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Newsletter of the Interpreters Division of the American Translators Association SPRING 2003

THE INTERPRETERS DIVISION OF THE AMERICAN TRANSLATORS ASSOCIATIONwww.ata-divisions.org/IDAmerican Translators Association225 Reinekers Lane, Suite 590Alexandria, VA 22314

Coming Soon: Summer Issue of The Interpreters Voice“On Cognitive Analysis and Translation”

by Elizabeth Ivanova, St. Petersburg, Russia

Ms. Elizabeth Ivanova is a professor of philology at St.Petersburg State University in St. Petersburg, Russia, and isalso a practicing translator. We’ll hear, among other things, about the role that translation played in the development ofEuropean proverbs.

We will also present the second half of the

“Interpreting in Spain and Colombia: Two

Perspectives” article from a 1999 NAJIT-sponsored

Interpreters Roundtable.

Our quarterly newsletter, The Interpreters Voice(TIV), is up and running again! We plan to publish

four quarterly issues annually. For the June issue,

please submit your articles to Cathy McCabe at

[email protected] by the end of May.

Come Join Us!The National Association of Judiciary Interpreters & Translators

presents NAJIT's 24th Annual Meeting & Educational Conference

Sheraton Music City Hotel, Nashville, Tennessee — May 23-25, 2003

>> Confirmed speakers at the conference include:> Duard Bradshaw, Esq., president of the National Hispanic Bar Association> C. Carol J. Patrie, Ph.D., author of "The Effective Interpreting Series"> Bethany Dumas, Ph.D., chair of Linguistics Program, University of Tennessee> D. Daniel Giglio, J.D., freelance interpreter and translator Thomas L. West, Esq.,

“Spanish-English Dictionary of Law and Business"> Alex Rainof, Ph.D., professor, California State University, Long Beach> Cristina Castro, M.A., freelance interpreter and translator> Lois Feuerle, J.D., Oregon Judicial Department> C. Sebastian Aloot, Esq., Civil Rights Division, U.S. Department of Justice

More information about these and other speakers, seminars,

and pre-conference workshops is available on the NAJIT web-

site at www.najit.org.

NAJIT has obtained the remarkable rate of $79/night for this event, with compli-mentary parking and airport transportation. Come join us, and take a Tennesseevacation afterwards! The dogwoods will be beautiful in the spring.

Newsletter of the Interpreters Division of the American Translators Association SPRING 2003

1 Get to Know UsNew Administrators and Editors

2 Perspective for Interpreters Division

3 NAJIT Roundtable

4 Interpreter Self-Discipline

6 When a Team Is Not a Team

7 Book Nook

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

THE Interpreters VoiceSPRING 2003

AdministratorsHelen Cole [email protected] [email protected]

Certification [email protected]

Directory CommitteeVirginia Pé[email protected]

Listserve MasterTeresa Romá[email protected]

Nominating CommitteeMaria Carolina [email protected]és Saraver

The Interpreters Voice EditorsCathy McCabe (spring/summer)[email protected] Nurit Shohom (fall/winter)[email protected]

Listserve MasterTeresa Román; [email protected]

WebmasterMargareta [email protected]

Send any notices or newsabout training and certification

seminars and training toappropriate editors.

� � �

Visit the Interpreters Division website for updates,

events, and news: www.ata-divisions.org/ID

� � �

Advertise in The Interpreters Voice!

(rates on page 2).

by Cathy McCabe, Editor

At long last, some of you might be thinking. Yes, The Interpreters Voice is back, and as thenewsletter editors for the spring and summer editions, we are pleased to present this first edi-tion to you. Just as a little background: Priscilla Padrón and I worked together for two-threeyears as the editors of Bridges, the newsletter of the Atlanta Association of Interpreters andTranslators. We appreciated that opportunity and aim to carry on the collaborative effort withThe Interpreters Voice.

We plan to bring you articles of interest from interpreters in different areas of the worldand with different areas of expertise. Occasionally we will include articles from other inter-preter newsletters that might be of interest to those of you who didn’t have the opportunity tosee them. In this inaugural edition, an interpreter from Argentina presents some insight intopsychological and linguistic aspects of language professionalism, and we’ve also includedsome interesting perspectives on court interpreting from our colleagues at the NationalAssociation of Judiciary Interpreters & Translators.

