Professional Code of the Translator. Code of Professional Ethics for Translators

Every profession has its own moral standards and laws. professional conduct which cannot be violated. They do not always look like commandments, but, perhaps, they are always based on the foundations of Christian morality. There are such ethical standards and in professional activity translator. They gradually developed and developed in world practice and are the moral code of the modern representative of the profession that we are talking about. It will be useful for us to get acquainted with some of these rules:

A translator is a TRANSLATOR who "re-expresses" an oral or written text created in one language into a text in another language.

THE TEXT FOR THE TRANSLATOR IS INVIOLABLE. The translator does not have the right to voluntarily change the text during translation (reduce, expand), if additional terms not supplied by the customer.

When translating, the translator always strives to convey as much as possible the INVARIANT of the source text, i.e. translate from a foreign language all language units of the original text.

The translator is not obliged to translate language units in other languages. (If, for example, in German scientific text met quotes in Latin, English, French etc..). This is not part of the translator's tasks if he does not speak other languages.

The translator is obliged to maintain confidentiality (secrecy) in relation to the content of the translated material and not to disclose it unnecessarily.

The translator is obliged to ensure the highest possible level of proficiency in the original language, the target language, and the translation technique.

Requirements for the design of the written text are agreed in advance with the customer. It is always observed: the transfer of graphic information (the location of parts of the text, headings, subheadings) and the indication of the original pages.

The translator has the right to demand all the necessary conditions to ensure a high-quality translation (providing reference and other literature on the topic).

The translator is responsible for the quality of the translation, and if the translation is artistic or journalistic, he has a copyright on it, protected by law, and when publishing the translation, his name must be indicated.

Questions for self-control:

Why is it impossible to name the exact number of languages that exist on the globe?

How is an interpreter different from a written translator?

Explain the expression "translation as an activity".

What is the basis for the success of the translation profession?

What is background knowledge and what is its role for a translator?

Formulate at least a few basic rules of translation ethics.

Why do you think an interpreter's code of morals is needed?

Irina Sergeevna Alekseeva - Professor of the Russian State Pedagogical University named after Herzen, translator fiction, in 2004 awarded diploma Ministry of Education of the Russian Federation for a great contribution to the training of personnel, the development of education and science. I.S. Alekseeva compiled a kind of translator's code, which included the following points:

The translator is not an interlocutor or opponent of the client, but a translator who re-expresses an oral or written text created in one language into a text in another language.

It follows from this that the text is inviolable for the translator. The translator does not have the right, at will, to change the meaning and composition of the text during translation, shorten it or expand it, if the additional task of adaptation, selection, additions, etc. not supplied by the customer.

When translating, the translator, using professional actions known to him, always strives to convey to the maximum extent the invariant of the source text.

In some cases, in an environment of consecutive or simultaneous interpretation, the interpreter turns out to be a person who is also vested with diplomatic powers (for example, when translating the statements of major politicians in an environment of international contacts). If these diplomatic powers are recognized for the translator, he has the right to deviate from the accuracy of the source text, acting as an auxiliary person in supporting diplomatic relations, preventing their complication, but is not obliged to protect the interests of any one side.

In a situation of interpretation, the interpreter is obliged to observe the ethics of oral communication, respecting the freedom of the client's personality and not infringing on his dignity.

In other cases, the translator does not have the right to interfere in the relations of the parties, as well as to reveal his own position regarding the content of the translated text.

The translator is obliged to maintain confidentiality in relation to the content of the translated material and not to disclose it unnecessarily.

The translator does not have the right to react emotionally to individual defects in the speaker's speech and should not reproduce them; he is guided in interpretation by the oral version of the literary norm of the target language.

The translator is obliged, by means known to him, to ensure a high level of competence in the areas of the original language, the target language, the translation technique and the subject matter of the text. The translator is obliged to immediately signal about his lack of competence, and to correct the mistakes noticed behind him, and not to hide; This is a guarantee of the high quality of the translation and the trust of others in it.

The translator has the right to demand all the necessary conditions to ensure a high level of translation competence, including the appropriate working conditions (in case of interpreting - the reliability of the broadcasting equipment, if necessary - reducing the tempo of the speaker's speech; in case of synchronous - providing the speakers' speeches the day before, pauses in work for recreation, etc.; in case of writing - providing reference and other literature on the topic).

AT written translation the translator is obliged to comply with the rules for its design, ensuring the correct attitude towards the customer [Alekseeva, 2008, p. 347].

A code of ethics exists in various professions. It must be followed by doctors, lawyers, and other professions whose mistakes can cost their clients dearly. AT certain areas honor codes are more stringent than others. There is also a code of ethics in translation activities, however, there is no fixed list of norms of behavior for translators.

The article was prepared by the interpreting agency http://ustno-perevod.ru/

We can say that the code of ethics in the field of translation is a set of moral principles and rules that translators should be guided by in their professional behavior. Various organizations companies in need of translation services, or translation agencies or associations often develop their own code of ethics for translators. In some cases, translators sign such a document when they are hired or hired.

Despite the fact that there is no single code, basically all sets of rules for translators are similar. The most common fundamental principles are the following.

