Linguistic Theory and Translation Theory

Abstract

It is argued that translation theory, although a pivotal problem in general linguistic theory, is not merely a branch of applied linguistics. Translation must be studied & theorized on its own, by both practical translators & general linguists. A survey of the development of linguistic conceptions of translation emphasizes the fact that approaches to translation are closely parallel to the development of general linguistic theory: translation was mainly regarded as a contrastive study of languages at the time when linguistics focused exclusively on the description of linguistic structures. The recent development of theories of translation, centered on the message & on the dynamics of speech is contemporary with the new approaches of language that are centered on speech mechanisms. It is stressed that an operational theory of translation can be elaborated only if these components of the speech process are considered & if models of linguistic competences & models integrating nonlinguistic data are brought together. AA