Andrew Chesterman on Functional Quality

TL;DR

This lecture discusses the concept of translation quality, examining linguistic quality and functional quality in relation to the source text, target text, and non-translated text.

Transcript

this is going to be a strange lecture because it's going to be summarized at the end in three letters if you remember these three letters that may be the only thing you need to remember about this lecture three particular letters don't forget the letters we shall get there in about 20 minutes no just three three letters will be enough however um a ... Read More

Key Insights

• ❓ Quality of translation is relational, with no absolute standard.
• 🎯 Linguistic quality is determined by assessing the relation between the source text and target text, as well as the target text and non-translated texts.
• 🥺 Functional quality considers the relation between the translation product and its purpose, leading to the development of typologies and standards.
• ❓ Translation quality analysis should consider both production conditions and reception conditions to provide a comprehensive assessment.
• 🪡 Ethical considerations arise in translation quality, including meeting the needs and working conditions of translators.
• 🫱 Balance between analysis of the right-hand side (reception quality) and left-hand side (production conditions) is crucial in functional models of translation quality.
• 🖐️ The client and other users play a significant role in judging translation quality.

Questions & Answers

Q: What are the two main relationships that are central to judgments of linguistic quality in translation?

The two main relationships are the source text-target text relation, which assesses similarity and equivalence, and the target text-non-translated text relation, which evaluates how well the translation fits into other texts in the target language.

Q: How do functional quality and linguistic quality differ in terms of assessment techniques?

Both functional quality and linguistic quality are assessed based on measuring textual difference and similarity. However, functional quality involves analyzing the relationship between the translation product and its purpose, whereas linguistic quality focuses on the relationship with the source text or non-translated texts.

Q: Why is there a lack of agreement in the typologies of translation functions?

The absence of an accepted typology of translation functions stems from different organizations and scholars using varying sets of classes to categorize functions. This lack of consensus is an area for further research and discussion.

Q: How do production conditions and reception conditions affect translation quality?

Production conditions, such as resources, time, and client input, impact a translator's work and can influence the quality felt and experienced by the translator. Reception conditions, including client satisfaction and comparison with alternative translations or methods, contribute to judgments of translation quality from the readers' perspective.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• The lecture begins by highlighting that the concept of quality is relational, with no absolute standard.

• Linguistic quality is evaluated based on the relation between the source text and target text, while functional quality considers the naturalness and fit of the translation in the target language.

• Functional quality can be assessed through standards and typologies of translation functions, but there is little agreement in this area.

• Quality can also be viewed in terms of the production process and reception conditions, with the client and other users judging the quality.