Accuracy. The translator or interpreter is obliged to accurately and completely convey the original messages, without omitting or adding anything to what was said, taking into account the linguistic features of both the original language and the target language, while maintaining the tone and character of the original message.
Courtesy (susceptibility to another culture). The translator must be culturally competent, receptive to other cultures, and must treat the people he or for whom he is translating with respect.
Confidentiality. The translator must not disclose any information revealed during the translation process, including, but not limited to, data obtained through access to documents and other written materials.
Disclosure. A translator must not publicly discuss, communicate or express his own opinion about the subject matter of a translation that he is performing or has performed in the past, even if such information is not considered confidential by law.
Non-discrimination. The interpreter is obliged to behave neutrally, impartially and impartially in any situation. The interpreter must not support a policy of discrimination based on gender, handicap, race, color, national origin, age, socioeconomic or educational status, religious or political beliefs.
Providing information about your qualifications. The translator is obliged to provide complete and accurate data regarding his qualifications, vocational training and work experience.
Impartiality (conflict of interest). The translator is obliged to report any actual or potential conflict of interest that may affect the objectivity of his actions in the course of providing translation services. Providing interpretation or translation services for family members or friends may involve a breach of privacy or a conflict of interest.
professional conduct. The interpreter is required to be punctual, properly prepared, and to come in suitable clothing appropriate to the working situation.
Compliance with the scope of authority. The translator must not give advice, recommendations or express his own opinion to the people whom or for whom he translates, as well as engage in other activities that may be regarded as services that are not related to translation activities.
Informing about the obstacle to the implementation of the transfer. In each situation, the translator is obliged to evaluate his abilities to perform a particular translation. In case of doubts about his competence, he must immediately inform the parties about this and refuse to participate in the translation. In such a situation, the translator may continue translating until a more competent translator is found.
Development of professional skills. The translator must develop his skills and expand his knowledge, namely to gain experience, continue learning and interact with colleagues and specialists from related fields.

If the organization has its own code of ethics, signed by translators, then in case of its violation, the contract with the employee may be terminated.

Representatives of any profession have their own norms and rules of conduct. With the help of these norms and rules, the profession asserts its place in society, and society, for its part, influences the ethics of the profession. In any profession there are moral norms and laws of professional behavior that cannot be violated. The translation profession is no exception. Such well-known translators as P. Palazhchenko, A. Chuzhakin, G. Miram, A. Pago, I. S. Alekseeva, R. K. Minyar Beloruchev dealt with the issues of the ethics of the translator.

The ethics of a translator, according to I.S. Alekseeva, “includes moral principles (moral code), norms of professional behavior, requirements for professional suitability, a firm knowledge of the translator’s legal status, acquaintance with technical support translation".

Moral principles suggest the following:

The need to transfer up to 80 percent of the information of the source text. The translator is not an interlocutor or opponent of the client, but a translator who re-expresses an oral or written text created in one language into a text in another language. It follows from this that the text is inviolable for the translator. The translator does not have the right, at will, to change the meaning and composition of the text during translation, shorten it or expand it, if the additional task of adaptation, selection, additions, etc. is not set by the customer.

The translator, with the help of professional actions known to him, always strives to convey the invariant of the source text to the maximum extent, focusing on the functional dominants of the original.

In a situation of translation, the interpreter is obliged to observe the ethics of oral communication, respecting the freedom of the client's personality and not infringing on his dignity.

In some cases, in an environment of oral consecutive or simultaneous translation, the interpreter turns out to be a person who is also vested with diplomatic powers (for example, when translating the statements of major politicians in an environment of international contacts). If these diplomatic powers are recognized for the translator, he has the right to sin against the accuracy of the source text, performing the function of an auxiliary person in supporting diplomatic relations, preventing their complication, but is not obliged to protect the interests of any one side. In other cases, the translator does not have the right to interfere in the relations of the parties, as well as to reveal his own position regarding the content of the translated text.

The translator is obliged to take care of his health, since the quality of the translation depends on his physical condition.

The translator is obliged to immediately signal about his lack of competence, and to correct the mistakes noticed behind him, and not to hide; This is a guarantee of the high quality of the translation and the confidence of others in it.

In written translation, the translator is obliged to follow the rules for its execution, ensuring a correct attitude towards the customer.

In necessary cases, the translator is obliged to maintain confidentiality in relation to the content of the translated text and not to disclose it unnecessarily.

The translator's ethics also includes the requirements of professional suitability - certain psychological qualities that meet professional requirements. By professional suitability, I.S. Alekseeva understands “the natural prerequisites for the implementation of this activity, including the psychological attitude. Professional requirements are a broader concept; along with professional suitability, they include necessary set skills and abilities".

Among the qualities that determine professional suitability, she names speech reactivity, good memory, switchability, mental stability, contact, intelligence.

Speech reactivity is the ability to quickly perceive someone else's speech and quickly generate your own. If this ability is given to a person by nature, in any case it must be systematized and developed further. This ability is essential for interpreting.

