The Process of Forming a Translator's Linguistic and Cultural Competence

Макарова В.В.

doi:10.7256/2454-0676.2024.4.71476

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Pedagogy and education

Reference:

Makarova, V.V. (2024). The Process of Forming a Translator's Linguistic and Cultural Competence. Pedagogy and education, 4, 144–158. https://doi.org/10.7256/2454-0676.2024.4.71476

The Process of Forming a Translator's Linguistic and Cultural Competence

Makarova Viktoriya Valerievna

Independent researcher

5k4 Teply Stan str., Moscow, 117465, Russia

flash251@yandex.ru

DOI:

10.7256/2454-0676.2024.4.71476

EDN:

SHMNJV

Received:

14-08-2024

Published:

03-01-2025

Abstract: Abstract: The subject of this research is the basics of the general theory of translation, the theoretical foundations of written and oral translation, and the methodology of teaching a translator through the prism of forming their linguistic and cultural competence. Thus, a translator's linguistic and cultural competencies are fundamentally necessary to ensure interlanguage and intercultural correspondence are embodied through the text and allow for the comparison of the national cultural characteristics of the communicants. Linguistic and regional expertise presuppose, on the one hand, that the translator has regional background knowledge, based on which a specifically reproduced lexical unit is associated with the same information that a native speaker presents. On the other hand, linguistic and cultural competencies cannot be studied without a translator's personality, which allows for more complete intercultural cooperation between multilingual communicants. The main methods used in the research process were the dialectical method, which made it possible to identify the features of the formation of the translator's linguistic and cultural competence, and a systematic approach based on which linguistic and cultural competencies were considered through the prism of linguistic, technical, and communicative elements. The study's main conclusions are that, on the one hand, this type of translator's competence includes their professional qualities, translation practice in a real environment, and a policy of continuous training in interpretation and translation. On the other hand, personal and communicative qualities and openness to new knowledge are fundamental to understanding the native language. According to the study results, it is proposed to talk about the following elements that reproduce the linguistic and cultural competencies of the translator—these are linguistic, technical, and communicative competencies, as well as the translator's perception of their place in the translation being performed. In the first case, it means a set of idioms, phraseological units, connotative and background vocabulary. The second is an accumulated information reserve of at least the third degree, ensuring the completeness of linguistic and background knowledge in the source and translating languages. Thirdly, the ability to edit the translation depends on the communicants' pre-information reserves. Finally, the translator's understanding of their place in the translation chain is associated with the adapted translation not only of linguistic units from native speakers but also of the cultural and national connotations implied by them.

Keywords:

linguistic and cultural competences of a translator, written translation, visual translations, background knowledge, connotative vocabulary, general translation skills, personal qualities of a translator, translations by ear, background vocabulary, specific translation skills

References

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First Peer Review

Peer reviewers' evaluations remain confidential and are not disclosed to the public. Only external reviews, authorized for publication by the article's author(s), are made public. Typically, these final reviews are conducted after the manuscript's revision. Adhering to our double-blind review policy, the reviewer's identity is kept confidential.
The list of publisher reviewers can be found here.

