scholarly journals The changing face of contemporary translation studies through polydisciplinary lenses: Possibilities and caveats

2021 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 462-477
Author(s):  
Klaudia Bednárová-Gibová
Keyword(s):  
Real World ◽  
Translation Studies ◽  
Integrated Approach ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Ivory Tower ◽  
After Effects ◽  
Translation Practice ◽  
Target Culture

This paper offers a meta-reflection of contemporary translation studies (TS) through tracing its polydisciplinary tensions which are approached as both formative forces as well as hindrances. Taking a form of an argumentative essay employing the methods of a reflexive introspection, synthesis and evaluation, the principal aim is to address the potentials and controversies in present-day TS which are connected to its polydisciplinarity. This is a result from the aftermath of Snell-Hornbys integrated approach (1988/1995), TSs cultural and ideological turns as well as cognitive, sociological, anthropological, technological and economic twists. Four major strands of the consequences of the polydisciplinarity in TS are addressed: (a) the clash between the focus on the epistemological core of TS as an antidote to the expanding boundaries of the meta-discipline and embrace of reciprocal interdisciplinarity; (b) the tension between academia as Ivory Tower and practice-minded language industry; (c) the diffusion of the outer boundaries of TS and erasure of its inner boundaries; (d) a multitude of different conceptualizations of TS foregrounding either the abstract or practical. Following TSs inward orientations, two outward turns are suggested, i.e. promoting its relevance to other disciplines and reaching out to translation practice, in tune with Zwischenbergers approach (2019). A continuation of the outward turns may be seen in Gentzlers post-translation studies focusing on the study of pre-translation culture and after-effects of translation in the target culture. Although the paper does not tend to conceptual extremes, it suggests that authentic transdisciplinary TS should be mindful of a constructive and mutually enriching dialogue with donor disciplines and interlacement between theory and practice, with a focus on real-world issues, becomes imperative in order to make TS viable.

Ein hermeneutischer Ansatz zur Versöhnung antagonistischer Übersetzungsorientierungen

2021 ◽  
pp. 97-136
Author(s):  
Lucia Salvato
Keyword(s):  
Translation Studies ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Umberto Eco ◽  
Human Communication ◽  
Augustine Of Hippo ◽  
Translation Practice ◽  
History Of ◽  
Foreign Text ◽  
The Right ◽  
Hans Georg Gadamer

The topic of this contribution is the relationship between hermeneutics and translation practice. In the first theoretical part, some relevant central concepts dealing with the ontological valence of language and the ontological foundation in humans are introduced and discussed; in this part the concern is with the possibility and the meaning of translation between languages and cultures. Considerations by some important scholars and philosophers, linguists, and semioticians such as Augustine of Hippo, Friedrich Schleiermacher, Hans-Georg Gadamer, Fritz Paepcke, and Umberto Eco are included in this section. The starting point is the antagonistic thinking which characterizes two main perspectives in translation studies; this antagonism has always characterized the history of translation and is now deeply anchored in European Translation Studies. Even if some theoretical answers to the ancient antagonism have been presented in the last years (e.g. Mary Snell-Hornby, Christiane Nord, Sergio Bolanos Cuellar), this contribution aims to criticize the theoretical exclusion of perspectives by proposing a comprehensive approach that takes into account both opposing but complementary viewpoints. As a key to good translation two main concepts are thus proposed: the idea of negotiation introduced by the Italian semiotician Umberto Eco and the concept of compromise as explained by the German initiator of philosophical hermeneutics Hans-Georg Gadamer. The theoretical reflections on language and human communication are then illustrated with reference to the practice of translation. The point is to show how the interweaving of theory and practice is particularly adequate for the task of translation, especially when the hermeneutic approach is employed in order to find the right translation solution. This work shows both the challenges translators face in their encounter with the foreign text and the practical and theoretical refinements that a hermeneutic reading of the translating process can bring, especially when it invites translators to take into account the thinking, the feeling and the action of the subjects involved in the translation process. This illustration is done with the help of text examples and by discussing the steps of a personal translating process as applied to some literary poems translated from German into Italian.

Revisiting translation in the age of digital globalization

Babel ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wu You
Keyword(s):  
Translation Studies ◽  
User Participation ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Translation Theory ◽  
Considerable Influence ◽  
New Paradigm ◽  
Digital Revolution ◽  
Translation Model ◽  
Translation Practice ◽  
New Type

Abstract Globalization has gone digital and presents a new type of connectivity virtually today. Digital globalization has transformed the landscape of translation theory and practice, exerting considerable influence on translation studies and the profession of translators. The translation practice evolves with the change of literary expectations driven by the digital revolution. New translation modes have been cultivated by incorporating two essential features of the age, known as technology and participation. Against this backdrop, Chinese web fiction is going global with establishing and developing overseas volunteer translation websites. With this in mind, this paper analyzes the translation model of Chinese web fiction with respect to digital globalization and argues that the fan-based volunteer translation has emerged as a new paradigm that features the “user participation turn” in translation studies.

