The traditions and conventions of translation

The dimension of time encompasses not only the time of ST production and reception but also that of TT production (= translation) and reception. The original communicative situation as well as the inter-cultural communicative situation are determined by their respective temporal contexts.

In connection with the dimension of time, we must therefore look at the traditional translations of classical texts and consider the problems involved in translating or re-translating old texts. Whether and how the dimension of time has to be taken into account for the translation of, say, Homer's Iliad, Shakespeare's King Lear, or Cervantes' Don Quixote depends on the translation skopos. Popovic ([1977]1981: 103f.) distinguishes between the "synchronous translation" of a contemporary author and modern translations of older texts, which in his opinion can be either "re-creative" (i.e. actualizing) or "conservative" (i.e. historicising).

Which approach is regarded as the "correct" one depends on the prevailing translation tradition or concept, which may be regarded as a kind of culture-specific convention.

How to obtain information on the dimension of time

Information on the dimension of time can sometimes be inferred from thedate of publication of the text or other clues from the text environment, although this is not always reliable, as texts are often published yearsafter they have been written. However, they cannot be published text type, it will be mainly the following intratextual features that are determined by the motive of communication: content (insofar as the motive is explicitly mentioned in the text), vocabulary and sentence structure (e.g. in a memorial address), suprasegmental features (memorial address vs. election speech), and non-verbal elements (e.g. black edging round a death announcement).

How to obtain information about the motive for communication

Although the motive for communication is closely linked with the dimension of time, the two factors must not be confused. While the dimension of time is part of the communicative situation (in the narrower sense), the dimension of motive relates the communicative situation and the participants to an event that is outside, or rather prior to, the situation.

It is not always easy therefore (and not always relevant to translation!) to find out which event has motivated a certain text. Sometimes the motive is referred to in the text or mentioned in the text environment (e.g. in the title: To Honor Roman Jakobson on the Occasion of his 70th Birthda); but there are communicative situations in which the motive is only an indirect reason for the author to deal with a loosely connected subject.

Example

On March 12th, 1984, the Spanish daily paper El Pais published a commentary under the title "El Dfa de la Mujer" (International Women's Day). It is the motive for text production this title alludes to and not the subject matter, because the text deals with the situation of working women in Spain in 1984. The newspaper reader was expected to be familiar with the occasion, International Women's Day, since it had been commented on quite frequently at the time. If the text is to be translated, it is the motive for translation (as well as the dimensions of time and place) that has to be taken into account. Only a few days later the date will have been pushed into the background by other events, and a title like "International Women's Day" will arouse specific expectations about the subject matter, which the text cannot meet.

As is illustrated by the example, the dimension of motive is of as much interest to the translator as that of time, because s/he has to contrast the motive for ST production with the motive for TT production and find out the impact this contrast has on the transfer decisions. While the motive for ST production is often to be found in the "environment" of the sender or text producer, the motive for TT production can be inferred from what is known about the transfer situation, i.e. the initiator and the translation brief. The effect of the motive on intra-textual features - as opposed to that of the dimension of time - is often merely an indirect one.

We can restate that the clues as to the motive or motive type are to be inferred from certain situational factors, such as medium (e.g. political section of a newspaper), place and time (in connection with the receiver's general background knowledge), and, of course, text function, if this is specified by unambiguous pre-signals, such as genre designations (e.g. "protocol") or text-type features (e.g. black edging). The information obtained on the sender and the intention usually permits only indirect conclusions as to the motive for communication.

Checklist

The following questions may help to find out the relevant information about the motive for communication:

1.Why was the text written or transmitted? Is there any information on the motive of communication to be found in the text environment? Is the ST receiver expected to be familiar with the motive?

2.Was the text written for a special occasion? Is the text intended to be read or heard more than once or regularly?

3.What clues as to the motive for communication can be inferred from other extratextual dimensions (sender, intention, receiver, medium, place, time, function)?

4.What conclusions can be drawn from the data and clues obtained about the motive for communication as regards

(a)other extratextual factors (expectations of the receiver, sender and intention), and

(b)the intratextual features?

5. What problems can arise from the difference between the motive for ST production and the motive for translation?

Text function