Memory is also necessary quality translator. A translator needs a professionally organized flexible memory that allows, on the one hand, to absorb a large amount of information and, on the other hand, to quickly forget the unnecessary. Long-term memory should be distinguished by the ability to accommodate a much larger (compared to memory ordinary person speaking a foreign language) the amount of vocabulary in the active stock, both in the native and in the foreign language. RAM characterized by the ability to remember briefly large quantity language units than the memory of an ordinary person.

Switchability is the ability to quickly move from one activity to another. Translation requires a specific kind of switchability from one language to another, from digital to verbal coding. The initial predisposition to quick switching should develop in the translator into a stable skill of the ability to switch in the field of language.

The author puts mental stability in the first place among the qualities of professional suitability, since both forced long speaking, and inevitably frequent switching, and an increased speed of speech, and the need to follow only other people's thoughts for a whole day, not allowing one's own - all this leads to to mental stress.

Contact, i.e., the desire to communicate with other people, is also considered a necessary quality for a translator. It's about about a conscious psychological attitude to contact. The translator must be well aware that he is an expert not only in the language, but also in the culture of two or more peoples and countries at once, and actively contribute to establishing contact between the parties.

Next professional quality What a translator must possess is intelligence. Here, I.S. Alekseeva does not mean encyclopedic education, but liveliness and a creative mindset that allows her to apply her extensive knowledge at the right time. A good education, breadth of interests and active self-education are of great importance.

Under the professional requirements, I.S. Alekseeva assumes the following:

1. An interpreter must have a professional voice and be able to use it, as well as know how to restore the voice in case of overstrain.

2. Indispensable professional requirement is pure diction, the absence of speech defects.

3. Mandatory knowledge of translation techniques. These include: mnemonics (memorization techniques); the ability to switch to different types of coding; the skill of speech compression and speech deployment; application skill complex species transformations of descriptive translation, generalization, antonymic translation, compensation.

4. The translator needs the ability to use dictionaries and other sources of information.

5. Possession of translation notation, or abbreviated notation, is desirable.

6. The translator must have knowledge foreign language at a level close to bilingualism, as well as knowledge of the culture of the people speaking this language, i.e. have background knowledge.

7. No less important condition The success of his professional activity is the active possession of the main speech genres and the main types of text both in his native and in a foreign language.

8. The translator is obliged to constantly replenish the active vocabulary in both languages.

The translator must also be able to use various equipment that serves his activity, i.e. be familiar with the technical support of translation - the operation of audio and video equipment, a computer, etc.

The work of an interpreter is carried out according to his legal and social status. This means that the content of its activities is always pre-specified and fixed in contracts, agreements and job descriptions.

Chapter 1 Conclusions

Translation is an activity that consists in variative re-expression, re-decoding of a text generated in one language into a text in another language, carried out by a translator who creatively chooses an option depending on the resources of the language, the type of translation, the tasks of translation, the type of text and under the influence of his own individuality.

Translation competence is the knowledge, skills and abilities of a translator, the totality of which allows him to successfully carry out his professional activities.

Translation competence consists of the main (basic) and additional (pragmatic) components.

Basic part translation competence includes linguistic and communicative competence, additional - translation techniques and personal characteristics of the translator.

Communicative competence includes background knowledge necessary for a translator and consists in mastering the socio-cultural concepts and phenomena of another people.

Professional ethics and moral qualities of a translator are necessary conditions for the implementation of translation activities.

We present to the general public the second edition "Code of Ethics for Translators".

Recall that work on the code has been underway since 2013 within the framework of an expert group organized in 2012 to prepare a round table on the interaction of freelancers and translation agencies at TRF-2012 in Kazan. AT further forces groups were prepared Guidelines on conclusion of contracts between translators and customers” and a round table was held in Krasnaya Polyana at TRF-2013.

First edition ethical code was presented in 2014 at TFR-2014 (Yekaterinburg). In the months since that event, a Facebook group has been set up, which has become a forum for discussion on topics related to specific points in the code and to the ethics of the translation community as a whole. We are also closely following discussions containing elements of ethics in other groups and on other pages of this social network, we consider and analyze all useful proposals within the framework of our expert group. Our mission is not to express our personal opinion through the code, but to collect and accumulate in this document common sense and ethical concepts inherent in a healthy community.

Initially, it was supposed to prepare the final text of the document for TFR-2015. However, in order to expand the base of the code and more actively involve representatives of large, small and medium-sized translation companies in its discussion, it was decided to postpone the presentation of the final version of the EC until the next meeting of the Moscow Translation Club.

It seems that now, when the text is almost ready, the time has come to think about the introduction of the ethical principles into daily practice.

A small digression is appropriate here: of course, no one can force any member of the translation community to comply with this code. The Code is not legally binding, and the translation community is diverse in composition. Our goal has been to offer industry peers a tool of engagement that we hope will be found useful and will gradually be universally adopted. At the upcoming stage, it seems logical to work out the provisions of the code on the so-called "cases". Working with impersonal cases will allow you to achieve the required level of neutrality, rise above personal relationships and understand in which situations the provisions of the code will work, and where additions or adjustments are required. This useful process is expected to begin at TFR-2015 and then continue through the Facebook group and also on the Codex website that we are pleased to present to you: www.