Is it the translator’s task to focus primarily on the source culture or the target culture? The answer is not clear-cut. Nevertheless, the dominant criterion is the communicative function of the target (receptor language) text.
Let us take business correspondence as an example: here we follow the commercial correspondence protocol commonly observed in the target language. So “Estimado” will become “Dear” in English and “Monsieur” in French, and a “saludo a Ud. atentamente” will become “Sincerely yours” in English and “Veuillez agréer Monsieur, mes sentiments les plus distingués” in French.
Finally, attention is drawn to the fact that among the variety of translation approaches, the ‘Integrated Approach’ seems to be the most appropriate. This approach follows the global paradigm in which having a global vision of the text at hand has a primary importance. Such an approach focuses from the macro to the micro level in accordance with the Gestalt-principle, which states that an analysis of parts cannot provide an understanding of the whole; thus translation studies are essentially concerned with a web of relationships, the importance of individual items being decided by their relevance within the larger context: text, situation and culture.
In conclusion, it can be pointed out that the trans-coding (de-coding, re-coding and en-coding?—the term ‘trans coding’ appears here for the first time) process should be focused not merely on language transfer but also—and most importantly—on cultural transposition. Attention is drawn to the fact that among the variety of translation approaches, the ´Integrated Approach´ seems to be the most appropriate. This approach follows the global paradigm in which having a global vision of the text at hand has a primary importance. Such an approach focuses from the macro to the micro level in accordance with the Gestalt-principle which lays down that an analysis of parts cannot provide an understanding of the whole and thus translation studies are essentially concerned with a web of relationships, the importance of individual items, being decided by their relevance in the larger context: text, situation and culture. In conclusion, it can be pointed out that the trans-coding process should be focused not merely on language transfer but also—and most importantly—on cultural transposition. As an inevitable consequence of the previous statement, translators must be both bilingual and bi-cultural if not multicultural.
