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A Study on the Roles of Dialogue Interpreters

  • The Journal of Translation Studies
  • Abbr : JTS
  • 2004, 5(1), pp.5-24
  • Publisher : The Korean Association for Translation Studies
  • Research Area : Humanities > Interpretation and Translation Studies

Yungmin Ko 1

1경동대학교

Candidate

ABSTRACT

This study aims at providing insights on the roles of dialogue interpreters in contrast to those of conference interpreters. While the speaker's utterances are regarded as a given text with the interpreter being viewed as a one-way conduit of information in conference interpreting, there are at least two main interlocutors in dialogue interpreting and there is a dynamic interaction among participants which produces the peculiarities of the work of dialogue interpreters. Dialogue interpreters are located between the main interlocutors and they work in both directions. The participants often change their footings during the conversation. Participants, including the interpreter, pay attention to the atmosphere in which the dialogue occurs to ensure all the participants do not lose their face. The interpreter is the person who sets the turns of talk to maintain the dialogue and avoid confusion. Furthermore, the interpreter participates in the conversation as one of the interlocutors of the dialogue. Thus the main role of the interpreter in dialogue interpreting is regarded more as a mediator than mere translator, and thus the performance of community interpreters can be evaluated by how well they play the role of mediators in addition to the role of translators.

Citation status

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