a complex set of criteria relating to both
the service aspects and the product features of an interpreter's performance. Against the background of this
comprehensive view of quality, I will take the notion of quality standards in
its specific
technical sense and discuss recent efforts at drafting national standards for
interpreting services, including the ASTM Standard Guide, the draft Chinese standard, and Austrian Standards 1202
and 1203. I will argue that standard-setting for professional interpreting
services must be informed by insights from theoretical and empirical research
if standards of practice are to reflect the full complexity and variety of
professional reality.
Ruszel, Joanna. 2006. Ocena
kompetencji w kształceniu tłumaczy konferencyjnych: normy zawodowe a
parametry dydaktyczne [Evaluation of competences in conference interpreter
training: Professional norms and didactic parameters]. In Tryuk 2006, 99-120.
* The paper contrasts the evaluation of
professional interpreters’ performance with evaluation at various stages of
interpreter training. Two consecutive interpretations from French into Polish
undergo assessment by an examiner. The assessment is carried out first by
applying quality norms that hold for professional interpreters and then by
measuring the level of development of skills and expertise. It is shown that an
interpretation which does not fully meet all professional standards may
nevertheless be given a favourable grade in the final examination. (MB)
Sandrelli, Analisa & Jesús de Manuel
* CAIT (Computer Assisted Interpreter Training) is a
relatively new field of interpreting studies which began to develop in the mid
1990s. The impetus behind CAIT is an attempt to exploit the multimedia
capabilities of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to enhance the
teaching and learning of interpreting in various ways. The present feature
article offers an overview of the three major approaches that have been
developed within CAIT over its ten-year history. Integrative CAIT relies on
digital speech banks or repositories to provide students with suitable
materials for classroom use or self-study, with computers playing the twofold
role of tutor and stimulus. Intelligent CAIT has flourished on the back of new
dedicated authoring programs which enable interpreter trainers to easily create
various types of exercises and provide trainees with tools to optimize the use
of the available resources; in an environment where the computer plays the role
of tool, intelligent CAIT applications incorporate new utilities to increase
interaction between computer and users and to situate learning in more
realistic contexts. The third approach, based on Virtual Learning Environments,
seeks to exploit the opportunities offered by computer-mediated communication
tools and make the teaching and learning of interpreting more immersive by
applying aspects of simulation technology available in computer games. As the
overview progresses, the reader is introduced to a number of state-of-the-art CAIT
programs and applications.
Santa Montez, Maria. 2002. Método de toma de notas en tetracolumna en interpretación
consecutiva. Sendebar 13. 23-32.
* The autor recommends a method for taking notes in consecutive in 4
columns: main topic, action, complement
or secondary topic, details.
Seeber, K.G. 2001. Intonation
and anticipation in simultaneous interpreting. Cahiers de Linquistique Française
23. 61 – 97.
Seeber, K.G. 2004. Prosodic deterioration and
comprehension in simultaneous interpreting: a follow up experiment. Cahiers
de l'Institut de Linguistique de Louvain , 30:1. 233 – 242.
Seeber, K.G. 2005. Temporale Aspekte der
Antizipation beim Simultandolmetschen komplexer SOV-Strukturen aus dem
Deutschen. Bulletin
Suisse de linguistique appliquée
81. 123 – 149.
Seeber, K.G.,
Zelger C. 2007. Betrayal
- vice or virtue: An ethical perspective on accuracy in simultaneous
interpreting.
Setton, Robin & Manuela Motta. 2007. Synctacrobatics. Quality and reformulation
in simultaneous-with-text. Interpreting
9:2. 199-230.
* The primary aim of the study was to test the widely-held belief that ’deverbalization’-based
interpreting, one which is generally more remote from the form of the source
speech, results in a better-quality output. Twenty four interpreters, 13
novices and 10 or 11 experts, interpreted two English speeches into French. The
methodology adopted was triangulation, with judgment by 4 experienced
interpretation users from international organization on one hand and
transcript-based measures of accuracy, style and fluency. Analysis showed that
major errors were a good predictor of user judgment in spite of the fact that
the users did not have access to the source speech. No correlation was found
between restructuring (i.e. deverbalization-based interpreting) and quality
judgment. The paper includes reflection on methodological issues.