The subject of the study is the essence and structure of the formation of the linguistic and cultural competence of the translator. The research methodology is based on a theoretical approach using methods of analysis, comparison, generalization, synthesis. The relevance of the research is determined by the widespread and intensification of intercultural processes in modern society, the importance of appropriate training of translators, including the formation of their linguistic and cultural competence. Scientific novelty is not explicitly presented and is apparently related to the conclusions formulated by the author that the formation of linguistic and cultural competence is influenced by the professional qualities of the translator, his translation skills and real practice, as well as teaching interpretation and translation, is associated with the influence of factors such as the harmonization of components (linguistic, technical, communicative competencies, the translator's perception of his place in translation), taking into account the specifics of the language, the interconnectedness and mutual accounting of translation skills and abilities, as well as a combination of linguistic and background knowledge in the source and translating languages. In general, these conclusions do not appear to be new. The article is written in Russian literary language. The style of presentation is scientific. The structure of the manuscript includes the following sections (not highlighted in separate sections, not titled): Introduction (national and cultural specificity of the language, the inherent relationship between language and culture, the diversity of cultural archetypes, vocabulary as a section of language, the "linguistic picture" of the people, linguistic and cultural studies), Linguistic and cultural competence of the translator (knowledge in the context of semantics, the structure of linguistic and cultural competence of the translator (linguistic competence, methodological competence, technical competence), the implementation of linguistic and cultural competence (general and specific translation skills and abilities, stages of the translation process), the principles of formation of linguistic and cultural competence of the lexical composition of the language, allowing to perceive a specific lexical unit in the same meaning as the native speaker directly implies, the structure of linguistic and cultural competence of the translator - linguistic competence, methodological competence, technical competence), the implementation of linguistic and cultural competence (general and specific translation skills and abilities, stages of the translation process), the principles of formation linguistic and cultural competence of the translator (cognitive learning, dialogue of cultures, realization of goals and objectives based on understanding the culture of communicants, replenishment and consolidation of the conceptual apparatus of the translator), conclusion (conclusions), Bibliography. The content as a whole does not match the title. Firstly, the wording of the title is more suitable for a monograph than for a separate scientific article. The title of the manuscript should be clarified taking into account the subject of the study, however, its pedagogical specificity is not expressed. Secondly, the understanding of competence as knowledge does not correspond to the basic provisions of the competence approach. The allocation of other competencies (methodological, technical) in the structure of linguistic and cultural competence should also be explained. Thirdly, the essence of the process of forming linguistic and cultural competence is not clear, only its principles are mentioned, as well as the stages of the translation process. The bibliography includes 15 sources of Russian authors – scientific articles, materials of scientific events. Bibliographic descriptions of some sources require adjustments in accordance with GOST and editorial requirements, for example: 1. Bobyreva E. V., Gonnova T. V. Formation of communicative competence in the process of studying language disciplines // Almanac-2021. Volgograd : Name of the publishing house ???, 2021. pp. 232-235. 2. Borisov D. A., Zharenova N. V. The use of linguistic and cultural material in the language classes of translation students // Training of translators: analysis of systems and approaches in the countries of the world: a collection of scientific articles on the results of the fourth international scientific conference. Nizhny Novgorod : Name of the publishing house ???, 2024. pp. 49-53. 5. Zhuyin Yu. Theory and methodology of interpretation in the works of R. K. Minyar-Beloruchev // Bulletin of the Moscow University : Series 22. The theory of translation. 2020. No. 2. pp. 118-133. Attention is drawn to the lack of references to the works of foreign scientists. Appeal to opponents (Bobyreva E. V., Gonnova T. V., Borisov D. A., Zharenova N. V., Buldygerova A. N., Solovyova V. N., Gurov A. N., Zhuyin Yu., Koroleva D. B., Lepchenko S. Yu., Kuznetsova V. Yu., Murashkina O. V., Novikova L. V., Serishcheva T. V., Oleinikova E. A., Sivokho M. I., Shmakova V. N., Usacheva O. Yu., Akhmetova M. K., Baldanova E. A., Dondokova N. B., Sorokina A. A.) takes place. In general, the material is of interest to the readership (although its pedagogical specificity is not expressed) and after revision can be published in the journal "Pedagogy and Education".

Second Peer Review

The article "Linguistic and cultural competence of a translator and some issues of its formation" is submitted for review. The work is a theoretical analysis and justification of the educational approach proposed by the author. The subject of the study. The work is aimed at identifying aspects of the linguistic and cultural competence of the translator and the peculiarities of its formation in modern socio-cultural conditions. The methodology of the study. The author has analyzed a number of works that address the problem raised. Special attention is paid to the description of research: - the study of the relationship between language and culture (O. V. Murashkina); - consideration of language as a broad differentiation of cultural archetypes (E. A. Baldanova, N. V. Dondokova, A. A. Sorokina, etc.); - disclosure of the connection between language and speech activity, mediating it through translation (Serishcheva T.V., Oleinikova E. A., Marangoz E.O., Tivaeva I.I., etc.); - consideration of linguistic the competence of the translator (D. A. Borisov, N. V. Zharenova, M. I. Sivokho, V. N. Shmakova, etc.). The analysis made it possible to clarify the content of the phenomena "linguistic and cultural competence of the translator", "formation of linguistic and cultural competence". The research methods were: - a dialectical method used to clarify the features of the formation of the linguistic and cultural competence of the translator; - a systematic method through which linguistic and cultural competence was revealed through the prism of relevant elements. The relevance of the study is due to the fact that, despite the importance of existing research on the specifics of language as a cultural component of various peoples of the world, on the one hand, and the existing difficulties that arise when trying to convey certain regional information through language, on the other hand, it can be unequivocally stated that there are a number of problems that need to be solved. The conducted research is an attempt to reveal the relationship of the language, the cultural heritage of the people with the constitution of translation and to identify the specifics of the formation of the linguistic and cultural competence of the translator for the implementation of high-quality translation. The scientific novelty of the research is as follows: - the author's understanding of the content and significance of the linguistic and cultural competence of the translator is revealed in order to ensure a common understanding of the language unit both directly by a native speaker and other communicants; - not only the structural elements that determine the linguistic and cultural competence of the translator (linguistic, technical, communicative), but also the aspects of their formation in within the framework of pedagogical activity. Style, structure, content. The style of presentation corresponds to publications of this level. The language of the work is scientific. The structure of the work is traced, the author highlights the main semantic parts. The logic in the work is presented. The content of the article meets the requirements for works of this level. The volume of work is sufficient, the author has disclosed the subject of the study. In the introductory part, the author defines the problem of research. The author notes that language reproduces a wide differentiation of cultural archetypes. The next section is devoted to a theoretical review and analysis of educational approaches. The author highlights the main approaches, clarifies the basic concepts, and defines the elements of the structure of the translator's linguistic and cultural competence. Special attention is paid to the description of: the skills of the structure of the linguistic and cultural competence of the translator, the characteristics of the stages of the translation process; the principles accompanying the process of forming the linguistic and cultural competence of the translator. In the final section, the author draws the main conclusions. The analysis made it possible to note that it is difficult to obtain and apply new knowledge of the communicant's language, taking into account the knowledge of the native language already available to the translator. However, this is necessary because it allows you to receive and adapt newly acquired knowledge. Bibliography. The bibliography of the article includes 20 domestic and foreign sources, most of which have been published in the last three years. The list includes mainly articles and abstracts. The sources are mostly designed correctly and uniformly. Appeal to opponents. Recommendations: 1) in the introduction, formulate the relevance and problem, the object and subject of the study; 2) formulate the main scientific results based on the results of the study in the conclusion of the article; highlight and describe in detail the recommendations; 3) bring uniformity to the design of the full names of scientists (for example, E. A. Baldanova, T. V. Serishcheva, etc.). Conclusions. The problems of the topic are of undoubted relevance, theoretical and practical value; it will be of interest to specialists who deal with the problems of forming the competence of translators. The article may be recommended for publication. However, it is important to take into account the highlighted recommendations, format the work and make appropriate changes. This will make it possible to submit scientific, methodological and research work to the editorial board, which is characterized by scientific novelty and practical significance.

