Pragmatic Issues in Teaching Translation and Interpretation: A Curricular Perspective at University Level

Compilation

Abstract

Today, it is evident that the frame of translation and interpretation studies and, by extension, the methods associated with translator training, have changed a great deal when compared to the approaches and practices of the past. This article suggests that the translator/interpreter should develop a complete language awareness, which embodies the socio-cultural aspects of both the source language (SL) and target language (TL). Accepting the fact that translators/interpreters are, in a sense, bridges that transfer messages in between two banks of a river, for a fruitful translation process, cross-cultural awareness should be developed in line with the pragmatic realities of the source and target cultures. In this way, not only the grammatical structures and messages conveyed in the source text are transferred to the target language, but also an appropriate translation competence is established which exhibits the social, cultural, anthropological, psychological, geographical and political aspects of the multidisciplinary nature of translation/interpretation studies. Accordingly, the curricular studies at the translation and interpretation departments of universities should be structured to provide students with enough theory and practice to establish a world view reflecting all aspects of a translation competence. To this end, the present paper further suggests an action plan along with examples that illustrate alternative improvements to departmental course content and curricula as a whole.