We weren’t able to accomplish one of our goals—to include an article from a Russian inter-preter; we’ll need a bit more time to work out the quirks with Cyrillic characters in our soft-ware. Next edition! We’ve also compiled a list of information that might be helpful for yourfuture reference. And, like all newsletter editors, we ask you to either contact us or send us thearticle directly, if there is something you’d like to submit. We look forward to hearing fromyou and to receiving any suggestions or comments.

One last thing. ATA’s Annual Conference will include a get-together and dinner for theInterpreters Division. Don’t forget to mark it on your calendars. Look in the column entitled“Administrators’ Perspective” (page 2) for more information. ❚

We’re Back!

ATA INTERPRETERS DIVISION CONTACTS

Newsletter of the Interpreters Division of the American Translators Association 2

Compiled by ID Administrators, Helen D.Cole and Beth Tu

Dear ID Members,

Highlights of updates regarding ID commit-tees and activities, the majority of which wereresults from the November 2002 ID AnnualMeeting, follows:

Website: Check the ID website periodically forupdated information. Send any news of trainingopportunities to Webmaster Margareta Uganderat [email protected] for postings.Listserve: Listserve master Teresa Roman,[email protected], has done a terrific job asthe moderator of e-voice4ATA-ID ListserveMaster. Listserve is a wonderful tool for us toshare information, ideas, questions, concerns,etc. There are many options that you canchoose to receive your listserve e-mails withoutfeeling overwhelmed by daily postings. To betteruse the ID Listserve, check the ID website forTeresa's instructions.Interpreters Certification Committee: IzumiSuzuki, [email protected], will com-pile a list of interpreters’ certification programsthat are already in existence and will work withATA to establish some type of recognition pro-gram for ID members. As a result of the discus-sion during the last ID Annual Meeting, theexhaustive amount of time and investmentrequired to develop certification for one lan-guage pair made it unfeasible for ATA to estab-lish an “Interpreters Accreditation” program.Rather than reinventing the wheel, we proposeto have ATA acknowledge the existing certifica-tion programs.ID Directory Committee: Virginia Perez-Santalla, [email protected]. Financially,it is not feasible to publish an annual paper IDdirectory. However, some interpreting agenciesexpressed the usefulness of a condensed paperdirectory. We encourage everyone to better useATA Translators and Interpreters searchabledirectory on the website. ATA is open to sug-gestions regarding the modification of its elec-tronic database.

ID Nomination Committee: Maria CarolinaParaventi, [email protected], and Inés Saraver.All active ID members are eligible to run for theID Administrator, Assistant Administrator, andTreasurer positions. Please submit any recom-mendations you might have for candidates toMaría and Inés; ballots will be mailed and elec-tions held during our next ID Annual Meeting inNovember 2003. The next ID Annual Meeting Reception will beheld in the conference hotel restaurant, calledAunt Chilada’s, November 6, 2003, 7-9 p.m.Because the restaurant is at the conference site,all administration related to this reception willbe handled by ATA. Cost: TBA. Please check theATA Chronicle, pre-conference schedule, ID web-site, and the listserve for updates regardingreservations. Contact person: TBA. A heartfeltthank-you to Karin Isbell of Phoenix for thewonderful “advance work.” The next ID Annual Meeting is scheduled forNovember during the ATA Annual Conference inPhoenix, AZ. ATA President-elect Scott Brennaninvited suggestions and initiatives from ID mem-bers regarding interpreting sessions and activi-ties at next year’s ATA Annual Conference inPhoenix, Arizona. The proximity of the federalcourt-interpreting program at the University ofArizona provides a “rallying point” for anenhanced interpreting lineup next year. ATA willsolicit participation from the U of A interpretingfaculty. Scott also aired the idea of ID, NAJIT, orother groups scheduling training seminars inconjunction with the ATA conference.ID buttons are still available. New membersshould contact Mary David at [email protected] your free button and flags (max. 3). ID but-tons are a wonderful fundraiser for our divisionand a great advertisement for your profession. To order more buttons, please downloadthe order form from the ID website.

Many volunteers came forward and have madethis division greater. Please accept Beth’s andmy heartfelt appreciation. You have made thisdivision a productive one and theAdministrators’ work easier and satisfying.Thank you all and have a wonderful spring.

The Interpreters Voice

Newsletter of the Interpreters Division of the

American Translators Association

Volume 4, Issue 7 Spring 2003

American Translators Association225 Reinekers Lane, Suite 590Alexandria, VA 22314p: 703.683.6100f: [email protected] Division Website: www.ata-divisions.org/ID

Membership in the InterpretersDivision is $15.00 per year in additionto the ATA membership fee. Please makeyour check payable to the ATA and sendit to the ATA address noted above.

