Functional theories of translation

Functional theories of translation

The 1970s and 1980s saw a move away from the static linguistic typologies of translation shifts and the emergence and flourishing in Germany of a functionalist and communicative .approach to the analysis of translation

:In this chapter, we look at Katharina Reiss's early work on text type and.1 ;language function ;Justa Holz-Manttari's theory of translational action .2 Hans J. Vermeer's skopos theory which centred on .3 ;the purpose of the TT Christiane Nord's more detailed text-analysis model 4 which continued the functionalist tradition in the .1990s

A functionalist and communicative approach to translation Text type Katharina Reiss's work in the 1970s builds on.the concept of equivalence She views the text, rather than the word or sentence, as the level at which communication is achieved and at which equivalence must be .sought

Her functional approach aims initially at systematizing the assessment of translations. It borrows Karl Buhlerl’s three way categorization of the functions of language. Reiss links the three functions to their corresponding language 'dimensions' and to the text types or communicative situations in which they are .used

The main characteristics of each text type are :summarized by Reiss as follows :Informative text types .1 Plain communication of facts': information,'knowledge, opinions, etc The language dimension used to transmit the,information is logical or referential The content or 'topic' is the main focus of the .communication

:expressive text types .2 The author uses the aesthetic dimension of language. e.g. creative composition The author or 'sender' is foregrounded, as well as the form .of the message operative text types (The appellative function) 3 To appeal to or persuade the reader or 'receiver' of the text .to act in a certain way .The form of language is dialogic .The focus is appellative

Audiomedial texts, such as films.4 and visual and spoken .advertisements They supplement the other three functions with visual images, .music, etc

Following this diagram, the reference work is the text variety which is the most fully informative text type; the poem is a highly expressive, form-focused type, and an advertisement is the clearest operative text type (attempting to persuade someone to .buy or do something)

Between these poles are positioned a host of hybrid of types. Thus, a biography might be somewhere between the informative and expressive types, since it provides information about the subject while also partly performing the expressive function .of a piece of literature

Similarly, a sermon gives information(about the religion) while fulfilling the operative function by attempting to persuade the congregation to a certain way of .behaving

Despite the existence of such hybrid types, Reiss states that 'the transmission of the predominant function of the ST is the determining factor by .'which the TT is judged She suggests 'specific translation methods according to text type' (Reiss 1976: 20). These methods occupy the last two

The TT of an informative text should .1 transmit the full referential or conceptual content of the ST. The translation should be in 'plain prose', without redundancy and with the use .of explicitation when required

The TT of an expressive text should .2 transmit the aesthetic and artistic form of the ST. The translation should use the 'identifying' method, with the translator adopting the standpoint of .the ST author

The TT of an operative text should produce .3 the desired response in the TT receiver. The translation should employ the 'adaptive' method, creating an equivalent effect among TT .readers Audio-medial texts require the .4 'supplementary' method, supplementing .written words with visual images and music

Reiss also lists a series of intralinguistic and extralinguistic instruction criteria by which the :adequacy of a TT may be assessed. These are intralinguistic criteria: semantic, lexical,.1 .grammatical and stylistic features extralinguistic criteria: situation, subject field, .2 time, place, receiver, sender and 'affective .implications' (humour, irony, emotion, etc.)

Although interrelated, the importance of these criteria vary according to text type . For example, the translation of any content-focused text should first aim at .preserving semantic equivalence

However, while a news item TT would probably place grammatical criteria in second place, a popular science book would pay more attention to the individual style of the ST. Similarly, Reiss feels that it is more important for a metaphor to be retained in the translation of an expressive text than in an informative TT, where translation .of its semantic value alone will be sufficient

There are, of course, occasions, when the function of the TT may differ from that of the ST. An example she gives is Jonathan Swift's qulliuer's Travels. Originally written as a satirical novel to attack the government of the day (i.e. a mainly operative text), it is nowadays normally read and translated as 'ordinary entertaining .fiction' (i.e. an expressive text)

Alternatively, a TT may have a different communicative function from the ST: an operative election address in one language may be translated for analysts in another country interested in finding out what policies have been presented and how (i.e. as an informative .and expressive text)

Discussion of the text type approach o One of the main advantages of the approach is that it moves translation theory beyond lower linguistic levels towards a consideration of the communicative purpose of translation.

o However, one of the criticisms is why there should only be three types of language function. Nord, although working in the same functionalist tradition as Reiss, perhaps implicitly accepts this criticism by feeling the need to add a fourth 'phatic' function covering language that maintains contact between the parties involved in the communication.

A simple example would be a greeting or phrase such as 'Ladies and gentlemen' that is used to signal the start of a formal speech or an announcement made by a company employee to clients.

o The 'plain-prose' method for the informative text can be called into question. For example, business and financial texts in English contain a large number of simple and complex metaphors: markets are bullish and bearish, profits soar, peak,dive and plummet.

Some of these have a fixed translation in another language, but the more complex and individualistic metaphors do not. This implies that the translation of business texts into English requires more than just attention to the informative value of the ST, since such a method could create an English TT that is lacking in the expressive function of language.