Third Peer Review

The object of research in the work submitted for review is the linguistic and cultural competence of the translator, while the subject is actually the peculiarities of its formation. It should be noted at once that the subject of the study is somewhat vague, since it is not possible to unambiguously conclude which particular side of the pedagogical process is in the focus of attention. The relevance of the research is due to the fact that the translator appears to be one of those professions that artificial intelligence is most actively "advancing" in the digital age, capable from a functional point of view of qualitatively translating increasingly complex texts. In this regard, the issues of the development of non-functional qualities of the translator, which include linguistic and cultural competence, are of particular importance. From a methodological point of view, the article is purely theoretical. The experiment as the main practical pedagogical method is not implemented in the text. In general, the practical side of the issue is discussed at best indirectly, as will be discussed below. From a theoretical point of view, we note the good execution of the text, in which the author managed to compare the points of view of various scientists on the development of the competence under study. On this basis, in particular, its definition is formulated and structural and substantive characteristics are given, collectively claiming to be a holistic understanding in the methodological sense of the word. It is also positive that when referring to the authors, the specific content value of their works is indicated. From a linguistic point of view, the work was done in full accordance with the requirements of the scientific style. Taking into account the interdisciplinary nature of the problem, the article may be of interest to a very wide audience, both pedagogical and philological. The list of references meets the requirements from a substantive point of view and is reflected in the text of the work. There are a number of comments on the work, which are both methodological, structural, and substantive in nature. The peculiarities of the formation of the linguistic and cultural competence of the translator turned out to be both in the object and in the subject of the study. Perhaps this is a technical flaw. Based on the intent of the article, it is likely that the features are the subject of research. From the point of view of the formulation of the purpose of the study, the expression "to identify aspects" does not seem to be the most successful. Usually, something specific is subject to identification, at least the same features. In our opinion, "to describe the specifics" would look more advantageous. From a structural point of view, the practical part of the work is completely missing. At least at the design level, a description of educational activities aimed at developing the competence in question is expected in the pedagogical journal. Despite the fact that the features of the formation of the competence in question are the subject of research, they are not listed in a list, nor are they presented in any other traditionally accepted explicit form. This way, information about them is dissolved in the text, which complicates its perception. From a substantive point of view, linguistic terminology clearly dominates pedagogical terminology in the work. Although the stated topic is interdisciplinary, in fact the work was done in linguistics. In this regard, we would recommend that the editorial board consider transferring the article to a philological journal, where, in our opinion, it will look more organically. These remarks somewhat impoverish the article from the point of view of substantive value, but they do not negate either the relevance of the problem, or the understanding that the text is made at a high level of scholarship and generally meets the requirements traditionally imposed on publications of this kind. Thus, the manuscript can be published in a scientific journal.

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The Process of Forming a Translator's Linguistic and Cultural Competence