Norms In Translation Studies

introduction

(This paper focuses on methods for investigating norms in translation research. A researcher’s method for investigating norms should correspond to his or her definition of what a norm is. For this reason I discuss in the first section translation researchers’ uptake of the concept of norm (before going on to examine methods of investigation). Because of my focus on method I consider only theorists who have also discussed methods of investigating norms. Interesting recent discussions of norms by authors such as Hermans (1996) and Simeoni (1998) have therefore been left aside with the exception of brief references to Hermans. Since the concept of norms is borrowed from sociology, I take up the ideas of various sociologists and anthropologists in the section on method, as well as discussing translation theorists. In the final section I come to a conclusion as to the consistency of translation theorists’ definitions of norms with their methods of investigation. )***should be modified

The concept of norms in translation theory was first mentioned by Ji ř í Levý (1969) and by Itamar Even-Zohar (1971), but has mainly been propagated by Gideon Toury and his followers since the late seventies.

Toury describes other norms:

1) Preliminary norms, which vary depending on translation policy, whether translation occurs, choice of text, and directness of translation.

2) Operational norms, which describe the presentation and linguistic nature of the TT. This involves matricial norms that refer to the TT as a whole, such as the addition of footnotes and passages, or the omission or relocation of passages; and textual-linguistic

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Toury, G. Descriptive Translation Studies – And Beyond. Philadelphia: John Benjamins, 1995

Chesterman, Andrew 1993 “From ‘Is’ to ‘Ought’: Laws, Norms and Strategies in Translation Studies”,Target 5:1,