Submission GuidelinesPlease e-mail articles in Word 97 ortext format to the appropriate editors:Cathy McCabe (spring/summer)[email protected] Shohom (fall/winter)[email protected]

Submissions, limited to 1,000 words, arepublished on a space-available basis andmay be edited for brevity and clarity.Articles appearing in The InterpretersVoice may also appear in other ATAmedia, such as its website.

DeadlinesArticles submitted to The InterpretersVoice in 2003 should be submittedaccording to the deadlines announcedby the Division Administrator or Editorand posted on the Interpreters Divisionwebsite.

Advertising in The Interpreters Voice is$80 per page; $40 per half page, $20per quarter page, and $10 per one-eighth page (card size). Submit ads tothe appropriate editors cited above.

Opinions expressed here are those of theauthors and do not necessarily reflect thoseof the Editor, the Interpreters Division, orthe American Translators Association.

ADMINISTRATORS’ PERSPECTIVE:ID Highlights and Updates


by Daniel SherrReprinted with permission from Proteus, thenewsletter of the National Association ofJudiciary Interpreters and Translators (Vol. 8, Nos. 3-4, Summer-Fall 1999)

NAJIT ORGANIZES INTERNATIONAL ROUNDTABLE

In 1999 NAJIT sponsored an InterpretersRoundtable at the federal court in theSouthern District of New York. Speakingwere Josep Peñarroja Fa, President of theAssociation of Sworn Translators andInterpreters of Catalonia, and Dr. CeciliaPlested Alvarez, from the School ofLanguages at the University of Antioquia inMedellín, Colombia. Both gave an historicaloverview of the profession in their countries.

Peñarroja spoke mainly about the marketfor sworn interpreters and translators inSpain. In our next issue, we will publishPlested’s view of the discipline of judiciarytranslation in Colombia from the academicperspective.

Peñarroja: Impoverished Nobilityvs. Plebeian Security

The use of sworn interpreters in theSpanish-speaking world dates back to thecolonization of the Americas (la Conquista).Spanish law was applied to the indigenouspeoples during la Conquista and as such, “theIndians living in the Americas had the rightto be judged and have a translator, an inter-preter. In the early 1500s, the law stipulatedthat there be an interpreter who would inter-pret under oath.” Thus, 30 years after theConquista, the profession of intérprete jura-do, or sworn interpreter, was born.

In 1841, it was decided that the SpanishMinistry of Foreign Affairs, with jurisdictionover foreign languages, would appoint thesworn interpreters and administer theirexaminations. “At the time,” noted Peñarroja,“it was felt that anyone aspiring to be asworn interpreter would be a bourgeois,

someone with encyclopedic cultural knowl-edge. It was believed that a written examina-tion would suffice. The problem is that the1843 decision remained in force until 1966,which is an absolute embarrassment.”

Currently, the examination for sworninterpreters in Spain consists of three writtensections, which deal with general subjectsand require translation both to and fromSpanish. The oral section, introduced threeyears ago, is “an interview to evaluate theinterpreter’s knowledge of the foreign lan-guage.” According to Peñarroja, every year2,000 people take the English exam and 12 or13 pass. “My colleagues are rather high qual-ity translators, although I must say that thereare very few who actually interpret.”

In 1996, a second certification route wasmade available to aspiring sworn inter-preters. Any person successfully completingan undergraduate course of study in transla-tion and interpreting at an accreditedSpanish university would automaticallybecome a sworn interpreter.

Peñarroja viewed this as a disturbingdevelopment. “The university is a degree-making machine,” he complained. “If thereare now 2,000 interpreters in Spain, with thisnew law, there might be 10,000. It’s not thesame divvying up the pie among 2,000 as itis among 10,000. The university hasdestroyed us, because the number of inter-preters will grow exponentially, but theamount of work won’t.”

Furthermore, according to Peñarroja, theSpanish university approach to translationand interpreting is excessively theoretical.“In Barcelona, legal translation is taught by apoet,” he observed. “I have nothing againstpoets, but let the shoemaker stick to his last(zapatero, a tus zapatos). What can you sayabout someone who has studied law with a poet?...”

