Text 12.1

Date: 2015-10-07; view: 427.

Analysis of a sample text

Below a sample text is given. It is a transcript of a real-life (authentic) simultaneous interpreting product performed by the British interpreter from Portuguese into English at the plenary session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (Strasbourg, France).

Transcript of simultaneous interpretation of Mr Rosetta's (Portugal) speech at the Plenary Session of the Parliamentary Assembly

of the Council of Europe, 1999

Interpreter: Thank you very much, Mr Telek, and now I give the floor to Mr Rosetta from Portugal.

Thank you very much. Now I would like to {1a}... congratulate Mr Colberta and tell him, as he already knows, how I regret his {2e} ­departure. Of course, that is … pertains to political life, {3a}… but {4g, h} I think he is … a {5c} very, very interesting work he has done will remain. Too many {6i} yo…ø ung leave the schooling system without a training. Many of them don't have any access to employment and run a risk of falling into exclusion. This phenomenon of exclusion, {7g} as you all know, {8h} …one of the serious scourges of contemporary society. It is a problem, which is {9c} very, very serious, which, {10g} I think, {11b} … err … err … affects other age groups. Of course, we have the elderly and those, {12c} who … who {13b} … err… are aged, but the most frustrating … is for the young, who don't even manage {14c,d} ø to start…öto start to develop professional life which would enable their integration into society. Therefore, it is a phenomenon, which is {15c} very, very serious, {16g} as I was saying. And {17g} I think it's important that we {18e} ­act on the very {19e} ­causes of this scourge. In the society, as it has been already said here, {20c} in … in … the place of each and every person will be determined evermore by … knowledge and skills, and I would like to add, by {21e} ­ the way or the {22e} ­capacity individual {23c} has to … has to have {24e} ­ access to this knowledge. Of course, knowledge is not now a {25b} … err … deposit in someone's lines, it is important to have access to tools and instruments that make it possible to have {26e} ­ access to all this knowledge. {27g} I think that to do so it is absolutely essential to create {28a} … these second chance schools {29a} … which open the doors to these young {30a} …, {31c) which will give access… to … will give them access to knowledge. Otherwise, they will run the risk of being the new unemployed {32a} … and they'll have to learn to dominate the new languages, the new tools I was talking about. I'm thinking of computers, for instance, and the new information systems, because without that these people will not be able to, {33g} sort of, enter {34a}… or gain the sufficient knowledge which will ensure {35b} …err… {36c} living… correct living standards in a very sophisticated contemporary society. Second chance schools, which are absolutely essential indeed, {37c} must be … must be … must be {38c} open but … open…{39h} but we know partnership between the young schools and firms… but {40g} I think they must also {38c} be open to the local authorities. {41g} I think it is essential to the success of this {42a}… initiative. Indeed, there must be a lot of intertwining with the local authorities, municipalities, etc, but {43a} … {44g} I think that people must ensure {45c} that these, that these young people don't remain in the triangle: local authorities – firms – and schools. {46g} I think they must feel that they are part and parcel of the local tissue, they must have contact with the {47e} ­ locally elected and, therefore, the locally elected must also be interested in this {48a} … project. There are fourteen pilot schools run in my country in Seixal near Lisbon and {49 g} I wanted to say that this experience has been {50e} ­extremely positive and {51g} I think it {52j} f…f…f…fights against {53b} …err… the breaking down of social structures and that is why this experience is essential. And {54h} this for two reasons. Firstly, because {55g} I think it really {56b} … err… reasserts individuals as such {57d} øand it makes it ö possible for {58h} society bring back people who have been rejected, which is also very important for society. Otherwise {59a} … the rejects {60b}…err… damage the whole of society {61a} … and human beings {62h} of course at the heart of the Council of Europe, that is why we {63e} ­have to be very {64e} ­ active in this. {65g} I think, we don't have to only assert the principles, but {66g} I think, we really have to be very {67e} ­ practical in this and {68g} I think, we have to be responsible and positive with what is suggested in this report because, {69g} I think, this is {70a}… a proof that we {71e} ­ have a lot of responsibility before the young and {72g} I think, it is important to create a far vaster networks that go far beyond the fifteen countries of the European Union and go beyond the fourteen pilot schools, {73h} and go…, and that everything be done so as to be able to open in the middle to long term {74a}… {75h} make it possible for everybody to have access to these second chance schools so that they {76f} also have … are entitled to a second opportunity.

http://www.coe.int

It is clearly seen from the text transcript and the phonogram that the frequency of the tools and techniques used by the interpreter varies. The most frequently used tool is a blank pause (“silence”) or a pause, filled in with the pause filler sound … err… (“а” and “b” – 21 cases), then come parenthesis or “hedges” (“g” – 19 cases), then – unjustified by the context stress upon the word (“e” – 13 cases), then – repetition of the same word (”с” – 12 cases), then – all other tools: “h” – 8 cases, “d” – 2 cases and “f”, “i” and “j” – one case of each.

This analysis shows that a simultaneous interpreter has in his or her arsenal not only mandatory (conditioned be a profession) but also auxiliary tools and techniques, which allow to perform successful simultaneous interpreting in the complicated communicative environment, to provide for certain extra time needed to hear and process the incoming speech signals, which is characteristic of interpretation from the languages with the free order of words into the languages with the fixed order of words, such as English. These tools and techniques ensure simultaneous interpretation in the complicated conditions of communication at the level of 95% of equivalence, which is considered to be a norm for the interpreted (target) text to reach the communicative intention of the source language speaker.