Cultural Turn in Translation Studies PDF

This lecture summarizes two key developments in translation studies: the "cultural turn" of the 1990s and Corpus-based Translation Studies (CTS), which emerged around 1998. The Cultural Turn (1990s): Focus: Shifted emphasis from purely linguistic aspects of translation to the influence of...

This lecture summarizes two key developments in translation studies: the "cultural turn" of the 1990s and Corpus-based Translation Studies (CTS), which emerged around 1998. The Cultural Turn (1990s): Focus: Shifted emphasis from purely linguistic aspects of translation to the influence of culture, politics, and ideology. Building on: Earlier theories from the 1970s (functional approach, polysystem theory) that first introduced the concept of culture into translation studies. Key Figures: Bassnett and Lefevere are credited with formally establishing the cultural turn. Key Approaches: o Feminist Translation Studies: Examines how gender is represented in translated texts, often arguing that they are treated as inferior, mirroring societal subordination of women. (Sherry Simon) o Studies on Identity and Sexual Orientation: Explores how terms related to gender and sexual identity are handled in translation. (von Floto) o Postcolonial Translation Theory: Investigates how translation reflects power imbalances between dominant and minority languages, showing how translations can reinforce colonial power dynamics. (Mondy) Criticism: Some argue the cultural turn has been used to push personal or political agendas. Corpus-based Translation Studies (CTS) (Emergence ~1998): Focus: Emphasizes a more transparent and empirical approach to translation theory using large corpora of texts. Key Figures: Tory and Barker are prominent figures in the introduction of CTS. Methodology: Uses corpora of original and translated texts to analyze translation processes and products. Corpus Types: o Monolingual (single language) o Bilingual (two languages) o Multilingual (multiple languages) o Parallel/Comparable (texts on the same topic in different languages) Purpose: To uncover the nature of translated texts as mediated communicative events and is used in translator training. Criticism points: 1. Representativeness of the Corpus: o One major concern is that the corpus used for analysis may not fully represent the diversity of languages, cultures, or linguistic features across the world. This can lead to biased or incomplete conclusions because the data might not reflect the full spectrum of translation practices or cultural nuances. 2. Size and Balance of Corpora:  o The corpora selected for CTS studies may not always be large or balanced enough to produce reliable results. In some cases, researchers must compromise between creating a corpus that is representative and one that is manageable for analysis, potentially affecting the validity of their findings. 3. Limitations in Capturing Translation Quality: o CTS primarily focuses on quantitative analysis, which might overlook qualitative aspects of translation, such as the emotional or ideological nuances that human translators introduce. This reliance on statistical methods may reduce the depth of understanding about the translation process. 4. Homogeneity of Texts: o Some corpora may consist of texts that are too similar in genre, subject matter, or translation style, limiting the diversity of insights into the translation process. For example, if a corpus consists mostly of legal or technical translations, it may not capture the complexity of literary or creative translations. 5. Ethical Issues: o There are concerns about the ethical implications of using certain texts in corpora, especially when they involve sensitive material or proprietary content. The way in which data is collected and used in CTS could raise privacy and copyright issues. Despite these criticisms, CTS remains a valuable and widely used methodology in translation studies, as it provides empirical data and helps identify patterns in translation behavior and practices. However, critics argue that it should be complemented with qualitative approaches to offer a more comprehensive view of the translation process.