Helmer, Eline; (2021) Tact in translation: negotiating trust by the Russian interpreter, at home and abroad. Doctoral thesis (Ph.D), UCL (University College London).

Preview

Text Tact in Translation E Helmer 24-02-2021.pdf - Accepted Version Download (4MB) | Preview

Abstract

Being the only conversational participant with the ability to follow both sides of a crosslinguistic dialogue gives the interpreter the power to obscure or clarify. Because of heightened mutual dependency, all interpreters need trust to perform their roles. They actively build trust, both between self and client and between clients. In academic linguistic contexts, trust is often regarded as based on impartiality: the more objective and invisible the interpreter, the better and more professional he or she will be. In practice, this approach is not always possible, or desirable. The trust relationship between client and interpreter can also be based on closeness and personal interdependence. Interpreting po-chelovecheski (lit. ‘approaching someone in a humane way’) is a colloquial way for Russian interpreters to describe this approach. This thesis explores the negotiation of trust by Russian interpreters. The Russian translation market’s unregulated character, and historical framing of ‘the foreigner’ as someone to be protected and mistrusted, make for an interesting case to study face-to-face interpreting at all levels of the international dialogue. Based on ethnographic fieldwork with interpreters from St Petersburg, Moscow and Pskov, I argue that becoming ‘someone’s voice’ presents a specific caring relationship. Interpreters deliberately 'perform trustworthiness' by actively working towards becoming ‘one of them’ (svoi) and avoiding actions that could spark mistrust. This trust then allows them to encourage trust between interlocutors through practices of smoothening (‘smoothen’ = sgladitʹ) and softening (‘soften’ = smiagchitʹ). Drawing on 37 interviews with 41 interpreters, supplemented by participant observation, I explore the gender dynamics, emotional load and moral ambiguity of these practices. Instead of evaluating interpreters’ work along formal-informal, professional-intimate and economic-social binaries, studying interpreting through the interdisciplinary lens of care demonstrates the deficiencies of these divisions. This thesis provides a starting point for a relational and embodied understanding of interpreting, as well as insights into professional trust relationships in Russia at large.

Download activity - last month

Export as XMLCSVJSON

Download activity - last 12 months

Export as XMLCSVJSON

Downloads by country - last 12 months

Export as JSONCSVXML

Archive Staff Only

View Item