FEMINIST TRANSLATION AND INTERPRETING – A COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE

Abstract

Traditional research on feminist translation practices has focused on conflict and thus has had a discouraging effect on young professionals interested in feminist approaches. Logically, academic studies tend to focus on what is exceptional and leave out of their research endeavours the ordinary events of professional translation and interpreting life. While it is true that translating from a feminist perspective implies an ethical stand that might clash with some structures in the translation and interpreting industry, it is also true that little academic attention has been paid to the positive aspects of being a feminist translator. Anecdotal evidence shows that having a feminist approach to translation and interpreting can be perceived as increased professionalism by clients and provide a competitive edge to some translators and interpreters. This article focuses on the advantages of feminist translation and interpretation and how ethical approaches can become an important springboard for an improved professional career. I will be drawing from a sound theoretical framework and from my own personal experiences to redefine the stakes of feminist translation and interpretation. In order to do that, I will fist address the way professionalism has been defined from a patriarchal perspective as detachment and how professional practice, however, involves a politics of engagement. Clients and employers emphasize the need to have an engaged partner, especially when it comes to communication. Likewise, clearly specifying one’s professional boundaries and aspects of interest help translators and interpreters find a perfect fit with their potential clients. Both actors in the private market (for example, feminist presses or gender-sensitive companies) and in institutions increasingly value an ethical approach to the work and a deep understanding of aspects that have to do with, for example, gender neutral language uses, respectfully addressing their customers or establishing links to a specific feminist audience. Thus, while the professional field is still quite conservative, young professionals need to also understand a feminist approach to translation as a positive asset not only in terms of the market, but also in the ways a feminist background provides tools to struggle for better payment, better working conditions, a harassment-free working environment and to cooperate with others in common endeavours. All these aspects are key in the present translation and interpreting field, both inside and outside academia.