Courtroom interpreting

Title:

Author:

Mason, Marianne.

ISBN:

9780761840732

Personal Author:

Mason, Marianne.

Publication Information:

Lanham, Md. : University Press of America, c2008

Physical Description:

xv, 175 p. ; 23 cm.

Abstract:

Discusses the key role of the courtroom interpreter in the outcomes of trials involving non-English speaking defendants, witnesses, or plantiffs, and explores the question of why interpreters add to and omit from the original linguistic content.

Contents:

Introduction -- A journey into courtroom interpreting: fieldwork procedures -- A linguistic and cognitive view of interpreter-induced errors -- Counteracting the effects of cognitive overload: the interpreters' use of interruptions and semiconsecutive interpreting -- On using note taking in the bilingual courtroom -- Gender differences in management of cognitive overload -- Conclusions.

Subject Term:

Court interpreting and translating -- United States.

Culture and law.

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Library	Material Type	Call Number	Status	Item Holds
Searching... Aurora Downtown	Book	KF8725 .M37 2008	Searching... Unknown	Searching... Unavailable

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Summary

In Courtroom Interpreting , Marianne Mason offers a new perspective in the study of courtroom interpreting through the exploration of cognitive and linguistic barriers that court interpreters face everyday and ultimately result in an interpreter's deviation from original linguistic content. The quality of an interpreter's rendition plays a key role in how well a non-English speaking defendant's legal rights are served. Interpreters are expected to provide a faithful rendition of all semantic, syntactic, and pragmatic content regardless of how difficult the task may be at a cognitive level. From a legal perspective this expectation may be sound as it disregards the cost associated with the interpreter having to account for a great deal of linguistic content. Mason proposes that if the quality of interpreters' renditions is to improve and the rights of non-English speaking minorities is to be better served the issue of cognitive overload needs to be addressed more effectively by the court interpreting community.

List of Tables	p. ix
Foreword	p. xi
Preface	p. xiii
Acknowledgements	p. xv
1 Introduction	p. 1
The Legal History of Courtroom Interpreting in the United States: Addressing a Human-Rights Issue
The Enactment of the Court Interpreters Act of 1978
The Responsibilities of the Legal Interpreter
Cognitive Factors: The Conflict between the Abilities and Responsibilities of a Courtroom Interpreter
The Purpose and Goals of the Study
Overview of Chapters
2 A Journey into Courtroom Interpreting: Fieldwork Procedures	p. 13
Fieldwork
The Nature of the Data
The Interpreters
The Transcription of the Data
A Note on Transcript Conventions
3 A Linguistic and Cognitive View of Interpreter-Induced Errors	p. 19
Turn Length and Interpreter-Induced Errors
Syntax
Meaning
Intent
Examining Cognitive Overload: The True Relationship between Linguistic Variables and Turn Length
Summary
4 Counteracting the Effects of Cognitive Overload: The Interpreters' Use of Interruptions and Semiconsecutive Interpreting	p. 41
The Effect of Interruptions in the Bilingual Courtroom
The Cost of Interrupting the Witness: A Look at the Numbers
Other Possible Costs Associated with Interruptions: An Examination of Jurors' Evaluation of Interpreters Who Interrupt
Semiconsecutive Interpreting and Its Linguistic Representation in the Data
The Potential Costs or Benefits of Semiconsecutive Interpreting
The Limitations of Semiconsecutive Interpreting: An Issue of Power
Summary
5 On Using Note Taking in the Bilingual Courtroom	p. 61
Gile's Effort Model of Consecutive Interpretation
The Effectiveness of Note Taking in Consecutive Interpretation
Note Taking in the Bilingual Courtroom: Possible Uses and Applications
Training Suggestions: A Look at a Group of Courtroom Interpreters
Note Taking for Courtroom Interpreters: Some Suggestions
Note Taking in the Bilingual Courtroom: The Need for Future Study
Summary
6 Gender Differences in the Management of Cognitive Overload	p. 75
The Linguistic Study of Gender
Cognitive Functioning, Linguistic Skills, and Gender
Gender and Turn Length: Similarities or Differences
Gender Differences in Courtroom Interpreting: The Female Interpreter's Perspective
The Male Interpreter's Perspective
The Training of Courtroom Interpreters: Considering the Effects of Gender on the
Examination Process
Summary
7 Conclusions	p. 95
The Implications of the Findings: A Summary
Appendixes	p. 101
Bibliography	p. 163
Index	p. 171
About the Author	p. 175

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Table of Contents