* Seven interpreters simultaneously interpreted an
English speech into Hebrew and translated it in writing 4 years later (the
authors assume that by that time, they will have forgotten the details of the
solutions they found to interpreting problems). The translation of cognates in
both modalities is compared. It turns out that there are more cognates than
non-cognates in the TT in interpreting than in translation, and that there are
more false cognates than correct translations in interpreting than in written
translation. These findings support the idea that cognitive pressure has
practical implications on both interpreting strategies and level of
correctness.
Tryuk, Małgorzata. 2006. Ocena
jakości przekładu w procesie kształcenia tłumaczy
konferencyjnych [Quality assessment in conference interpreter training]. In
Tryuk 2006, 133-147.
* A review of criteria taken into account during
assessment of interpreter trainees, supplemented by a number of assessment
sheets proposed by various schools. (MB)
Vásquez y del Arbol,
Ester. 2005. Estrategias docentes para la interpretación consecutiva. Sendebar 16. 181-191.
* Teaching
exercises for consecutive.
WANG Dongzhi.
* This paper
first gives a brief introduction to the 6th National Conference on Interpreting
Studies in
WANG Dongzhi & WANG Lidi. 2007. The Quality of Interpreting and Its Control. The Chinese Translators Journal 28:184 (2007 n°4). 54-57 (in Chinese)
Abstract: The rapid growth of
Wittlin, Katarzyna. 2006. Model
profesjonalizacji rynku tłumaczeń ustnych w Polsce [A model of
interpreting market professionalisation in
* The paper focuses mainly on theoretical models of
professionalisation. The author presents a few facts referring to the times
before the transformation of 1989, but fails to describe the present market
situation in any depth.
XU Haiming &
DAI Weidong. 2007. Features of note-taking made by professional
interpreter trainees and non-professional interpreters in consecutive
interpreting: An empirical study. Foreign
Language Teaching and Research. Vol. 39 No. 2: 136-144 (in Chinese)
* This study aims
to investigate the features of note2taking (Dam, et al. 2005) made by native
Chinese professional trainee interpreters (PTIs) and non-professional
interpreters (NPIs), specifically, the quantity, form and language of their
notes. It also examines the relationship between the features of note-taking
and interpreting efficiency. Six professional trainee interpreters and six
non-professionals were chosen as participants in the study. Interpreting
process video-recording, stimulated recall, interviews and scrutiny of the
real-time notes made by the participants were used as instruments to record or
elicit data. The study yields the following results: 1) as regards the
quantity, the NPIs made more notes of the source information than the PTIs did;
2) as regards the form, the PTIs used fewer phrases, more single words and more
symbols than the NPIs did; 3) as regards the language, PTIs used less source
language (Chinese) but more target language (English) than the NPIs did. The
results also indicate that the relationship between the features of note-taking
and interpreting efficiency is complex, rather than linear and straightforward. (WBH)
YANG Liu. 2007. The Development of Western Theories
of Interpretation and their Reception in
* Abstract: Tracing the development of interpretation theories in the
West and their reception in
ZHANG Wei &
WANG Kefei. 2007. The study between interpreting and working
memory. Foreign Languages and Their
Teaching. No. l: 43-47 (in Chinese)
* Memory is one
the fundamental elements in successful interpreting, exerting great influence
on interpreting quality (IQ). This paper focuses on the relationship between
simultaneous interpreting and working memory (WK), showing the significant
effect of both volume of WK and coordinating power of WK on IQ, and the more
practical effect of other interpreting-related skills and strategies. By
analyzing the existing problems in interpreting research, the authors hold that
working memory in interpreting can be furthered by improving research design as
well as adopting interdisciplinary approaches. (WBH)
ZHONG Weihe. 2007.
The principles and methodology for training professional interpreters. Journal of
* This paper
discusses the principles and methodology for training professional
interpreters. Based on Gile’s comprehension formula of interpreting: C=KL+ ELK
+A (Comprehension = Knowledge for the Language + Extra-Linguistic Knowledge
+Analysis), the author provides a Knowledge Requirements Formula for
Interpreters: KI = KL + EK + S (P + AP). In this formula, KI=Knowledge Required
for an Interpreter, KL=Knowledge for Languages, EK = Encyclopedic Knowledge,
S(P + AP)= Professional Interpreting Skills and Artistic Presentation Skills.