Peñarroja was quick to underline the par-adox that while sworn interpreters are certi-fied by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, theyare supposed to work in the courts, under the

aegis of the Ministry of Justice. Yet theMinistry of Justice “did not want to enforceour reasonable rates,” and “decided to hirenon-sworn interpreters as staff interpreters.They didn’t hire people who had beenapproved by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.It was enough for an applicant to have a highschool degree. The salary is about $800 amonth. Our Association was radicallyopposed to this, of course, but we ran upagainst the government’s desire to savemoney. In Spain, the judicial branch hasalways complained about its low budgets, andwhenever there are budgetary problems, thefirst area they look to cut is the interpreters.”

Today, most sworn interpreters in Spainwork as translators. They work for notariespublic, foreign investors and multinationalcompanies, and are often called upon totranslate documents in matters of commer-cial law (derecho mercantil). A translation bya sworn interpreter is more expensive thanone done by a non-sworn interpreter.(Peñarroja recently raised his rates to about$.11 a word, which is high for the Spanishmarket.) Government-appointed interpretersworking in the courts do not interpret all thatis said, but intervene only at the direction ofthe judge. Not all defendants have equalaccess to an interpreter, Peñarroja noted. “Incriminal cases, there may be drug traffickerswho have a lot of money. They can afford thebest. They can afford the best lawyer, theycan afford the best interpreter. Of course, thepoor unfortunate mule (camello) cannot. Sowe are becoming the interpreters of the richand not of the poor, which is sad.”

Having spent a few weeks in the Statesobserving interpreted court proceedings,Peñarroja told the group, “If you allow me touse a stereotype to compare our situations, Iwould say that in Spain we are somewhat likethe blue-blooded English nobleman who is flatbroke. Here, you don’t have that noble blood,but your checking account is doing okay. I ama sworn interpreter, I am named by theMinistry of Foreign Affairs of his Majesty’sgovernment. I can use the Stamp of the Stateas a seal for my work. But in reality, it’s all anillusion. I have no legal framework to supportme. Perhaps here you don’t have all the trap-pings of nobility, but at least you have someregulatory framework to rely on.” ❚

Interpreting in Spain andColombia: Two Perspectives


elf-discipline is a great virtue.Personally, I believe it ranks amongthe top highest virtues a human

being can enjoy. Self-discipline dictates thepath to walk along in life and helps frame aperson’s destiny. It is self-imposed and worksbecause it is the result of being related to an inner conviction.

Self-training in any field is naturallyderived from self-discipline as the largerframe encompassing the desire to achieveself-defined goals. In fact, by this term ismeant the ability to improve and polish whathas already been acquired, as well as theneed to update and learn to learn.

In professional interpreting, self-trainingis contemplated only after formal traininghas been completed, and working conditionsevoke a growing awareness of the need tomake never-ending progress, and experiencedemands it. Self-training should beapproached as a requirement in the life of theinterpreter. A great passion for acquiringinformation, an infinite pleasure to playcommunicator, and the thirst for knowledgeto serve others are the salient characteristicsthat make a quality, disciplined interpreterwho has learned how to learn.

In my opinion, the way self-trainingshould be understood is related to a formalas well as to a non-formal general back-ground. The former involves a knowledge oflinguistics, critical discourse analysis, andinformation processing that provides thetools to access encoding and decoding datain our minds, while the latter refers to per-sonal attitudes, experience, and individualfeatures and behavior. The sources fromwhich an interpreter feeds to consolidate

his/her background, then, may be said to liewith: a) academic training and b) working inthe profession.

The overall underlying ideas contained inself-training necessarily include constantpractice and rehearsal of the interpretingmodes at home, a frame of mind married toan avid need for general as well as specificinformation, a habit-forming disposition orcultivated inclination to perform the neces-sary repeated acts of endless reading andbroadening the frontiers of one’s mind.

Learning how to learn means to knowhow to gather information and materials,how to set priorities for needs at any givenmoment, how to acquire the preparation andkeep in professional shape and how our ownstrings should be pulled to do the researchand proper consultations in anticipation of aparticular interpreting event.

The formal background acquired shouldbe sufficient to allow any interpreter to inde-pendently follow self-guidance in his/herindividual lifelong education. There are noshortcuts that substitute for hard work andthe instinct to choose a tailor-made method-ology for self-training. A self-designed guidewith activities, lines of research, readers, anda course of studies to support and polishone’s interpreting ability is always possiblewithout having to turn to outside sources.

