2. The Role of a Translator
The recipient and sender need
a mediator in communication
TRANSLATOR:
One who mediates
between two cultures

3. Functionalist Theory
Translation depends on the function
and purpose that is involved in the text
(encargo de traducción):
Would it be the same to translate a text
addressed to children, adults, religious or
secular people?
Would it matter the medium in which the text
is going to be published; for example in a
brochure or in a newspaper ?

4. For Nord, the culture is the most important
aspect in translation; it is even more
important than language
It determines the way
we understand
each other
If the translator does not know the
cultural codes of a country it would
be better not to translate at all

5. Culture in traslation
«Comparative textual competence»

6. Parallel texts
According to Nord, the process of translation
is to produce a text in a target language from
a source language (the original text)
The translator must know sufficient cultural
and linguistic knowledge about both cultures
If the translator lacks this knowledge he must
get acquainted with it by means of research

7. In the translation process the translator
should have:
1. The ability of abstraction
2. The ability of decision
3. The ability of transfer
4. The ability of criticism
These abilities are needed to learn how to
translate adequately

8. The translator also has to gain some
knowledge and learn some techniques
throughout the translation process:
 Vocabulary: idioms, colloquialisms
 Syntactic and grammatical structures: if the
translator does not see concordance in the
sentences; between nouns or adjectives
 Shortcomings in the thematic competence: the
translator does not have a lot of objective
knowledge to understand the message of the
original text
 Vocabulary: morphology, collocations,
terminology

9. Equivalence versus Adequacy
The translator is the first recipient
of the text (source text)
He produces the text taking into account sociocultural
codes of that culture (meta audience)
Adequacy comes when a translator
produces a piece of information suitable
to the communicative purposes

10. Bibliography
Nicole Saffie, (abril, 2010). Académica resalta la importancia de la
cultura en la traducción. Pontifica Universidad Católica de Chile,
retrieved from
http://www6.uc.cl/comunicaciones/site/artic/20100416/pags/201004162
14256.php
Nord, Christiane. «La intertextualidad como herramienta en el proceso
de traducción». Puentes. N° 9 (2010): 9-18