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Liaison interpreting: formal vs. informal form
Thread poster: Chiara Tampieri
Chiara Tampieri
Chiara Tampieri  Identity Verified
France
Local time: 20:03
French to Italian
+ ...
Nov 24, 2010

I recently worked as French-Italian liaison interpreter for a French trade fair. I was translating a general conversation between two professionals from the same industry and at some point the Italian speaker switched from formal pronoun (lei) to informal pronoun (tu) to address the other person.

By doing so, the Italian speaker wanted to signal a somewhat more friendly and less formal attitude while maintaining politeness.

I hesitated some seconds to do the same in Fr... See more
I recently worked as French-Italian liaison interpreter for a French trade fair. I was translating a general conversation between two professionals from the same industry and at some point the Italian speaker switched from formal pronoun (lei) to informal pronoun (tu) to address the other person.

By doing so, the Italian speaker wanted to signal a somewhat more friendly and less formal attitude while maintaining politeness.

I hesitated some seconds to do the same in French because I was afraid the French speaking person (who actually was from the Netherlands) could take it as a sign of deliberate rudeness. I have been living in France for 4 years and it seems to me that in business settings the switch from "vous" to "tu" is "negotiated" and the use of "vous" is stricter than in Italian.

What is your opinion about that?

And what would you do in the case of an English-Italian (or any other language that has a formal form) situation?

Thank you in advance,
Chiara

[Edited at 2010-11-24 20:12 GMT] ▲ Collapse
 
Parrot
Parrot  Identity Verified
Spain
Local time: 20:03
Spanish to English
+ ...
Follow convention Nov 24, 2010

I think the same thing happens between Spanish and French. But then, I wouldn't hesitate to use "vous" if a Spaniard says "tú" since many situations can suffer this shift in correspondence. Still, if it came to that, I suppose the real reason is the Latin American voice in the back of my head saying "usted" (or even "Usted, Madre"). Such registers are determined by convention.

Observation of use in real life should make you more confident. Interpretation is not a matter of word for... See more
I think the same thing happens between Spanish and French. But then, I wouldn't hesitate to use "vous" if a Spaniard says "tú" since many situations can suffer this shift in correspondence. Still, if it came to that, I suppose the real reason is the Latin American voice in the back of my head saying "usted" (or even "Usted, Madre"). Such registers are determined by convention.

Observation of use in real life should make you more confident. Interpretation is not a matter of word for word correspondence (but then, neither is translation). Hope it helps. Let's see what Italian-French interpreters have to say. ▲ Collapse
 
Chiara Tampieri
Chiara Tampieri  Identity Verified
France
Local time: 20:03
French to Italian
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER
Thank you Nov 25, 2010

I really appreciate! Maybe I'll try to post a similar topic in the French or Italian forum.
 


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Liaison interpreting: formal vs. informal form







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