Making Ivory-Tower Job Analysis Useful in the Real World

2006 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark A. Wilson ◽  
Milton Hakel ◽  
Robert J. Harvey
Keyword(s):  
Real World ◽  
Job Analysis ◽  
Ivory Tower ◽  
The Real

Semiotics East and West: an aesthetic-semiotic approach to translating the iconicity of classical Chinese poetry

Semiotica ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Guangxu Zhao
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
Translation Studies ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Translation Theory ◽  
Chinese Poetry ◽  
Semiotic Approach ◽  
Classical Chinese ◽  
Classical Chinese Poetry ◽  
Set Up ◽  
The Sacrifice

Abstract For some Western translators before the twentieth century, domestication was their strategy to translate the classical Chinese poetry into English. But the consequence of this strategy was the sacrifice of the ideogrammic nature of these poems. The translators in the twentieth century, especially the Imagist poets and translators in the 1930s, overcame the problems of their predecessors and their translation theory and practice was close to that of the contemporary semiotic translators. But both Imagist translators and contemporary semiotic translators have the problem of indifference to the feeling of the original in their translations. For the problem of translating the classical Chinese poetry by the Westerners before the twentieth century and the Imagist poets and translators of the twentieth century, see Zhao and Flotow 2018. This paper attempts to set up an aesthetic-semiotic approach to the translation of the iconicity of classical Chinese poetry on the basis of the examination of both Eastern and Western translation studies.

The metalanguage of localization

Target ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 337-357 ◽  
Author(s):  
Iwona Mazur
Keyword(s):  
Translation Studies ◽  
The Other ◽  
Present Discussion ◽  
Translation Practice ◽  
The Future ◽  
Basic Concepts ◽  
The One

In recent years localization has become a popular concept in both translation practice and theory. It has developed a language of its own, which, however, still seems to be little known among translation scholars. What is more, being primarily an industry-based discourse, the terms related to localization are very fluid, which makes theorizing about it difficult. Therefore, the aim of this article is, first of all, to explain the basic terms of the metalanguage of localization, as they are used by both localization practitioners and scholars, and, secondly, to make this metalanguage more consistent by proposing some general definitions that cover the basic concepts in localization. This, in turn, should, on the one hand, facilitate scholar-to-practitioner communication and vice versa and, on the other, should result in concept standardization for training purposes. In the conclusions I link the present discussion of the metalanguage of localization to a more general debate on metalanguage(s) in Translation Studies and propose that in the future we might witness the emergence of a new discipline called Localization Studies.

From Problem-Solving Paradigm to Co-Ontogenic Drift: How Do Learning Narratives Self-Generate?

Leonardo ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 44 (2) ◽  
pp. 133-138
Author(s):  
Johann van der Merwe ◽  
Julia Brewis
Keyword(s):  
Problem Solving ◽  
Real World ◽  
Design Education ◽  
Design Theory ◽  
Social Situation ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Use Of Self ◽  
Real World Problems

It is now an accepted maxim in design theory and practice that real-world problems needing the attention of design practitioners are not neat and well-structured, but ill-structured and “wicked”—part of a larger, complex social situation. For design education, then, to take its lead from contemporary social, political and economic structures, it will have to seriously re-think its problem-solving paradigms. The authors investigate the use of self-generating learning narratives in the classroom and contrast the approach they introduce with the still-too-prevalent notion that knowledge can be transferred from teacher to student. Their methodology draws from ideas formulated by Maturana and Varela on autopoiesis, specifically the notion of co-ontogenic drift.

Basic models of human-centrist, polyspiral, sustainable development of Ukraine

2021 ◽  
pp. 37-45
Author(s):  
Valery Borzunov
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Buffer Zone ◽  
Integrated Approach ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
External Control ◽  
Developed Country ◽  
The Future ◽  
The Status ◽  
Scientific Results ◽  
Definition Of

Subject of study. A set of relations that are formed in the process of determining models of sustainable development of Ukraine and the principles of designing the economy of the future. Purpose of the article: research of the main directions of sustainable development of Ukraine and the formation of principles of strategy. Research methodology. Scientific novelty of the work, the theoretical and methodological basis of the research is the system of both general scientific and special methods of scientific knowledge, the fundamental provisions of modern economic theory and practice. The proposed methodology of a system-integrated approach to the formation of basic models of man-centered, multispiral, sustainable development of Ukraine. As integrity in the organic unity of the prevailing prerequisites for the formation of the principles of strategizing. Scientific novelty lies in the definition of models for sustainable development of Ukraine and the principles of designing the economy of the future. Results of the work – the applied use of scientific results of improved approaches for the development and implementation of a strategy for human- centered, polyspiral, sustainable development is proposed. Conclusions. For 30 years of independence, Ukraine has turned from an industrially developed country into a backward and poorest country in Europe with an economy of lagging growth, the status of a «buffer zone» of geopolitical conflict on its territory and external control. To maintain sovereignty, ensure the country's competitiveness in the context of the transition to new technological paradigms and the quality of life of the population, at least at the average level for the EU countries, Ukraine needs to change course, develop and implement the «Strategy of human-centrist, multi-spiral, sustainable development».

