コミュニケーションとしての実務翻訳 ―関連性理論の観点から活動、評価を考える― (Practical translation as communication act: activities and assessment from a relevance-theoric point of view )
Résumé
Recent developments in functionalist approaches such as skopos theory, and
pragmatic account have the focus on the process of translation and the dynamic role
of translator. On the other hand, the Common European Framework of Reference for
Languages (CEFR) considers the translation as communication act, namely mediation
activity of two languages and two cultures. Relying on these perspectives, this article
presents my practice of specialized translation course (French to Japanese) for French
speaking master students and the reflection about an appropriate pedagogical method
of translation as a communication act.
Based on the action-oriented approach promoted by CEFR, this course is designed
to ensure that the students accomplish a realistic task to translate an authentic text as a
social discourse. The degree of specialization of the used text is adjusted according to
their linguistic level and pedagogical objective. Here are some important points.
Firstly, the students are required to identify the genre the discourse and to search for
useful information such as similar Japanese text, specialized terminology text, etc.
Secondly, the criteria to evaluate the translation competence should be defined
clearly. According to relevance-theory, human communication creates an expectation
of optimal relevance, and the hearer’s attempt at interpretation will yield adequate
contextual effects at minimal processing cost (Wilson & Sperber 1989, Gutt 2011).
We attempted to elaborate a criteria relayed on these views. The students are
constantly encouraged to reflect on what is a “good translation” and to develop an
awareness of relevancy of translation. Thirdly, works on linguistic forms and
vocabulary are still really necessary for these learners (in the process of acquiring B2
level of CEFR), but these activities are carried out explicitly for the purpose of
accomplish an efficient translation.