Public speaking can be practiced athome; there is extensive bibliography thatprovides excellent information on the need toimprove the use of the voice and how thatcan be achieved. One’s voice can be recordedon audio- or videotape to monitor one’s bodylanguage as well. Choosing the right partnerwith whom to work—this kind of practice can

be a bit more fun — and the feedback obtained when training in the company of someone else is enormously helpful.

Human beings enjoy a cognitive systemthat has a memory system that works differ-ently according to each individual. We needto discover how our own particular memoryworks in order to find out how to developmemory span based on one’s own character-istics and individual needs and demands.There are endless recommendations forlearning to retrieve information in our cogni-tive system, but none will be as valuable orhelpful and practical as the self-awarenessitself of the way one’s own mind goes aboutprocessing incoming information, organizingthe entering data, and rendering that sameinformation in the target language. However,there is no recommendation that works aswell as active listening, which is the best andonly way to enter incoming information,organize it, and later retrieve it. This mightbest be summarized by “no listening, noretrieval.”

Critical discourse analysis contributesgreatly to decoding incoming informationand ordering the data entered so that themessages therein contained can be organizedfor encoding in the target language, follow-ing the strategies offered by discourse analy-sis and the general patterns different types ofdiscourse follow. We can find, for instance,that there is a given logic in how the infor-mation introduced in narrative style is intro-duced, just as there are various patterns tointroduce ideas in argumentative and otherstyles as well. If discourse analysis is prac-ticed and the main strategies and patterns aretaken as universals to be used as tools forself-help, then such patterns and strategicmoves that run through other people’s dis-courses will be discovered and naturally,according to the particularities of idiomaticand personally distinctive features.

earning how to learn must be takenas a continuum without gaps or timebreaks, non-stop contact with the

training process. When, why, how, what for,and who are the main question words thatcan be associated with learning to learn. Theanswers to each such word are brief butmutually articulated: day-to-day study andpractice (when) because the interpreter can

Interpreter Self-Discipline and Trainingby Inés Drallny; Córdoba, Argentina

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be compared to a ballet dancer in need ofmaintaining muscle tone (why) by means ofa self-designed plan for making progress andexercising (how) in order to master the inter-pretation techniques necessary (what for)with the aid of the right people for consulta-tion in specialization fields (who).

Learning to learn should become secondnature in the life of the interpreter.

TEXT, CONTEXTS, AND THE INTERPRETERThe term “context” is rich in more than onesense. It is difficult to imagine a life withoutcontext. No doubt, there must be the notionof text in its broadest scope for understand-ing the various types of context; in particu-lar, the main circles of context with which aninterpreter is involved: verbal context, cogni-tive context, and physical context.Personally, I envision context as a circlewithin a person is, say, enclosed. There mightbe smaller circles or wider ones. Text as dis-course is ultimately always the source.

Linguistic or verbal context is immedi-ately brought to mind if we think in terms ofinterpreting and the interpreter’s raisond’être. Although text is not to be taken aseither verbally or written expressed lan-guage, it is ordinarily linked to its use. Verbalcontext for the interpreter is the vehicle—theconveyor belt of the forms and sounds thatlanguage takes—and should be associated toshort- and long-term memory, most particu-larly to STM and not very long spans. It isthis context that renders the sounds thatreach the cognitive system, and it is also thiscontext that provides the written source to dothe required research for prediction in inter-pretation. Verbal context is linked to STM inparticular because it is the main vehicle forinput material in the construction of the tar-get discourse. Linguistic context eventuallyfades down and actually dies out to give wayto concepts.

Cognitive context opens the door to theideas and knowledge fields managed in theinterpreting situation, plus one’s world ofoverall knowledge that necessarily operatesas cultural background. It is related to long-term memory since conceptualizing andgathering the information that will be used at

the time it must be brought to mind is itsmain role. We can, then, infer we can speakof two separate kinds of cognitive contexts:one that provides the specific knowledgerequired in technical and specialized fieldswhen having to interpret in any given specif-ic situation and the general background con-text thought of as the interpreter’s safety netand closest friend in case of having to bridgethe unbridgeable in terms of LTM functionsand general education. Cognitive contextrenders either the support or data-base forgathering ideas and forming concepts.

