Viva Translations Essay Example for Free

Viva Translations Essay For example, Translators without Borders is listed as Ð ° partner, together with Viva Translations in Lisbon and Eulogia (currently Ð ° dead link), on the Eurotexte site. Similarly, the Translators without Borders site features Ð ° link to Eurotexte on the main page and, after outlining the groups services to several humanitarian organizations, informs us that many Eurotexte translators and staff volunteer their time for these important translation jobs so that translations can be provided free to humanitarian NGOs. The narrative of Translators without Borders is also structurally incoherent in another respect, as Ð ° consequence of its dependence on and overlap with the Eurotexte narrative. Translators without Borders, listed under the rubric â€Å"Success Stories† on the Eurotexte site, espouse humanitarian and political ideals that are arguably at odds with Eurotexte practices. Lori Thicke, managing director of Eurotexte and founder of Translators Without Borders, addresses these ideals in an undated speech to the Italian Federation of Translation Companies, which she begins with Ð ° powerful reminder of the atrocities committed in Chechnya, Palestine, and Kosovo. Ð  man in Chechnya says, Ð  ground-to-ground missile killed my two sons in the market in Grozny. They werent fighters-they were just there to buy some jeans. The Palestinian girl who at first is too afraid to talk to the visitors, whispers, І dont think were going to come out of this alive. on Ð ° forced March to the border Ð ° mother in Kosovo cries as the soldier takes aim, Not him, hes not even 15! Thicke goes on to ask, If theres no money for translations, who will tell their stories? This is Ð ° valid question and an admirable call for intervention. Yet at the same time the Eurotexte site proudly lists among its top clients numerous companies that are directly or indirectly implicated in the very atrocities that communities like Translators without Borders are meant to be bringing to our attention. These include General Electric, the subject of an intense boycott campaign by various peace groups between 1986 and 1993 because of its involvement in the production and sale of nuclear weapons. As Ð ° major U. S. defense contractor, it is now back on the boycott lists of several anti-war groups. Similar criticisms could be leveled at other clients that Eurotexte proudly lists on its site, including Loreal, as well as its subsidiary Lancome. Apart from its dismal record on animal testing, Loreal established Israel as its commercial center in the Middle East in 1995 and in 1998 received Israels Jubilee Award, for organizations who have done most to strengthen the Israeli economy. Loreal is on the boycott lists of various solidarity groups set up precisely to respond to the kind of fear and oppression opposed by the humanitarian organizations that are served by Translators without Borders. At best, then, Eurotexte/ Translators Without Borders may be accused of taking only Ð ° superficial interest in the plight of the groups it presumes to defend and of failing to look into the wider context of the tragedies it purports to oppose. At worst Eurotexte knowingly and cynically exploits both oppressor and oppressed to further its own commercial success. In Fishers framework, fidelity ultimately ranks higher than coherence. Structural incoherence of the type outlined above in the narrative of Translators Without Borders can in principle be explained and even justified from the perspective of narrative fidelity. Narrative fidelity, as І explained earlier, allows us to test Ð ° story in relation to its reasons as well as the values it promotes In terms of reasons, one could argue that Eurotexte has not misrepresented its links with Translators without Borders and has not sought to mislead by omitting facts about how the two organizations relate to each other. Eurotexte can only gain by its links with Translators without Borders; thus, the reasons for its particular narrative being what it is is logical and justified. For Eurotexte, doing good comes at Ð ° price; the ability to use Translators Without Borders as Ð ° selling point at the same time as keeping its own operation focused on making money ensures that translators without borders can continue to enjoy Ð ° stable platform at the same time that Eurotexte can continue its associations with clients like General Electric and Loreal. In her speech cited above, Thicke explicitly maintains this duality, stating, I’m sure І dont have to convince you of the importance of humanitarian work. If you didnt believe in it, you wouldnt be here today. But were in business. We all need to make money. Good works are often Ð ° luxury we cant afford. or can us? The great news І have for you today is that good works not only help the world: they can also be good for business. Much as І believe in good works, I’m Ð ° businesswoman, through and through Apart from indirectly securing Ð ° financial basis for its activities by promoting its sponsor as Ð ° responsible agency, however, it is not obvious how the aims of Translators Without Borders are served by being commoditized to enhance the image of Eurotexte. It is this element of the commoditization of the humanitarian work of the group that undermines the narrative of Translators without Borders, particularly in light of Fishers fidelity principles. Here, we ask what kind of worldview is promoted by the narrative under examination and what cultural values it directly or indirectly gives credence to.