Evaluating the evaluator : a novel perspective on translation quality assessment

297 Pages·2020·3.492 MB·English

by  Bittner, Hansjörg

Evaluating the Evaluator
This book offers a theoretical framework for assessing translation q uality
grounded in supportive argumentation. The volume outlines a system-
atic framework for translators and translation critics to substantiate their
decisions and judgements on a translation’s quality and, in the case of
negative criticism, put forward a more effective translation solution. The
book traces the decision-making process underpinning translation prac-
tice, considering the different factors surrounding a particular translation
to inform the most appropriate translation strategy, such as the temporal
and geographical relationship between source and target texts, special
provisions required by clients, time frame, qualifications, and sociocul-
tural and political issues. The framework posits that such factors should
underpin any arguments used by the translator in adopting a given strat-
egy and, in turn, that any criticism of a translation’s quality must be in
line with the same argumentative structure. Applied to a corpus of trans-
lation examiners’ reports of translation, the book demonstrates how this
framework can act as a tool to be scaled to fit the needs of the different
actors of a translation – translators, critics, and scholars. This book will
be of interest to scholars in translation studies and practising translators.
Hansjörg Bittner served as a lecturer at Eastern Mediterranean University
(English literature) and at the University of Hildesheim (translation
studies). His publications cover poetics, translation theory, and audiovi-
sual translation. A practising translator, he is currently a lecturer at Hof
University of Applied Sciences, teaching business English and technical
English.
Routledge Advances in Translation and Interpreting Studies
38 Complexity Thinking in Translation Studies
Methodological Considerations
Edited by Kobus Marais and Reine Meylaerts
39 Translating and Interpreting in Korean Contexts
Engaging with Asian and Western Others
Edited Ji-Hae Kang and Judy Wakabayashi
40 Hybrid Englishes and the Challenges of/for Translation
Identity, Mobility and Language Change
Edited by Karen Bennett and Rita Queiroz de Barros
41 Translating the Visual
A Multimodal Perspective
Rachel Weissbrod and Ayelet Kohn
42 Using Computers in the Translation of Literary Style
Challenges and Opportunities
Roy Youdale
43 Concrete Poetry
Translation and Transmission
Edited by John Corbett and Ting Huang
44 Humour in Audiovisual Translation
Theories and Applications
Margherita Dore
45 Evaluating the Evaluator
A Novel Perspective on Translation Quality Assessment
Hansjörg Bittner
For a full list of titles in this series, visit https://www.routledge.com/
Routledge-Advances-in-Translation-and-Interpreting-Studies/book-series/
RTS
Evaluating the Evaluator
A Novel Perspective on Translation
Quality Assessment
Hansjörg Bittner
First published 2020
by Routledge
52 Vanderbilt Avenue, New York, NY 10017
and by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon, OX14 4RN
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an
informa business
© 2020 Taylor & Francis
The right of Hansjörg Bittner to be identified as author of this
work has been asserted by him in accordance with sections
77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted
or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic,
mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented,
including photocopying and recording, or in any information
storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from
the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be
trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for
identification and explanation without intent to infringe.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Bittner, Hansjörg, 1963– author.
Title: Evaluating the evaluator : a novel perspective on
translation quality assessment / Hansjörg Bittner.
Description: 1. | New York : Routledge, 2020. |
Series: Routledge advances on translation and interpreting
studies ; 44 | Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2019043177 | ISBN 9780367417130
(hardback) | ISBN 9780367815882 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: Translating and interpreting—Evaluation.
Classification: LCC P306.2 .B58 2020 | DDC 418/.02—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019043177
ISBN: 978-0-367-41713-0 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-0-367-81588-2 (ebk)
Typeset in Sabon
by codeMantra
Contents
List of Figures ix