Physical context actually intervenes atthe moment of interpreting and having todecode correctly its different meanings, i.e.,from an interpreter’s or speaker’s possibleheadache to an unforeseeable delay to a sit-uation of war. This implies that the range forphysical context is indeed broad. The person-al or subjective, as well as the collective orinternational interests and concerns, are everpresent. The interpreter’s and the sourcespeaker’s well-being are essential and influ-ence language and cognitive performance—the economic and political conditions of acountry, natural phenomena like earthquakesand floods, terrorism and disasters—all arefactors that play a crucial role in an inter-preting situation. September 11, 2001 may becited as one of the most relevant cases, andmore recently, when the space shuttleColumbia fell apart, the spirit and frame ofmind of everyone throughout the world wasdirectly touched...or suffice it to mention thetense relations between Iraq and the rest ofthe world and the fear of an all-out war.

There are, then, situational constraints towhich speech events are subject. The socio-cultural variables that characterize any givenspeech event may be said to be setting, par-ticipants, purpose, key, content, and channel.“Setting” refers to the time and place of thespeech event and the form the speech takes—talking to the lecturer during the lecture inthe conference room will necessarily differfrom chatting to him/her after the lecture,over a cup of coffee perhaps. The participantsdetermine certain hierarchical patterns oflanguage use and performance to which thefour participant roles—addressor, lecturer,addressee, audience—must adapt. The pur-pose should be reflected in features such as

the presence or absence of persuasion,advice, greetings, warning, commands, andendless other possibilities. By “key” is meantthe “tone or manner” in which a speech acthas been or is performed. It may be a friend-ly key or a stern, distant one. “Content”relates to subject matter and, along withother factors, co-determines the languageform to be used: register and style depend oncontent. Taboos, prejudices, and banned sub-jects are generally not dealt with mindlessly.And then, there are two basic “channels” ofverbal communication: speech and writing.

he six variables mentioned abovemay be summarized as follows: whosays what to whom, where and

when, how and why. This might well becomethe macro-linguistic principle for an inter-preter in self-training.

Personally, I think we can find there aretwo moments in an interpreter’s attitude thatrelate to exercising the interpreting abilitiesand excellence. There is a time for lookinginward and for looking outward in self-training.

Looking inward is the time when the self-training interpreter must become clearlyaware of personal individual resources, howto use them to the best of his/her knowledgeand ability, and how to develop and actuallyimplement self-help at the right time, withthe goal being one of polishing and perfect-ing all areas to become a strong interpreter.Getting rid of fears and possible flops is alsopart of self-help. This looking inwardlyshould be thorough and merciless, in ordernot to leave any inner nook or cranny undis-closed before our own eyes. Stretching to thelimit to keep in good interpreting shape is apowerful tool that prepares the interpreter forthe unexpected and the unpredictable, whichis the bread ‘n’ butter of the interpreting pro-fession. Looking inward helps keep the gearswell tuned and also aids in clearing up thosejitters that irremediably are always present. Itmay become a way to achieve reasonablefreedom from the stage fright all interpretersare at risk of suffering.

Looking outward, as I see it, connectsdirectly with “other” and “otherness”—theworld around us as “otherness” and the exis-tence of the “other”—which has been dealt

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continued on page 7


by Nancy FestingerReprinted with permission of Proteus, The Newsletter of the National Association ofJudiciary Interpreters and Translators.

Although the following article was writtenspecifically with the courtroom setting inmind, some of the pointers expressed mightbe of interest to all interpreting professionals.

The co-pilot is trying to get thepilot’s attention, but the pilot isn’tlistening; annoyed, he growls,“Don’t interrupt me now. Can’t yousee I have a plane to get off theground?” Later, the plane crashes.

nlikely? Hardly. It turns out that95% of airline crashes are caused bycommunication failures in the cock-

pit. These failures are not traceable, as somemight think, to machine malfunction, such asheadphone or microphone failure, but tohuman miscommunication, the way thatinformation is conveyed by crew members toone other.

In the example above, the co-pilot wastrying to tell the pilot of an aircraft problem.But in the pilot’s rush to get underway, hesilenced his subordinate, who then clammedup, perhaps doubting his own judgment. Somepilots have better safety records than others,but what distinguishes the best from the rest?Wanting to find out, the airlines commis-sioned a study to find out what pilots with thelowest error rates were doing that the othersweren’t. Surprisingly, the price of success inthis instance was measurable in time, notmoney. Successful pilots, it was discovered,always took extra time to establish team rap-port before taking their positions in the cabin.Most flight teams are newly created groups ofco-workers who have seldom worked togetherbefore. It was the pilot’s approach to team-work that really mattered; no matter howexperienced the crew. The successful pilotalways introduced himself, invited questions,and reminded crew that the number one prior-ity was passenger safety. This seemingly banalroutine was shown to have a decisive impact

lucky to enjoy an excellent reputationbecause those we work for respect our skills.The team on this trial and in all trials has animportant role to play. I am going to reviewwhat will be expected of you while this trialis pending so there is no misunderstandingabout each one’s responsibility.

