Memorizing and Note—taking in Consecutive Interpreting： the Theory of Gile’s Effort Models

李雨英子

【Abstract】Interpreting is a form of translation in which a first and final rendition in another language is produced on the basis of a one-time presentation of an utterance in a source language. Consecutive interpretation is divided in two： short CI and long CI. Short CI uses fragments that the interpreter has to memorize and render orally， while in the other case， the interpreter takes notes. This article will discuss one consecutive interpreting theory concerning memorizing and note-taking issues， namely， the Effort Models for consecutive interpreting theory.

【Key words】interpreting； Gile； Effort Models； interpreting theory

【摘要】口譯是翻譯的一種形式，它以源語的口述為基礎，對其含義進行語言的轉換輸出。交替傳譯是口譯的一種，具有短期交傳和長期交傳兩種形式；前者要求口譯人員記憶源語內容并翻譯，后者則需要筆記的幫助。本文將試探討交傳中記憶及筆記相關的問題，也即交傳的精力分配理論對口譯實踐的指導作用。

【關鍵詞】口譯 蓋爾 精力分配理論 口譯理論

I.Introduction

Interpreting is a form of translation in which a first and final rendition in another language is produced on the basis of a one-time presentation of an utterance in a source language. Unlike translation， interpreting denotes facilitating communication from one language into another language. During the process of interpreting， the interpreter has to listen carefully， understand the message， remember it and think fast and reproduce the translation soon. There is no time to consult any dictionary. These overlapping series of cognitive processing activities require high level of concentration.

Consecutive interpretation is divided in two： short CI and long CI. Short CI uses fragments that the interpreter has to memorize and render orally， while in the other case， the interpreter takes notes. This article will discuss one consecutive interpreting theory concerning memorizing and note-taking issues， namely， the Effort Models for consecutive interpreting theory.

II.Effort Models

Daniel Gile talks about the difficulties and efforts “involved in interpreting tasks and strategies needed to overcome them” （Gile 1992： 191）， observing that many failures occur in the absence of any visible difficulty. He then proposes his Effort Models for interpreting.

In his work， Gile descripted the nature of the Effort Models as follows：

L - the Listening and analysis Effort

P - the Production Effort （speech production in simultaneous， and note production during the first stage of consecutive - while the interpreter is listening， but not interpreting yet）

M - the short-term Memory Effort essentially dealing with memory operations from the time a speech segment is heard to the time it is reformulated in the target speech or disappears from memory.

The Effort Models suggested by Gile are meant to help interpreters perform their task at a superior level. They are constructed upon four types of efforts， namely： the Listening and Analysis Effort， the Memory Effort， the Production Effort， plus the Coordination one. When coordination is reached， interpreters attain the optimal state in order to perform their task. At this point， there is synchronization between their skill level and the task they have to perform. Even if sometimes these Efforts overlap， coordination actually finds the balance between all the factors.

III. Effort Models in Practice

1. Effort Model of Simultaneous Interpretation

Giles effort model of simultaneous interpreting comprises the above mentioned four elements， and he codes the model as follows：

SI = L + P + M + C，

where， L is the Listening and Analysis Effort， P is the Production Effort， M stands for Memory， and C for Coordination. Simultaneous interpretation is a total of all these efforts， and it actually depends on their complete and smooth running， namely the particular comprehension， short-term memory， or production operations being performed on speech segments.

2. Effort Model for Consecutive Interpretation

Gile also believes that Consecutive Interpretation consists of two phases： a listening and a reformulation phase， and then， a reconstruction phase：

CI = L + M + N， where N is the note-taking process followed by phase two：

CI = Rem + Read + P， where interpreters retrieve messages from their short-term memory and reconstruct the speech （Rem）， read the notes （N）， and produce the Target Language Speech （P）. As we can see， this formula proposed by Gile is only applicable in the case of long CI， where the interpreter takes notes to render orally the message at the end of the conference.

IV. Effort Models and Short-term Memory Enhancing

As the Effort Models compromises many aspects， this paper will only focus on only one effort， namely， the Memory Effort， and endeavor to discuss how one can promote the memorizing skills and make this efforts reach its “maximum output” during an interpreting session， especially a consecutive one.

1. Memory Technics

One important tool in memorizing is mnemonics. The Concise Oxford English Dictionary （Soanes， Stevenson， Hawker， 2006： 477） states that a mnemonic device is any learning technique that helps memory. In order to make ones mnemonics more memorable， one should use positive， pleasant images. Ones brain often blocks out unpleasant ones. One should also use vivid， colorful， sense-laden images – these are easier to remember than drab ones. Humor is always a good means of easily remembering things or aspects， while symbols， like road signs， or red traffic lights can code quite complex messages quickly and effectively.

2. Note-taking

Another simple method that will relieve the strain on ones STM is by taking notes. If one develop his or her mnemonic colorful tool in interpretation， it will be less likely to make mistakes， as ones mind learns to be better organized.

V. Conclusion

Interpretation is a complex task that requires the association of many factors. No matter whether simultaneous or consecutive interpretation is performed， the role of the memory is extremely important. Short-term memory is based especially on the actual hearing of sounds， without always filtering the information； that is why the interpreter has to be careful with the message he/she conveys further. Due to the fact that long-term memory involves neural pathways and synaptic connections， it is better established in the interpreters brain. So， long-term memory has the advantage that the interpreter is better acquainted with the field to which the translation belongs.

As an interpreter， one should make good use of the theory of Effort Models and enhancing both types of memory， as their training has proved important for the quality of subject message rendering. We also should to encourage memory training through all of its aspects - acoustic， visual， or semantic， which together with the other tools is crucial in the interpreters work.

Reference：

[1]Gile，D.1995.Basic Concepts and Models for Interpreter and Translator Training，Amsterdam& Philadelphia：John Benjamins.

[2]Gile，D.1992.“Basic Theoretical Components in Interpreter and Translator Training”，in Teaching Translation and Interpreting：Training，Talent and Experience，ed.by Dollerup，C and Loddegaard，A.，Amsterdam，Philadelphia，John Benjamins Publishing Company.

[3]Gile，D.1999.Testing the Effort Models tightrope hypothesis in simultaneous interpreting - A contribution，Aarhus，School.

[4]Gillies，A.2005.Note-taking for Consecutive Interpreting， Manchester，St Jerome Publishing.

[5]Soanes，C.，Stevenson，A，and Hawker，S.（eds.）2006 Concise Oxford English Dictionary（Computer Software）.Oxford，Oxford University Press.