The author proposes that interpreting related courses should be designed
according to this Knowledge Requirements Formula for Interpreters, i.e. the
syllabus should include courses on the improvement of language proficiency and
language skills, courses or seminars on encyclopedic knowledge and courses on
interpreting skills and professional standards. He also provides a tentative
pedagogy for the introduction of the required knowledge for interpreters. He
then introduces the Eight Principles of interpreting training. (WBH)
M.A. AND GRADUATION THESES
M. A. Theses in
the School of Interpreting & Translation Studies,
CHEN, Feihu. 2007. Treatment of
Culturally-loaded Expressions in C-E Interpreting －from the Perspective of Schema Theory. M.A. thesis, School of Interpreting &
Translation Studies, Guangdong University of Foreign Studies.
* Abstract：In
recent years, interpreting is playing a more and more important role in
inter-cultural communication. Especially during the annual NPC and CPPCC
meetings, the importance of interpreting has been more than ever highlighted.
Various culturally-loaded expressions involved in the language of speakers
including culturally-loaded words, Chinese popular sayings and old sayings have
always posed the greatest challenge for interpreters. The author collected the
press conference videos of Premier Zhu Rongji, Premier Wen Jiabao and Foreign
Minister Li Zhaoxing, put the culturally-loaded expressions involved into three
categories based on the three corresponding relations of cultural schema, and
analyzed the interpreters’ treatment of the culturally-loaded expressions in
detail from the perspective of schema theory Based on the analysis, the author
achieved two major findings: Firstly, the author sorted out all the coping
tactics adopted by the interpreters and put them into four categories,
including paraphrasing, borrowing, literal interpretation and literal
interpretation plus explanation. Secondly, three coping strategies of the
Chinese culturally-loaded expressions were proposed, including introduction of
new cultural schema, adjustment of cultural schema and zero introduction of
cultural schema. At the same time, the author also pointed out possible coping
strategies and specific tactics to deal with each kind of corresponding
relation of cultural schema.
Key
words: interpreting; culturally-loaded expression; cultural schema; coping
strategies (WBH)
DENG, Yanling.
* Abstract: Gile pointed out that simultaneous interpreting (SI)
involves multiple tasks. Interpreters have to listen and analyze the
forthcoming information while they are interpreting the preceding information.
This complex process costs enormous processing efforts. Omission often occurs
because of the constraint of processing capacity. However, simultaneous
interpreters claim that the strategy of addition is also frequently used and it
is most welcome for them although they are facing the constraint of processing
capacity and the risk of more information loss. In this research, the author
intends to justify the adoption of addition with functional approach. She
assumes that any strategy can be used and ought to be used as long as it is
conducive to SI performance. She has carried out an observational study with a
view to identifying the types and purposes of addition employed in SI. She has
classified the types of addition and she has also studied the purposes of those
additions. In this way, she hopes that the research can shed light on
simultaneous interpreters as well as trainees in developing the skill of
addition. In addition, she hopes the findings of this study can be of great
help for teachers to develop pedagogical methods of SI so that students can be
adept at the adoption of addition in various situations.
Key words: addition, simultaneous interpreting, Skopos, coherence (WBH)
FAN, Xiaoyan.
2006. Short-Term Memory in Consecutive Interpreting -- A study based on
Cognitive Psychology. M.A. thesis, School of Interpreting &
Translation Studies, Guangdong University of Foreign Studies.
* Abstract: This study is both theoretical and empirical. As the importance
of the STM and its training in CI have not been given due attention by Chinese
interpreting researchers and trainers, the author elaborates the significance
of the STM from the perspective of cognitive psychology. Mainly based on Gile’s
Effort Model and the information-processing model, the author endeavors to
prove why the STM plays a key role in CI and why the STM training should be put
at the very early stage during CI training. The author further analyzes that
the factors influencing the effect of STM in CI are: the correct understanding
of the source language, a “prepared” good long-term memory (LTM) basis and
effective training methods. As the listening competence and LTM are mainly
improved by learning process, the author believes that CI interpreters’ STM
capacity can be achieved through effective coping tactics. By analyzing the
memory training methods proposed and practiced by famous scholars in the
interpreting circle, the author proposes to combine the retelling exercise with
visual and logical thinking as a coping approach. An one-month experiment is
conducted. The Control Group is trained on retelling exercises and the
Experimental Group is trained on retelling exercise with visual and logical
thinking. Both of the groups are improved in their proposition recall through
the experiment, while the effect on experimental group seems superior to that
of the control group. Key words: Consecutive Interpreting, Short-Term Memory,
STM training
Key words: Consecutive Interpreting Short-Term Memory STM Training (WBH)
GU, Yikui.
2006. Anticipation as a Strategy in Simultaneous Interpreting. M.A.
thesis, School of Interpreting & Translation Studies, Guangdong University
of Foreign Studies.