Our priority here is the accuracy of theinterpretation and consideration for yourteammate. As teammates you both haveequal responsibility, even if your experiencelevels are different. Before the trial com-mences, you should agree on when to taketurns with the microphone, keeping in mindthat the person on the mike should be the oneto pass it, not the other way around.Experience has shown that a flexible attitudetoward switching is more effective thanstrictly timed half-hour intervals. If an open-ing statement lasts 40 minutes, the “on”interpreter may want to finish it before pass-ing the mike. While interpreting, you maypass notes to each other on vocabulary ques-tions, or assist each other with names, num-bers, and other details. The relief interpreter’srole is to validate accuracy with the partnerand to be available for attorney-client con-sultations, as well as for any emergency thatmay arise. Keep a record of case informationin the event someone else comes in on thecase who has not been here from the begin-ning. Do not absent yourself from the court-room for more than a few minutes withoutwarning because you have no way of know-ing what may occur while you are out of thecourtroom. Be friendly and available to oneanother without being overly judgmental.Share resources, knowledge, and informationand treat your teammate as your parachute:to be most trusted in times of emergency.

>>Your attitude is as important asyour language ability.The interpreters are part of a much largerprocess, and should strive to remain in thebackground. I cannot stress enough theimportance of punctuality: the interpretermay wait for others, but others should neverwait for the interpreter. Both interpreters are

on the team’s performance.Interpreter supervisors have a lot to learn

from this model. While I frequently choosethe team members who will work together ona trial, too often I have taken for granted thatthey will be courteous in giving advice andsupport to one another. I have usually spokento each one separately, but often do not havethe occasion to sit down with the teamtogether prior to “take-off.” Disasters, ofcourse, have a way of unfolding withoutwarning: terrible chemistry between team-mates; sniping; indifference; correcting acolleague to a third party without telling thecolleague first; disappearing acts; burdeningone’s colleague with the lion’s share of thework or exhausting the colleague withchitchat; endless uncertainty about when totake turns, or excessively detailed timekeep-ing schemes; high-and-mighty attitudes;failure to answer colleagues’ questions; oroutright derision at others’ ignorance.Jealousy and in-fighting are particularlycommon among interpreters of lesser-usedlanguages, who may perceive each other ascompetition for relatively few jobs.

Although the combination of personalitytraits is infinitely variable, an introductoryroutine would be an excellent approach tolimit the potential for disaster. It is a goodidea for a supervisor to make a habit of talk-ing to teams before a trial begins. Whilescheduling these sessions may be difficult tomanage, team orientation should be a priori-ty. The idea is to communicate directly andpersonally with the team members beforethey start, setting the tone for the trial.

A handout on Effective InterpretingTeams can be given, and then the interpreterswould hear (with variations depending on theexperience level): “Thank you for acceptingthis assignment with the court, and I hopeyour experience here will be rewarding. Inmy role as supervisor, I care a great dealabout the quality of interpretation providedto the court. The judges are very mindful ofthe interpretation because they are used tohigh quality. I consider every interpreter anambassador for the profession, and we are

When is a Team Not a Team?

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expected to be in the courtroom at theappointed hour, unless previous arrange-ments have been made. Interpreters shouldnot offer an opinion about trial strategy, wit-ness credibility, or someone else’s transla-tion; and if you are left alone in the presenceof a defendant, move a distance away so hewill not be tempted to talk to you.

>> Refer all questions to the attorney,even questions you know the answer to, suchas “Where does the jury sit?” Courtroom pro-tocol should be respected at all times, in bodylanguage as well as appearance. Do not

slump in the chair or betray facial reactionsto anything happening in the courtroom.

>> Do not try to do anyone else’s jobbut your own.If asked to do something you are not sure iswithin your responsibility, please consultwith your colleague and with me. If there areschedule changes in the trial, please conveythem promptly to the office. We will also getany incoming message to you. In communi-cation I may have with the judge, I representthe interpreter’s point of view and can advisethe court of potential problems. If you have

any questions or concerns, we can discussthose now.”

