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2010/1 Module Catalogue
 Module Code: TRA3019 Module Title: TRANSLATION OF PERSUASIVE TEXTS
Module Provider: Language & Translation Studies Short Name: CTS359A
Level: HE3 Module Co-ordinator: ASIMAKOULAS D Dr (Lang & Trans)
Number of credits: 10 Number of ECTS credits: 5
 
Module Availability

Semester 1
Assessment Pattern

Unit(s) of Assessment
Weighting Towards Module Mark( %)
1 essay (1500 words): commentary on a selected text from a translation effectiveness angle, discussing potential problems and practical issues in the preferred language pair;
50%
1 essay (1500 words): exploring a specific aspect of persuasion in translation with example(s).
50%

Qualifying Condition(s)
A weighted aggregate mark of 40% is required to pass the module.

Module Overview

This module focuses on the specificities of operative text types and the ways in which their persuasive thrust can be retained in translation. Drawing on examples from the areas of advertising, this module offers students the opportunity to hone their (con)textual analysis skills that are crucial for felicitous translation decisions.
The module is suitable for students with different language backgrounds.

Prerequisites/Co-requisites

HE2 or European university equivalent or equivalent language competence.
Module Aims

This module is designed to offer students an overview of issues of discursive organisation in texts whose aim is to alter the cognitive environment and behaviour of recipients. The central question addressed is the way in which information can be (re)framed or (totally) recontextualised in order to secure a similar/equivalent response on the part of the TL addressees. Throughout the semester, the analytical usefulness of various conceptual tools will be examined from the angle of creativity and problem-solving.

Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of this module, students will have:
  • a knowledge and understanding of the hybridity of text purposes and the persuasive function of segments in seemingly uniform texts;
  • a knowledge of the basic principles of how discourse is organised both in terms of content and form;
  • an awareness of the strategic interaction of pictorial and linguistic elements;
  • an awareness of wider contextualisation issues, ranging from linguistic/cognitive cues to the cultural specificities underpinning instances of the given text type;
  • the ability to practise problem-solving and priority-setting skills which will be useful for their future employment in the translation world.
Module Content
  • Introduction to key concepts pertaining to pragmatic and semiotic aspects in translation;
  • Practice in applying these concepts to their respective source text-target text language pairs; practical ST analysis exercises;
  • Exploration of the transformative synthesis of micro-level features, macro-level organisation and pictorial elements in specific samples;
  • Integration of cultural considerations and aspects of rhetorical organisation in translation;
  • Audience design;
  • Exploration of issues pertaining to inference and emotion manipulation.
Methods of Teaching/Learning

2 hours per week for 1 semester: 20-22 hours’ class contact over the semester. Interactive language seminars (in English) including practical tasks; lesson materials will focus on translating into or from English, so they will be accessible to students of varied language backgrounds.
Selected Texts/Journals
Passages for analysis and relevant case-studies are provided by the lecturer.
 
Main works:
Adab, Beverly and Christina Valdés (eds) (2004) The Translator Special Issue: Key Debates in the Translation of Advertising Material 10(2).
Anderman, Gunilla and Margaret Rogers (eds) Word, Text, Translation. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.
Cook, Guy (2001) Discourse of Advertising. Florence, KY, USA: Routledge.
Forceville, Charles (1996) Pictorial Metaphor in Advertising. London: Routledge.
Gorlée, Dinda (1994) Semiotics and the Problem of Translation. With Special Reference to the Semiotics of Charles S. Peirce. Amsterdam: Rodopi.
Gutt, Ernst-August (2000) Translation and Relevance: Cognition and Context. Manchester: St. Jerome Publishing.
Hatim, Basil and Ian Mason (1990) Discourse and the Translator, London and New York: Longman.
Hatim, Basil and Ian Mason (1997) The Translator as Communicator, London and New York: Longman.
Kress, Gunther and Theo van Leeuwen (1996) Reading Images. The Grammar of Visual Design. London and New York: Routledge.
Kress, Gunther (2001) Multimodal Discourse: The Modes and Media of Contemporary Communication. London: Arnold.
Leech, Geoffrey N. (1966) English in Advertising: a Linguistic Study of Advertisement in Great Britain. Harlow: Longman.
Tanaka, Keiko (1994) Advertising Language. A Pragmatic Approach to Advertisements in Britain and Japan. London and New York: Routledge.
 
Suggested reference works/journals:

 Babel - Target– Perspectives/Studies in Translatology - Meta – The Translator - Journal of Pragmatics – Communication Studies- Journal of Advertising Research - Journal of Marketing - Journal of Consumer Research
Last Updated

06.08.09