* Abstract: This paper is an attempt to examine the role of anticipation
as a strategy in simultaneous interpreting. It is largely based on a
theoretical framework that integrates ideas from Chernov’ probabilistic
prediction model, Gile’s effort model, and the relevance theory. These theories
serve to prove the possibility of anticipation in SI and answer the question
why this strategy is desired by interpreters. Building on the basis of the
theoretical framework, the author then ventures to suggest a tentative process
model of anticipation, which is supported by the underlying mechanism of the
effort model. Moreover, the author also seeks to identify the specific role of
anticipation in SI from Chinese to English, i.e., how do interpreters cope with
specific difficulties occurring in C-E simultaneous interpretation by employing
the strategy of anticipation. In order to do so, an observational study is
carried out, in which the simultaneous interpretation of one of the
Key words: simultaneous interpreting (SI); anticipation; strategy;
process model (WBH)
GUO, Yun.
* Abstract: This thesis integrates simultaneous interpreting (SI) with
Second Language Acquisition (
Key words: Simultaneous Interpreting, Communication Strategies,
Communication (WBH)
HE, Lingmin. 2007.
On the Role of Filled Pauses in Quality Assessment of C-E Consecutive
Interpreting. M.A. thesis, School of Interpreting & Translation
Studies, Guangdong University of Foreign Studies.
* Abstract： Consecutive interpreting (CI) has long been taken as
a complicated event for its multi-task nature. Therefore, according to Effort
Models, interpreters, even professional ones, may get deficient in energy
arising from problem triggers that an interpretation task may entail. In
consequence, speech errors are unavoidable during interpreters’ performing of
the challenging work of interpretation, especially filled pauses (FPs), which
is one kind of speech errors typical in CI. However, on the other hand, as CI
is a vital channel of communication, it should be conducted in conformity with
communication principles so as to effectively bridge the gap among
communicators who are from different speech communities. In such circumstances,
whether FPs affect listeners’ comprehension becomes the concern of this thesis.
To probe into this field, the author made an observational study to explore the
role of filled pauses in listeners’ evaluation of CI quality in terms of the
criteria of “faithfulness”, “fluency” and “speediness”. The materials selected
for this study are three extracts of C-E CI, with the similar setting, press
conferences held by the State Council Information Office in 2004 and 2005, and
yet covering a different issue from one another. Most importantly, the three
passages contain distinctly different levels of filled pauses. This thesis
leads to three findings. First, FPs in CI function more as noise than as a
facilitator in the communication. Second, although listeners show appreciation
for the interpreters’ stressfulness in the interpreting task, they hope FPs resulting
from the challenges to be lessened to the least possible extent, since they
always hamper listeners' comprehension of the interpretation. Third, as FPs are
always associated with delay and tardiness, they have an effect on listeners'
subjective assessment of "faithfulness" in CI. These findings
indicate that the listeners consider FPs mainly as a major dysfluency marker,
resulting in a negative effect on their assessment of CI, and are explicable in
the light of Effort Models as well as Communication Theory reviewed in the
thesis.
Key words: Effort Models; filled pauses; CI; quality assessment;
communication (WBH)
HU, Bing.
2006. On Anticipation in Simultaneous Interpreting. M.A.
thesis, School of Interpreting & Translation Studies, Guangdong University
of Foreign Studies.
* Abstract: This paper aims at an empirical study on the anticipation in
Simultaneous Interpreting and the related phenomena and their theoretical
explanation. SI is always regarded as the most difficult interpreting task by
many theorists all across the world. In order to accomplish the highly
demanding task, the interpreters have to make full use of strategies to lessen
the burden imposed by the difficulties they encounter in interpreting. One of
those strategies is anticipation, or the anticipatory mechanism inherent with
the human brain. Since SI process is a highly complex one, in this paper, many
theoretical schools of thought are applied to explaining this highly complex
process of anticipation just as Robin Setton does. Those theories include the
Relevance Theory, Halliday’s insights about intertextuality, Chernov’s
Probability and Predict Model, and etc. The strategy of anticipation saves the
processing effort needed. In this paper, the real conference simultaneous
interpreting material has been analyzed on the basis of certain theoretical
approach, which indicates that owing to the certain differences, either
syntactic or discoursal between the specific language pair which is English and
Chinese, there are mostly frequently anticipated linguistic parts. This paper
responds to the issues under the research and is explaining as many details as
possible.