List of Tables xi
Acknowledgements xiii
1 Introduction 1
2 The Quality of Translation: Different Approaches 6
Juliane House 7
Malcolm Williams 13
Heidrun Gerzymisch-Arbogast and Klaus Mudersbach 17
Ernst-August Gutt 21
Other Approaches to Translation Quality 26
Approaches to Translation Quality in the Twentieth
Century 27
Approaches to Translation Quality in the
Twenty-First Century 32
3 Preliminary Assumptions 50
Defining Translation Quality and Translation
Quality Assessment 50
Some Thoughts on Measuring Quality 51
Some Thoughts on Achieving Good Quality 54
Revisiting Overt and Covert Translation 56
Refining the Concept of Overt-Covert Translation:
Overview 59
Refining the Concept of Overt-Covert Translation:
Detailed Discussion 61
The Problem of Subjective Evaluation 67
The Problem of Subjectivity from a Philosophical
Point of View 67
vi Contents
The Process of Translation Quality Assessment 70
The Problem of Subjectivity from a Translation
Studies Point of View 72
How to Curb the Subjective in Translation
Quality Assessment 74
Towards Evaluating the Evaluator 76
Some Views on How to Evaluate Translations 76
The Evaluation of Commented Translations 82
4 Quality Factors of Translation 96
The “Translator’s Daffodil” 96
Underlying Assumptions 99
Factor Categories 100
Source Text 103
Language Pairs in Translation and Source
Text Analysis (Nord) 103
Sender and Sender’s Intention 105
Audience and Medium 106
Place and Time of Communication 107
Motive for Communication and Text Function 109
Source Text Defects 110
Summary of Source Text Factors 110
Text Form 112
Intratextual Factors 113
Subject Matter and Content 114
Text Composition and Non-Verbal Elements 116
Lexis, Syntax, and Suprasegmental Features 116
Selected Text Types 118
Poetry, Drama, and Comics 118
Audiovisual Translation 121
Summary of Text Form Factors 126
Client 127
Client Roles 128
Deadlines 129
Glossaries 130
Stipulations and Specifications 131
Motivation 132
Summary of Client Factors 133
Translator 133
Overview and Translation Tools 134
Translation Competence 135
Qualification and Motivation 138
Summary of Translator Factors 138
Contents vii
Culture 139
The Relativity of Culture 140
Cultural Norms 141
Translation in Different Cultures at Different
Times in History 143
Borderline Cases: Unlikely Successes and
EU Translations 146
Summary of Culture Factors 148
Politics 149
Power Relations 150
Censorship 152
More Power Issues 154
Politics and the Evaluation of Translation Quality 155
Summary of Politics Factors 157
5 The Principle of Argumentation 170
The Need for an Argumentative Translation
Quality Assessment 172
The Need for Translation Theory 173
The Need for Argumentation in Translation 175
Summary – The Need for an Argumentative
Translation Quality Assessment 177
Translation Decisions 177
Decision-Making and Translation 179
Defining the Translation Strategy 181
Summary of the Decision-Making Process in Translation 186
The Argumentation Process 187
A Theory of Dialectical Structures 188
Dialectical Structures in Translation Quality Assessment 195
Examples of Argumentation 204
Criticising the Translation of a Young Adult Novel 205
Criticising the Translation of a Survey 211
6 Evaluating the Evaluator 224
The Corpus: Examiners’ Reports of
Commented Translations 224
Methodology 225
Looking at Formal Characteristics 226
Looking at Aspects of Translation Quality Assessment 228
Source and Target 228
Errors and Achievements 230
Evidence and Arguments 232
Summary of Methodological Issues 240
viii Contents
Results 240
Formal Characteristics 244
Aspects of Translation Quality Assessment 246
Source and Target 246
Errors and Achievements 247
Evidence and Arguments 250
Summary of Results 267
7 Conclusion 273
Index 277
Figures
3.1 Overt–covert overview (general aspects) 60
3.2 Overt–covert overview (specific aspects) 66
3.3 Objectivity and subjectivity in TQA 71
3.4 Evaluation focus for a commented translation 82
3.5 Commented translation triangle 83
3.6 Evaluating the quality of a commented translation
written as a BA thesis 87
4.1 The “translator’s daffodil” 98
4.2 Factor matrix 102
4.3 Overview of translator-related factors 134
4.4 Quality factors → arguments → translation decisions 158
5.1 Argument structure – critique of an excerpt from Ein
Schatten wie ein Leopard 211
5.2 Arguments – first solution: “Sind Sie geschieden?” 214
5.3 Arguments – second solution: “Haben Sie sich schon
einmal scheiden lassen?” 215
5.4 Arguments – third solution: “Sind Sie jemals geschieden
worden?” 215
5.5 Arguments – fourth solution: “Sind Sie schon einmal
geschieden worden?” 215
6.1 Correlation between grades of theses and
lengths of reports 245