Contents introduction chapter definition and concepts of the methods of simultaneous interpretation

Simultaneous interpretation
Simultaneous interpreters translate the speech in their head and deliver it in the preferred language instantly, with a minimum delay, in a matter of milliseconds. It requires immediate comprehension from the audience and speaker as the original speech continues with no interruptions.
Commonly referred to as conference interpreting, simultaneous interpretation has high demand mainly because it saves time and engages diverse audiences. Besides large-scale conferences and business meetings, governmental institutions also use this mode to connect meaningfully despite the language barriers. Some of the examples are European Commission, European Parliament, United Nations, and many others.
Simultaneous interpreting is the most challenging mode for interpreters. They have minimal time, but it doesn’t stop them from staying in the same tone and registering as the speaker. As stressful as it would look, in the long term, simultaneous interpretation actually contributes to the interpreter's ability to perform dual tasks, thus multitasking. You might not see the changes immediately, but you’re likely to benefit from them in the future!
In simultaneous interpretation, on the other hand, the interpreter only listens to the speaker, processes the message and produces the output in the target language simultaneously, i.e., the 43 interpreter speaks one part of the message in the TL while simultaneously listening to the next part of the message in the source language. SI is considered to be a special form of translation and innumerable definitions have been proposed for both, varying according to the focus on the nature of the task in question as a product, a process or a concept. In the field of translation, attempts to come up with a universally valid definition cause considerable problems and controversies. The wide range of definitions, often focusing on the question of priority for the retention of grammatical, lexical, stylistic or informational features, mirror the dichotomy between translation as an art and as a science as well as the corresponding diverging notions of 'equivalence'. Among the features that many definitions have in common are some of those that are also relevant for SI: a 'movement' of some kind 'from one language to another' and the attempt to find 'equivalents' that preserve 'features' of the 'original message'. Much of the controversy in translation arises from the attempt to define 'equivalence'. Such a definition becomes more complex and debatable with a growing diversity of text genres. Therefore the problem applies more to translation than to interpretation. The question of which features shall be preserved thus never was a major issue of controversy in SI since the early idea of simultaneous interpretation as a word-for-word translation has been abandoned. Even though the focus of what is most important in SI and the question of which are the outstanding characteristics defining the nature of simultaneous 44 interpretation can shift from a more meaning-based to a more content-based approach, from a narrower to a wider interpretation. According to the Ecole Superieure d'lnterpretes et de Traducteurs (ESIT) at the Sorbonne University in Paris, which "s'est acquis depuis vingt ans la reputation enviable de former les interpretes les plus sollicites" (Lederer 1981, 21) [has over the last twenty years acquired the enviable reputation of training the most sought for interpreters] (my translation) and can therefore claim to hold one of the most influential views in the domain of interpretation, the interpreter's mission is to render the message uttered during each speech accurately and in full (Gile 1989). This view finds further expression in the descriptions proposed by the two main proponents at ESIT, Lederer and Seleskovitch. The latter (Seleskovitch 1976) stresses the identification of relevant concepts and their recoding in another language as the main issue in SI. The conveyance of a given meaning, regardless of the original wording, is at the heart of the process during which the interpreter simultaneously takes two roles of the common speech performance: that of understanding and that of rendering ideas. Lederer (1981) argues along similar lines that the equivalence between the sense of the SL message and that of the TL message is of prime importance, and that this equivalence can be complemented by a TL style that should mirror the original style and must be compatible with the target language. What makes it possible for the interpreter to fulfill two tasks simultaneously is described as the 45 conceptualization of the spoken and therefore evanescent SL message into a souvenir cognjtjf (Lederer 1981, passim). Isham and Lane (1993) describe SI as an act of transformation of sentences and their meaning from one language to another, a performance comprising "numerous concurrent cognitive activities." (Isham and Lane 1993, 242) They underline the fluent, continuous manner in which this simultaneous processing takes place as an ability that can occur in 'normal' bilinguals to some degree but is a specific characteristic resulting from extensive experience and training.