Key words: Anticipation, Simultaneous Interpreting (WBH)
LI, Jing.
* Abstract：This paper examines the phenomenon of sense loss in
the English to Chinese interpretation for the EMBA courses delivered in
Key words: (linguistic) adaptability, choice (-making), sense loss,
interpretation (WBH)
OUYANG, Qianhua.
2006. Schema Theory Guided Designing of Reading Part in Interpreting
Coursebook. M.A. thesis, School of Interpreting & Translation
Studies, Guangdong University of Foreign Studies.
* Abstract: This paper attempts to apply some of the basic notions and
typical methods of schema theory to the designing of reading material in
interpretation coursebook, and to prove that the specially designed reading
part can affect the background accumulation pattern of student interpreters and
help them to better utilize the positive effect of background in interpreting
process to enhance their performance. The paper starts with reviewing relevant
cognitive research on interpreting process and studies on schema theory to
probe the heavy cognitive load interpreter suffers during information
processing and how background knowledge could relieve the cognitive load to
enhance interpreting performance based on the theoretical exploration of
schemata storage, background information accumulation and activation of
schemata in the interpreting process. The special features of Chinese students
bilingualism and the hence brought differentiation in their interpreting
process are also been counted as important factors in the analysis. As
background information is put into play in the interpreting process by the
activation of schemata, while the reading part in interpreting coursebook is
among the means of background information accumulation and will significantly
affect the accumulation pattern of students, the paper will propose a set of
methods of designing the reading part in interpreting coursebook in light of
the schema theory. Previous researches in the schema theory applied EFL reading
comprehension teaching will be referred to in the devising of the reading part
designing proposal. A self-complete questionnaire survey was conducted to
demonstrate the possible effect of reading part in interpreting coursebook on
the students’ background information accumulation pattern. A set of two
experiments was carried out to test the effectiveness of the schema theory
based design of reading material.
Key words: schema theory; background knowledge; interpreting process;
reading part of interpreting coursebook (WBH)
QI, Ying.
2007. On the Omission in Simultaneous Interpreting from the Perspective of
Cooperative Principle. M.A. thesis, School of Interpreting &
Translation Studies, Guangdong University of Foreign Studies.
* Abstract: This dissertation is an attempt to study the phenomenon of
omission in SI from the pragmatics perspective. The previous studies on
omission are lexical-semantic based and disregard for functional and pragmatics
considerations. So there is no surprise that most of these researches only come
to one conclusion about the impact of omission --- “information loss”.
Interpreting, as a communicative process, should comply with certain rules. The
author has classified omissions into four categories according to Grice’s
Cooperative Principle and made an in-depth study on the impact of these
omissions on SI quality. Based on these explorations, the author has proposed
her criterion in assessing omission in SI: as long as the reproduction could
still serve for the current purposes of the exchange, omissions occurring in
the interpreting process are acceptable.
Key words: simultaneous interpreting, omission, Cooperative Principle (WBH)
QIAN, Fang.
2007. Evaluation of Faithfulness in Interpreting from the Perspective of
Schema Theory. M.A. thesis, School of Interpreting &
Translation Studies, Guangdong University of Foreign Studies.
* Abstract: Interpreting and interpreting research has gained increasing
attention and studies from scholars in different disciplines. Based on schema
theory which is widely used in foreign language comprehension and listening,
the current study intends to probe into the evaluation of faithfulness as an
interpreting quality criterion and come up with a comprehensive schema-based
assessment mode to evaluate interpreting quality parameters. The thesis
consists of five parts. The first part is a brief introduction to the present
study. The second part is a general review of literature on interpreting
quality criteria research, specifically on the core in interpreting quality
faithfulness, which is followed by the author’s summary of the achievements and
limitations of previous studies. The third part serves as the theoretical
framework of the thesis in which the author analyzes in details the
relationship between evaluating faithfulness in interpreting and schema theory
based on an introduction of basic notions in schema theory. The fourth part
describes a comprehensive assessment mode containing four methods either
qualitative or quantitative, with exemplified illustration provided in
quantitative method. The final part makes a conclusion of the study and
suggests that attention in further research can be given to the sub-branch in
interpreting studies from multidisciplinary approaches.
Key words: faithfulness, interpreting quality assessment, schema, schema
theory (WBH)
SONG, Chen.
* Abstract: Vagueness is one of the constitutive properties of natural language. It is embodied in several most efficiently used aspects of