A meeting of this sort would take about 15minutes. It is likely that fewer problems willpresent themselves once the team is put onnotice that their cooperation is not onlydevoutly to be wished but expected. It’s nothard to be a good solo act when no one iswatching, but the best interpreters, and thosemost valued by their supervisors, are those whoare considered desirable teammates by theircolleagues. Like a successful duet, a good inter-preting team makes beautiful sense together.And the enjoyment factor increases twofold. ❚

with thoroughly in other disciplines. Therecan be no interpreter without “other.”Opening up and self-effacing in order tomake room for the other may be taken as theattitude components of reaching out andmeeting other meanings and other worlds.The move of self goes outward and forwardto decode and encounter different ideas andviews. Opening up involves a readiness toaccept what is different, that “otherness”which is so difficult to penetrate. Acceptancedoes not necessarily mean a conversion toforeign ideas but rather the appropriation ofthe source speaker’s ideas, of other culturaland intellectual systems which may be theonly way to temporarily become the “trans-mitting rod” needed to reach out to the tar-geted audience in an attempt to establish themagic of direct communication. Text appro-priateness fuses horizon lines for the inter-preter needing to become one with the sourcematerial and source speaker. Looking out-ward may even turn into an adventurouscruise to surf through other worlds and culti-vate or discover other peeks at the world.

any of the possible combinationsof the word “self” serve todescribe and condense the inter-

preter and his/her work:>> An interpreter’s self-confidence springsfrom his/her self-discipline and helps onebecome self-effacing. >> Self-effacing suppresses judgment andhelps eliminate personal issues that mightbe hovering around the mind and hauntingthe soul.

>> Self-effacing carries an interpreter awayfrom self-centeredness and towards accept-ance of other worlds hitherto unknown.>> Self-assurance arises when self-esteem andself-respect feed an interpreter’s soul; it formspart of the effort to become self-effacing. >> Self-monitoring is recommended so that aself-exploration of one’s strong points, as wellas one’s flaws, will help boost self-image anddevelop self-correction.

A formally trained interpreter can pursuefurther self-training by way of self-explo-ration—this being the main personal tool toface and solve the demands of professionalperformance with self-assurance. Interpretersusually seek self-perfection. It may perhapsbe by means of the personal—from the widerange of combinations the word “self”offers—that an interpreter can finally be freedfrom the feeling that “one’s ultimate oppo-nent is oneself.”

Master the facts of the situation; listenactively to all participants; read the signs andmake out the contexts involved. Only noware you ready to serve the purpose for whichyou have been called upon in your work. ❚

BOOK NOOKMs. Inés L. Drallny, author of this month’s arti-

cle on self-training for interpreters, recently

published a book (in Spanish) entitled “La for-

mación del intérprete de conferencias” (trans.,

Training Conference Interpreters). Published in

2000, it is a welcome addition to the world of

conference-interpreting literature. Ms. Drallny

specifies her intent in writing this book in the

Introduction: “(trans.) There is practically a total

lack of adequate information about this profes-

sion. And what is even more serious is that not

only is this profession unknown but also poorly

understood, even by those who need interpret-

ing services or who would be served by using

these services.” With that in mind, the author

begins with an interesting history of conference

interpreting itself, which leads to a concise

explanation of different interpreting modes

(consecutive and simultaneous) and their char-

acteristics. The author continues by explaining

differences between translation and interpreta-

tion, while including a chapter on different

types of discourse with which a language pro-

fessional should be familiar. The last chapter of

the book (in English) is entitled “Discourse

Analysis, Text Linguistics, and Interpreting,”

which presents a complete analysis of discourse

in interpreting and translating contexts.

La formación del intérprete de conferencias,

Inés L. Drallny, Ediciones del Copista

(ISBN 987-9192-51-6, Ediciones del Copista,

Lavalleja, 47-Oficina 7,

5000 Córdoba, Argentina)

About the AuthorAfter a long career as a conference inter-preter, Ms. Inés Drallny currently teachesinterpreting full-time at both the EscuelaSuperior de Lenguas of the University ofCórdoba (Argentina) and at the EscuelaSuperior de Idiomas de la UniversidadNacional Del Comahue in Neuquén(Argentina).

Interpreter Self-Discipline and Training (continued from page 5)

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