FOREIGN LANGUAGES APPLIED TO TRANSLATION AND INTERPRETING AS LANGUAGES FOR SPECIFIC PURPOSES: CLAIMS AND IMPLICATIONS

RLA. Revista de Lingüística Teórica y Aplicada Concepción (Chile), 59 (1), I Sem. 2021, pp. 39-62. ISSN 0033-698X (impresa) ISSN 0718-4883 (on-line) https://doi.org/10.29393/RLA59-2FLRC10002 FOREIGN LANGUAGES APPLIED TO TRANSLATION AND INTERPRETING AS LANGUAGES FOR SPECIFIC PURPOSES: CLAIMS AND IMPLICATIONS1 LENGUAS EXTRANJERAS APLICADAS A LA TRADUCCIÓN E INTERPRETACIÓN COMO LENGUAS PARA FINES ESPECÍFICOS: REIVINDICACIONES E IMPLICACIONES RICHARD CLOUET Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria ABSTRACT The purpose of this article is to provide the necessary background to strongly claim that foreign languages in translation and interpreting studies must be considered languages for specific purposes, as their teaching implies choosing a differentiated course design, selecting different material, and taking into account students’ needs and both students and teachers’ characteristics. Even though there is a certain logic in separating the criteria of language acquisition from those of translator training, it has become obvious over the years that translator trainees need to develop language competencies that are relevant to their future areas of specialisation, hence the need for teachers to adopt a goal-directed approach aimed at preparing students for their future profession. The study also advocates for the necessity of overlapping between language and translation teaching, consequently affecting the way foreign language and translation subjects should be taught, both being complementary to increase our students’ competence, autonomy, motivation, and critical thinking. Keywords: Foreign languages, translation, interpreting, LSP, competence, needs analysis. RESUMEN El propósito de este artículo es proporcionar las premisas necesarias que permitan afirmar 1 This article is part of the ongoing research carried out within the research group FLETATIS (Foreign Language Education Through Applied Technologies and Intercultural Sensitivity) funded by the Department of Modern Philology, Translation and Interpreting of the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain. 39 RLA. Revista de Lingüística Teórica y Aplicada, 59 (1), I Sem. 2021 de modo fundamentado que las lenguas extranjeras en los estudios de traducción e interpretación deben considerarse lenguas para fines específicos, ya que, en estos estudios, el proceso de enseñanza y aprendizaje exige un diseño curricular específico y diferenciado, derivado de un análisis de las necesidades y características tanto de estudiantes como de profesores, lo que implica la selección de un material docente particular. A pesar de que subyace una cierta lógica cuando se separan los criterios relativos a la adquisición de lenguas de los propios de la formación en traducción, a lo largo de los años se ha hecho evidente que los estudiantes de traducción necesitan desarrollar competencias lingüísticas que sean relevantes para sus futuras áreas de especialización, de ahí la necesidad de que los profesores enfoquen sus objetivos hacia la preparación profesional de los aprendices. Este estudio aboga también por una necesidad de solapamiento entre la enseñanza de lenguas y la enseñanza de la traducción, lo cual afecta a la forma en que se deben enseñar tanto las asignaturas de lenguas extranjeras como las asignaturas de traducción. Consideramos que ambas materias deben ser complementarias si se pretende incrementar el nivel de competencia, la autonomía, la motivación y el pensamiento crítico de los estudiantes. Palabras clave: Lenguas extranjeras, traducción, interpretación, LFE, competencia, análisis de necesidades. Recibido: 26/03/2020. Aceptado: 23/04/2021. 1. INTRODUCTION T eaching practice, whatever the scope in which it is developed, firstly requires a clear delimitation of the subject to be taught, as well as the scientific and methodological framework to understand the way in which efficient teaching should be performed. Just like students need a solid theoretical and practical foundation in translation in order to successfully practise as competent translators, foreign language teachers also need a sound base of theoretical knowledge upon which they can build their practice. In this regard, it is evident that a single subject of study, such as any foreign language, may be addressed from different perspectives according to the aims to be achieved through teaching (Cerezo, 2020). This is why we can speak of ‘languages for translators’ as a reality that presents its own specificities, and which must be defined in order to construct the direction and focus of the teaching activity using this premise. This particularity arises when considering the profile of future graduates, notably the specific needs of their professional activity. As is widely known, if, during the comprehension stage of the original text, translators develop a semasiological activity – in other words, the thorough analysis of the textual components that will allow them to interpret the overall meaning of the text –, during the expression stage, conversely, their activity is onomasiological (Neşu, 2015), and the aim is to seek equivalents that re-convey the content and style of the original text in the target language (García, 1983). 40 Foreign languages applied to translation and interpreting as languages for specific purposes: claims and... / Richard Clouet Success will only be achieved in this operation if the translation professional is capable of expertly overcoming the difficulties presented during both stages. For this reason, it is essential that university teaching be aimed specifically at developing the skills necessary to prevent failure. Thus, foreign language teaching for translators must be designed in consideration of a practical purpose, such as ensuring that students are capable of creating coherent texts that also possess the same value, or in other words, texts that efficiently fulfil the same function as the original text. This means that, apart from having an excellent knowledge of the linguistic instrument, students must have the necessary instruments to resolve any issue related to constructing texts in the target language (Bernardini, 2016; Molés-Cases, 2016), which also involves mastery of the cultural specificity of the community at which the translated text is aimed. 2. PRELIMINARY DEFINITIONS 2.1. Translation and linguistics Thirty-five years ago, when translation studies were in their early years, Delisle (1984) explained in quite an illustrative way that translation studies should aim at teaching use of the language, more than focusing on the theoretical description of linguistic systems (Cerezo, 2020). Indeed, this practical aim of teaching does not only set the guidelines delimiting the subject of study, the teaching methodology and the way linguistic disciplines should be addressed within the theoretical framework of the teaching activity. It also implies an analytical approach that is different from that adopted in more t (...truncated)