Ecotranslation: Reinventing the Activist Role of the Translator

Newcastle

Congreso; International Conference of Translation and Interpreting Studies; 2015

Newcastle University

How and where are ecological values born? Which is the human perspective of the natural world and how is this conveyed through language? What is the role of the translator in constructing environmental thought? As a cultural construct, ecology is an interdisciplinary aspect of environmental studies, which have gradually pervaded and affected various (if not every) domain in culture over the past fifty years. This same period has witnessed the development of translation studies and their subsequent shift towards the cultural studies. Considering that translation is in itself the epitome of cultural transference, and it is thus a crucial discipline in the realm of ecological thought, this paper aims at looking into the complexities of transnational environmental relationships established by translation ? and its resulting work ? and exploring how established models can be torn down and rules can be rewritten through paradigm shifts generated through language. Our objectives arise from the fact that we have surveyed much literature where mistranslations have silenced the voice of nature. In turn, other works possessing great ecological value have been overlooked in history. We know that translation may facilitate or hamper communication, and we trust that the best way to continue building bridges is learning the engineering and the architecture of language: its structure and its beauty. However, we understand that over the past decades, translators have taken off the invisibility cloaks that used to shroud us. This liberation has come hand in hand with a certain political activism that some translators now display. We believe that uniting ecology and translation may contribute to foster debate on ecological issues, contribute to raise awareness on the task of the translator as an active maker of culture, and present a novel perspective on translation. This paper will revise three stances that eco-aware activist translators may take to ensure paradigm changes in society, changes that may well save our planet.