Consecutive and Simultaneous Translation

When encountering a foreign language barrier, people often turn to professionals to translate or interpret for them. The term ‘translation’ is the neutral term used for activities to turn the meaning or expression in one language (the source language) into the corresponding meaning of another (the target language), whether the medium is spoken, written or signed. In certain professional contexts, however, a distinction is drawn between people who work with the spoken or signed language (interpreters) and those who work with the written language (translators). While both professions involve the presentation of information between source and target languages, they are still considered distinct, and it is hard to find a person who enjoys both. Some writers on translation, indeed, consider the interpreting task to be more suitable for extrovert personalities and the translating task for introverts.

Interpreting is today widely known for its use in international political life. When senior ministers from different cultures and language backgrounds meet, the television record invariably shows a pair of interpreters hovering in the background. At major conferences, such as the United Nations General Assembly, the presence of headphones is a clear indica-tion that an important linguistic exercise is going on. In everyday circumstances, interpret-ers are frequently needed too, especially in cosmopolitan societies formed by new reitera-tions of immigrants and Gastarbeiter. Often, the business of law courts, hospitals, local health clinics, classrooms or industrial tribunals cannot be carried on without interpreters. Given the importance and frequency of this work, it is remarkable that so little study has been made of what actually happens when interpreting takes place, and of how successful an exercise it is.

There are two categories of interpretation: consecutive and simultaneous. In a consecutive mode of interpreting, the interpreter provides his interpretation after the original speech or some section of it has been finished. During the course of the speech, the interpreter has to focus attention on comprehending and analysing its content. Here the length of each segment to be translated makes a difference to the interpreter’s strategies and outcomes. If the segment is just one sentence or two, the interpreter closely follows the original speech. Nevertheless, the interpreter is often expected to translate a long speech which may last for scores of minutes or even longer. Faced with this situation, he has to remember a great number of messages and keep them in mind until he begins his translation. For this to be possible, the interpreter must record the original messages using a complex system of symbols to express what the speaker is saying. These symbols represent specific meanings, abbreviations, or verb tenses through the visualisation of information. Studying and practicing this set of symbols is an integral part of interpreter training and a special exercise to improve memory.

Consecutive interpreting, which is widely employed in informal situations, as well as in committee meetings and small conferences, presumably dates from the Tower of Babel. In this kind of interpretation, the interpreter translates after the speaker has finished speaking. It does break the rhythm of the original language, but that is the nature of it. In larger and more formal events, therefore, where the meaning needs to be delivered effectively and accurately, it has been generally replaced by simultaneous interpreting, whose development arose from the availability of modern audiological equipment and the advent of growing international interaction following the Second World War.

The simultaneous mode has attracted great interest because of the complexity of the task and the remarkable skills required. In no other context of human communication is anyone routinely required to listen and speak at the same time, preserving an exact semantic corre-spondence between the two procedures. Strictly speaking, the term ‘simultaneous’ does not truly present the interpreting procedure. Actually, the interpreter might not be able to utter even a single word until he gains the entire meaning, and he needs time to assimilate what is being said in the source language and to convert it into an acceptable form in the target language, so there is invariably a delay of a few words between the stimulus and the response. This ‘ear-voice span’ is usually about 2 or 3 seconds, but it may be as much as 10 seconds or so if the text is complex. The brain has to memorise what has just been said, attend to what is currently being said, and anticipate the construction of what is about to be said.

How it is all done is not at all clear. That it is done at all is a source of some wonder, given the often lengthy periods of interpreting required, the confined environment of the interpret-ing booth, the presence of background noise, and the awareness that defining decisions may depend upon the accuracy of the work. Other considerations such as cultural backgrounds also make it aim to pay full attention to the backgrounds of the authors and the recipients, and to take into account differences between source and target languages.

Recent researches have now begun to look at how far these factors and the speed at which the source language is spoken determine the interpreting results. It seems that an input speed of between 100 and 120 words per minute is a comfortable rate for interpreting with an upper limit of around 200 w.p.m. Even small changes in speed can dramatically affect the accuracy of output. In one controlled study, when speeds were gradually increased in a series of stages from 95 to 194 w.p.m., the ear-voice span also extended with each stage, and the amount correctly interpreted showed a clear decline. Moreover, as the translating load increased, not only were there more errors of commission, say mistranslations and vagueness, there were also more omissions. These are significant findings, considering the need for accuracy and precision in international communication. What is needed is a more detailed identification of the problem areas, and of the strategies speakers, listeners and interpreters adopt to solve them. There is an urgent need to confirm what has so far been one of the most neglected fields of communication research.

Questions 1 – 5

Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.

Write the correct letter in boxes 1–5 on your answer sheet.

Questions 6 – 9

Complete the summary below.

Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS AND/OR NUMBERS from the passage for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 6–9 on your answer sheet.

Questions 10 – 13

Choose FOUR letters, A–G.

Write the correct letters in boxes 10–13 on your answer sheet.

• 10-13.Which FOUR of the following factors will affect the accuracy of simultaneous interpretation?

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