Over time, pragmatics played an increasingly important role in different areas of language study. A particularly interesting instance of language use in this matter is translation. Thus, the decision to discuss the relation between pragmatics and translation came up. More precisely, the influence of a specific pragmatic field, namely Relevance Theory, on the study of translation will be analyzed below.
It begins with a brief look into the history of translation studies and the reason why it is possible for pragmatic concepts to be applied to the study of translation. The most fundamental concept in connection to the respective study is Relevance Theory
which was developed by Dan Sperber and Deirdre Wilson. A general overview of the theory will introduce the examination of this part of the research. It is mostly based on Sperber and Wilson’s work Relevance: Communication & Cognition (1995).
Which role the relevance-theoretic notion plays with regard to translation will then be studied. In terms of translation and relevance, the efforts of Ernst-August Gutt are of major interest with his book Translation and Relevance: Cognition and Context (2000) being of primary attention.
This chapter will furthermore focus on a few selected relevance-theoretic concepts. It starts with the notion of optimal relevance and continues with investigating the interpretive use of language in translation.
Finally, my goal is to make use of the relevance-theoretic approach to translation by applying the respective concepts to an example. This will be the core area of the paper. The analysis is made up of scrutinizing a translated version of an online newspaper article from the UK edition of the Huffington Post with German as the target language. The article is about the British author J.K Rowling criticizing a supporter of the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union, better known as Brexit, in a referendum.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. Role of Pragmatics in Translation
3. Relevance Theory in Translation
3.1 Relevance Theory: An Overview
3.2 Concepts of Relevance Theory
3.2.1 Optimal Relevance
3.2.2 Loose Use of Language
3.2.2 Narrow Use of Language
4. Relevance Theory: A Context-Based Analysis
5. Conclusion
6. Bibliography
Objectives and Topics
The primary objective of this paper is to investigate the application of Relevance Theory to the field of translation. By examining the relationship between pragmatic principles and the translation process, the work aims to demonstrate that successful translation goes beyond lexical rendering and necessitates a deep understanding of contextual communicative intentions.
- The historical and theoretical development of pragmatics in translation studies.
- Core concepts of Relevance Theory, including optimal relevance and interpretive use of language.
- Analysis of translation as a form of context-dependent verbal communication.
- Practical case study using a comparative analysis of an English article and its German translation.
- Conceptual processes of "concept loosening" and "concept narrowing" in translation.
Excerpt from the Book
3.1 Relevance Theory: An Overview
In later investigations, there have been problems encountered with Grice’s approach to verbal communication. Sperber and Wilson stated the following by reference to the Gricean approach:
Grice’s greatest originality was not to suggest that human communication involves the recognition of intentions. [...] It was to suggest that this characterisation is sufficient: as long as there is some way of recognising the communicator’s intentions, then communication is possible. (1995: 25)
To argue against Grice’s supposition, they furthermore claim that “a general theory of communication[, it] ignores the diversity of forms of communication” because “a communicator can mean something, and successfully communicate it, without all these Gricean intentions being fulfilled” (ibid.: 28). This led to the development of Grice’s inferential model to a new theory due to which it is possible to study all kinds of verbal communication, hence why it is applicable to translation as well (cf. Sequeiros 2005: 11).
According to Relevance Theory, communication is built on “the ability to draw inferences from people’s behaviour” (Gutt 2000: 24), that is, the communicator passes meaning on to the audience in a verbal or a non-verbal way through “informative intention” (cf. Sperber and Wilson: 54-60). It is a subtype of a speaker’s intentions, which stands in contrast to Grice’s belief of a general intention that the communicator expresses.
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction: This chapter introduces the research topic, contextualizes the role of pragmatics in translation, and outlines the methodology for the subsequent analysis.
2. Role of Pragmatics in Translation: This chapter explores the historical shift in translation studies, defining translation as a communicative act that requires more than mere linguistic encoding.
3. Relevance Theory in Translation: This chapter establishes the theoretical foundation by examining how inferential models and cognitive principles explain the interpretative nature of translation.
3.1 Relevance Theory: An Overview: This section provides a summary of the development of Relevance Theory and its departure from Gricean models toward an inferential approach to communication.
3.2 Concepts of Relevance Theory: This section delineates the fundamental pillars of Relevance Theory required for analyzing translation.
3.2.1 Optimal Relevance: This section discusses the reader's expectation for maximum cognitive effect with minimal processing effort in a translation.
3.2.2 Loose Use of Language: This section analyzes how translators handle non-literal or metaphorical language by employing concept loosening.
3.2.2 Narrow Use of Language: This section examines the process of conceptual narrowing used to preserve intended meaning when target languages lack direct equivalents.
4. Relevance Theory: A Context-Based Analysis: This chapter applies the previously discussed concepts to a practical comparative analysis of an English newspaper article and its German translation.
5. Conclusion: This chapter synthesizes the findings and confirms the necessity of pragmatic competence in the translation process.
6. Bibliography: This chapter lists all scholarly sources and references cited throughout the paper.
Keywords
Pragmatics, Translation, Relevance Theory, Optimal Relevance, Interpretation, Verbal Communication, Context, Concept Loosening, Concept Narrowing, Inferential Model, Linguistic Content, Interpretive Resemblance, Explicature, Implicature, Target Audience.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core focus of this research?
This research focuses on the application of Relevance Theory within the field of translation, arguing that translation is a sophisticated form of verbal communication that depends heavily on contextual understanding.
What are the central thematic areas?
The paper covers the evolution of pragmatics, the shift from traditional code models to inferential models, and the cognitive processes translators use to achieve optimal relevance for a target audience.
What is the primary research goal?
The primary goal is to prove that translation cannot be reduced to simple word-for-word substitution, but must be analyzed as a communicative process that relies on the translator's ability to interpret and adapt contextual assumptions.
Which scientific methods are utilized?
The author uses a qualitative, comparative analysis method, evaluating a specific English newspaper article and its corresponding German translation to identify pragmatic adjustments made by the translator.
What is covered in the main body of the paper?
The main body covers the transition from Gricean pragmatics to Relevance Theory, the definition of key concepts like "optimal relevance," "concept loosening," and "concept narrowing," and a practical case study comparing source and target texts.
Which keywords best describe this study?
The work is best characterized by terms such as Pragmatics, Translation, Relevance Theory, Optimal Relevance, Contextual Analysis, and Interpretive Resemblance.
How does "optimal relevance" influence the translation process?
Optimal relevance influences translation by requiring the translator to ensure that the target audience can access the intended meaning without unnecessary processing effort, often necessitating adjustments in phrasing.
What role do "concept loosening" and "concept narrowing" play in translation?
These processes allow translators to bridge gaps between languages; they enable the adjustment of conceptual boundaries so that the target text accurately conveys the speaker's original intentions in a new cultural and linguistic context.
- Quote paper
- Bünyamin Yuvarlak (Author), 2016, Pragmatics and Translation: A Relevance-Theoretic Approach, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/998170
