Translation and PoliticsLinguistic strategies in political discourse

What we assume

“It is assumed that another text, source-text, exists and that this has been used as a starting point in the production of the translation, the target text” (Schjoldager 2008: 18).

“It is assumed that certain features in the source text have been transferred from the source text to the target text” (Schjoldager 2008: 18)

“It is assumed that the source and target texts share certain features that can be ascertained in a comparison between the two” (Schjoldager 2008: 18).

What is ‘politics’ ?

Social relationships dealing with the distribution of power, the act of governing and/or the use of authority.

PoliticsThe Personal is the Political

Political Rhetoric

Persuasive speech intervening in political discourses.

Narrowly, speech (or writing, of course) on overtly political themes.

Broadly, the way language influences power relationships.

What is this language attempting?

‘My fellow citizens.’

We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus, and non-believers. We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this Earth.

Lincoln’s Second Inaugural

Neither party expected for the war the magnitude or the duration which it has already attained. Neither anticipated that the cause of the conflict might cease with or even before the conflict itself should cease. Each looked for an easier triumph, and a result less fundamental and astounding. Both read the same Bible and pray to the same God, and each invokes His aid against the other.

Rules of 3 – Back to Obama

That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age. Homes have been lost, jobs shed, businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly, our schools fail too many, and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.

Weighted Language

A euphemism is a substituted for another word when there is a constraint on being explicit for fear of causing offence or distress.

Dyseuphemisms do the opposite – they are words used to highlight the gritty details, often for shock value.

Both are used for political purposes.

Euphemism and Dyseuphemism

Weighted Language

Girlfriend, Partner, Wife, Companion, Lover, Friend, Roommate, Mrs. Miss, Ms

African-American, Black, Colored, Person of Color, Negro

Binders of Women!

What to do?

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