scholarly journals Finding A Small Vertex Cover in Massive Sparse Graphs: Construct, Local Search, and Preprocess

2017 ◽  
Vol 59 ◽  
pp. 463-494 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shaowei Cai ◽  
Jinkun Lin ◽  
Chuan Luo
Keyword(s):  
Local Search ◽  
Real World ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Heuristic Algorithms ◽  
Search Algorithm ◽  
Vertex Cover ◽  
Search Algorithms ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Sparse Graphs ◽  
Massive Graphs

The problem of finding a minimum vertex cover (MinVC) in a graph is a well known NP-hard combinatorial optimization problem of great importance in theory and practice. Due to its NP-hardness, there has been much interest in developing heuristic algorithms for finding a small vertex cover in reasonable time. Previously, heuristic algorithms for MinVC have focused on solving graphs of relatively small size, and they are not suitable for solving massive graphs as they usually have high-complexity heuristics. This paper explores techniques for solving MinVC in very large scale real-world graphs, including a construction algorithm, a local search algorithm and a preprocessing algorithm. Both the construction and search algorithms are based on low-complexity heuristics, and we combine them to develop a heuristic algorithm for MinVC called FastVC. Experimental results on a broad range of real-world massive graphs show that, our algorithms are very fast and have better performance than previous heuristic algorithms for MinVC. We also develop a preprocessing algorithm to simplify graphs for MinVC algorithms. By applying the preprocessing algorithm to local search algorithms, we obtain two efficient MinVC solvers called NuMVC2+p and FastVC2+p, which show further improvement on the massive graphs.

scholarly journals Transgressive Textualities: Translating References to Gender, Sexuality and Corporeality in Nelly Arcan’s Putain and Paradis, clef en main

2013 ◽  
Vol 3 (1-2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Pauline Henry-Tierney
Keyword(s):  
Comparative Analysis ◽  
Female Body ◽  
The Body ◽  
Sexual Agency ◽  
Writing Style ◽  
Women's Bodies ◽  
Gendered Identity ◽  
Translation Practice ◽  
Neutral Tone ◽  
Target Culture

In this paper I examine how transgressive references to gender, sexuality and the body are translated in two texts by the Québécoise writer Nelly Arcan, her debut autofictional narrative Putain (2001) and her final (retroactively auto)fictional title Paradis, clef en main (2009). Throughout her oeuvre, Arcan seeks to liberate women from stereotypical frameworks of reference by asserting women’s gendered, sexual and corporeal subjectivities in previously taboo discourses on prostitution, incest, sexuality, anorexia, matrophobia and suicide. Through her candid and explicit writing style, Arcan elaborates her own specific écriture au féminin which incorporates a linguistic, thematic and physical visualization of women within her texts.These two novels have been translated into English as Whore (2005) by Bruce Benderson and Exit (2011) by David Scott Hamilton respectively. However, analysis of the target texts suggests that neither translator adopts a gender-conscious approach which compromises the specificity of Arcan's idiolect in the Anglophone context. Through a comparative analysis of examples from the source texts and translations under the categories of gender, sexuality and the body, I discuss how the translation practices work counterproductively to obfuscate Arcan’s textual visualisations of women. In terms of references to gendered identity, by removing or neutralising Arcan's grammatically feminised language in Putain, the translator obfuscates Arcan's idea of the importance gender plays in shaping maternal relationships. Similarly, in Exit, Arcan's subversive feminist wordplay is distorted resulting in women being reinserted into patriarchal frameworks of reference. My analysis on Arcan's portrayal of sexuality underlines how sexual euphemisms in the translation downplay the narrator's potential for sexual agency in Whore, while misleading translation choices for feminist neologisms relating to women's sexuality in Exit eschew Arcan's efforts to verbalise women's lived sexual realities. Lastly, inconsistency in the translation of female corporeal vocabulary distorts the neutral tone Arcan employs in Putain to ensure women's bodies are not eroticised and the translator's decision to condense references to the female body in Exit undermines the significance Arcan places on corporeal connections between women. Thereafter, I move on to consider the wider implications of the translative process such as how paratextual elements also have an impact upon Arcan's reception in the target culture. I argue that in both Whore and Exit, the paratranslators intentionally sensationalise the autofictional elements of Arcan's texts. In short, my analysis contends that through a non-gender conscious translation practice, the celebrity of Arcan is promoted in the Anglophone context but to the detriment of Arcan’s écriture au féminin.

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