Co-existence of functions within the same ST and the use of the same ST for a variety of purposes are evidence of the fuzziness that fits uneasily into Reiss's clear divisions. The translation method employed depends on far more than just text type. The translator's own role and purpose, as well as sociocultural pressures, also affect the kind of translation strategy that is adopted

Translational action The model proposed by Holz-Manttari takes up concepts from communication theory and action .theory It aims to provide a model and guidelines applicable to .a wide range of professional translation situations Translational action views translation as purposedriven, outcome-oriented human interaction and focuses on the process of translation as messagetransmitter compounds involving intercultural transfer

Interlingual translation is described as 'translational action from a source text' and as a communicative process involving a series of roles and players. the initiator: the company or individual who needs the translation; the commissioner: the individual who contacts the translator;

the ST producer: the individual within the company who writes the ST, not necessarily always involved in the TT production; the TT producer: the translator; the TT user: the person who uses the TT; for example as teaching material or sales literature; the TT receiver: the final recipient of the TT; for example the students in a TT user's class or clients reading the translated sales literature.

Translatorial action focuses very much on producing a TT that is functionally communicative for the receiver. This means, for example, that the form and genre of the TT must be guided by what is functionally suitable in the TT culture, rather than by merely copying the ST profile. What is functionally suitable has to be determined by the translator.

The translator is the expert in translational action. His role is to make sure that the intercultural transfer takes place satisfactorily. In the 'translational text operations' (the term Holz-Manttari uses for the production of the TT), the ST is analyzed solely for its .'construction and function profile

The needs of the receiver are the determining factors for the TT. Thus, as far as terminology is concerned, a technical term in an ST manual may require clarification for a non-technical TT user. Additionally, in order to maintain cohesion for the TT reader, a single term will need to be translated consistently

Discussion of the model of translational action The value of Holz-Manttari's work is the placing of translation within its sociocultural context, including the interplay between the translator and the initiating institution. She later also describes the 'professional profile' of the translator. Translatorial action is considered relevant for all types of translation and the theory provides guidelines for every decision to be taken by the translator.

However, the model could be criticized for the complexity of its jargon (for example message-transmitter compounds), which does little to explain practical translation situations for the individual translator. It fails to consider cultural difference in more detail or in the kinds of terms proposed by the culturally oriented models.

Nord also criticizes Holz-Manttari's disregard of the ST. She stresses that, while 'functionality is the most important criterion for a translation', this does not allow the translator absolute licence (carte blanche) There needs to be a relationship between ST and TT, and the nature of this relationship is determined by the purpose or skopos.

Skopos theory Skopos theory Skopos is the Greek word for 'aim' or 'purpose' and was introduced into translation theory in the 1970s by Hans J. Vermeer as a technical term for the purpose of a translation and of the action of translating. purpose of a translation and of the action of translating.

The major work on skopos theory (‘Groundwork for a General Theory of Translation'), a book Vermeer co-authored with Katharina Reiss (Reiss and Vermeer 1984).

The Skopos theory is to be considered part of Holz-Manttari's theory of translational action. It focuses on the purpose of the translation, which determines the translation methods and strategies that are to be employed in order to produce a functionally adequate result. This result is the TT, which Vermeer calls the translatum

In skopos theory, knowing why an ST is to be translated and what the function of the TT will be are crucial for the translator.

Reiss and Vermeer aim at a general translation theory for all texts. The first part sets out a detailed explanation of Vermeer's skopos theory; the second part, 'special theories', adapts Reiss's functional text-type model to the general theory.

The basic underlying 'rules' of the theory (Reiss and Vermeer 1984). These are: 1. A translatum (or TT) is determined by its skopos. 2. A TT is an offer of information in a target culture and TL concerning an offer of information in a source culture and SL. 3. A TT does not initiate an offer of information in a clearly reversible way. 4. A TT must be internally coherent. 5. A TT must be coherent with the ST. 6. The five rules above stand in hierarchical order, with the skopos rule predominating.

This down-playing (or 'dethroning', as Vermeer terms it) of the status of the ST is a general fact of both skopos and translational action theory. An important advantage of skopos theory is that it allows the possibilityof the same text being translated in different ways according to the purpose of the TT and the commission which is given to the translator.

For example, an ambiguity in a will written in French would need to be translated literally, with a footnote or comment, for a foreign lawyer dealing with the case. On the other hand, if the will appeared in a novel, the translator might prefer to find a slightly different ambiguity that works in the TL without the need of a formal footnote, so as not to interrupt the .reading process

In order for the translational action to be appropriate for the specific case, the skopos needs to be stated explicitly or implicitly in the commission . Vermeer describes the commission as comprising (1) a goal and (2) the conditions under which that goal should be achieved (including deadline and fee), both of which should be negotiated between the commissioner and the translator.

The nature of the TT 'is primarily determined by its skopos or commission' and adequacy to override equivalence as the measure of the translational action. In Reiss and Vermeer adequacy (unlike equivalence) describes the relations between ST and TT as a consequence of observing a skopos during the translation process. In other words, if the TT fulfils the skopos outlined by the commission, it is functionally and communicatively adequate.

Discussion of skopos theory Discussion of skopos theory Nord (1997) and Schaffner (1997) discuss some of the criticisms that have been made of skopos theory by other scholars. These include the following

1. Skopos theory does not pay sufficient attention to the linguistic nature of the ST nor to the reproduction of microlevel features in the TT. Even if the skopos is adequately fulfilled, it may be inadequate at the stylistic or semantic levels of individual segments.

2. Other possible criticisms are similar to those made of Holz-Manttiri, namely that jargon such as translatum does little to further translation theory, where workable terms already exist, and that consideration of cultural issues and differences must surely be essential when deciding on how, if at all, the skopos can be achieved.

Translation-oriented text analysis Translation-oriented text analysis