Documente Academic
Documente Profesional
Documente Cultură
Transfer
by Dr. Kulwindr Kaur d/o Gurdial Singh
Lecturer, Department of English Language
Faculty of Languages and Linguistics
University of Malaya
Abstract
Introduction
Participants
The participants of this study were fifty-five experienced Malaysian part-time
translators of scientific texts from English to Malay.
Methodology
Five of the participants who were from the University of Malaya participated
in the think-aloud protocols followed by interviews. Another fifty participants
came from universities, translation institutions, and colleges who completed
the questionnaire.
Discussion of Findings
From this research, it was apparent that the participants had their own
mindset or schema about how to go about translating. They verbalized
aloud this preconception or design of the expected completed version
or virtual blueprint of their translated product. While translating they
reminded themselves that they should abide by these beliefs which
were arrived at from past experience and translation training. Some
examples include:
Table 1
A word may have many meanings in different situations, so, the participants
had to decide on choosing the most appropriate equivalent terms in their
translation for the terms given in the English-language scientific source text.
For this, they had to choose from a number of alternatives identified, using
the discrimination strategy. The equivalent term which is finally chosen was
also based on the context of the situation or contextual meaning of the text
and the culture of the target readers, so that the target readers of their
translated versions would not get confused. Some examples taken from the
TAPs analysis of the five cases are as follows:
a. For the word "responsible", the participant had to decide between the
two terms
KEY to Table 2
The first two columns represent the number and types of strategies
used, that is both the direct and indirect strategies and the
remaining five columns in Table 2represent the cases while the
rows represent the types of strategies used. A tick was put in the
column next to the strategy if the strategy was used by the
participants for this study, while a cross was put if the strategy
was not used by them. The strategies used which are marked with
an asterisk mark and bolded are the additional strategies found
from this study of the process of translating scientific texts from
English to Malay.
TABLE 2
A Memory Strategies
1. Using imagery / / x / x
2. Reviewing / / / / x
B Cognitive Strategies
3. Highlighting / x x / x
4. Analysing and Reasoning—translating / / / / /
5. * Choosing equivalent terms based on / / / / /
the contextual meaning in the text
(situation) and the culture of the
target readers by using the
discrimination strategy to choose the
closest equivalent term in the target
language from two or three
alternatives identified.
6. Academic Elaboration / / / / x
7. * Finding their own solutions to the / / / / /
translation problems and carrying
them out.
8. Repetition / / / / /
9. Resourcing x x x / x
C. Compensation Strategies
II INDIRECT STRATEGIES
A Metacognitive Strategies
4. Problem Identification / / / / /
5. Comprehension monitoring / / / / /
6. Ability evaluation / / x / x
7. Self-monitoring/Production monitoring / / / / /
8. Performance evaluation / / / / x
B Affective Strategies
C. Social Strategies
Figure 1
3. After Translation. Here the proofread translated text is submitted to the
publication house for editing. Once the editors at the publication house have
edited the translated text, it is returned to the translator who reads it again
to ensure that the content has not been distorted or made ambiguous. Once
the translator is satisfied with the translated and edited text, it is returned to
the publication house for publishing. If there are any issues with the editing
performed by the editors at the publishing house, then these are discussed
between the parties. Once both parties have reached a consensus regarding
the revision, the translated text is published and then marketed.
The longer two-headed arrow on the left shows that the translation
strategies, comprising the main direct and indirect language strategies and
the three translation strategies found from this study are used from the start
to the end of the translation process. The six-sided diagram shows that the
translation strategies are flexible and can be used in any combination, for
example metacognitive with social, social with compensation, cognitive with
affective etc.
References