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Introduction
The present study will attempt to define the role played by compression in
simultaneous interpreting (SI) particularly in those speeches that are marked by a
fast rate of delivery or by sudden changes in rhythm.
From a theoretical standpoint, compression in SI was extensively theorised in a
seminal study by Ghelly Chernov for whom it is a ‘labour saving device in extreme
conditions of SI [that is made possible thanks] to the linguistic redundancy in the
thematic component of the discourse’ (2004: 113).
Such a remark needs to be examined in greater detail since it implies a number of
important notions that should not be taken for granted: 1) compression in SI is
actually possible; 2) it can be achieved thanks to a certain degree of redundancy in
the source message; 3) it is labour saving device that helps interpreters tackle
speeches delivered at a fast rate.
The first two notions will be addressed in detail in the second part of this study,
through the existing literature, relevant examples and evidence obtained from the
study of a spoken corpus. The choice of a corpus-based approach responds to
requirements set by modern research and is in line with suggestions by Robin
Setton according to whom: ‘as a first step towards understanding interpreting
processes … it seems reasonable to begin by observing and comparing the original
discourse and its interpreted versions, instead of imposing models of memory and
attention on the process, a priori’ (2002: 29-30).
As to the third notion it seems rather obvious that a speaker’s delivery rate have
some role in SI: a speech that unfolds too quickly is most certainly bound to create
some problems for the interpreters who will likely employ some strategy to try to
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overcome them, compression being one of the most obvious. Yet even assuming
that compression is actually used in SI, can it really be considered a ‘labour saving
device’? Furthermore, does it arise from a conscious effort on the part of
interpreters or is it merely the result of a certain number of random items of
information being dropped when the source speech is delivered at a speed that some
interpreters cannot sustain? These questions will be addressed further on in the
study.
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