Importance of Context in Translation

    

A  language is way to see and understand the world. It is the vehicle of  our ideas, thoughts and perspectives of our world. However since human  being is essentially a social animal we perpetually interact with our  environment. This interaction with environment is a factor of time and  space. When and where we are interacting determines what actually we are  meaning. For example ‘March’ is an act as well as month. The meaning  depends on when, where and how.

Translation  is understood as an act of carrying the meaning of a text from one  language to another. This process involves interpretation of meaning of  the source text and producing the same meaning in another language. Text  however cannot exist out of context. By context what is meant is the  entire environment in which the word or sentence is expressed or stated.  So a translator has to go into the background of the text to understand  the text. Thus translator first de-contextualizes the original text and  re-contextualizes it for the target text. This forms a good  contextualized translation.

While seeking the context of a text there may be two categories of  factors that may influence the meaning of the text- linguistic context  or the situational context.

Linguistic  context cites the linguistic factors influencing the meaning of the  text. Any word in the text is not present in isolation but interacts  with other words in the text and with the whole text at large. This  interaction among words determines their meaning rather than its  isolated meaning. For example see the use of word ‘press’ in these  sentences.  A). press my shirt. B). I work in a press. C). press the  button.

Linguistic context too can either be immediate or remote. Immediate  context refers to the words or sentences that make the context evident  then and there through the whole text. Remote context pertains to  existence of word or sentence somewhere else. It may refer to author  using the word somewhere else or there may be special reasons to use  that word or phrase.

Situational context refers to the factors of situation and  circumstances influencing the meaning of a text. These factors are  little harder to be recognized than linguistic ones.  The situational  factors may pertain to the facial expressions, gestures and stances at  micro level and the social, political and economical milieu and the  culture at large. Conventions and the whole value system differ from one  culture and society to another. What is ‘right’ and what is ’wrong’  differs. Ideologies may also be a factor to refer to the context.

Language therefore should be considered a part of culture and  understood in its context. Translator must be giving over the top stress  to understand the context so as to produce a good contextualized translation.