A Study On Disfluency In Chinese-English Consecutive Interpreting Of Impromptu Speeches And Its Influential Mechanism

There have not been sufficient domestic studies on the characteristics and the forming mechanisms of disfluency,particularly on interpreting,not to mention consecutive interpreting.Meanwhile,compared to scripted speeches,impromptu speeches often feature a confusing structure and an ambiguous logic,which puts more pressure on interpreters.The aim of this paper is to investigate the frequency and the forming mechanism of disfluency in Chinese-English consecutive interpreting of impromptu speeches and to reveal the difficulties encountered by student interpreters.To that end,this paper adopts a combination of quantitative and qualitative approaches.Based on the theories and studies of scholars Dai Zhaohui,Maclay and Osgood,this paper proposes the criteria for identifying and classifying disfluency adopted in the study.Eight MTI students were invited to take part in an online interpreting test,in which a total of 527 disfluencies were collected and identified in their interpretation.Then,the frequency of disfluencies among different interpreters and different paragraphs was investigated.Unlike other studies,this study validated the taxonomy of disfluency adopted in this paper before conducting data analysis,which can ensure the reliability of the subsequent results.This thesis adopts Gill’s theory of problem trigger to mark the characteristics of the impromptu speech in the typical paragraphs of the source text,and with the help of Gile’s Effort Model,the impact of the impromptu speech on the phenomenon of disfluency in interpreting is explored through the analysis of subjects’ interpretation.By comparing the frequency and distribution of disfluencies in the transcripts of Chinese-English consecutive interpreting of this experiment,the thesis draws the following conclusions:(1)frequency of disfluencies occurring in the experiment of Chinese-English consecutive interpreting of impromptu speeches are listed in descending order:filled pauses,silent pauses,self-repairs,and repeats;(2)interpreters with predominantly silent pauses and a small difference in the proportion of the four types of disfluency tend to produce less disfluency overall.Meanwhile,based on Gile’s Effort Model,this paper argues that(1)the characteristics of the impromptu speech increases the possibility of disfluency;(2)not all disfluencies are triggered by the characteristics of the impromptu speech,the cognitive load of the interpreter is a major contributor as well.Based on the findings,this paper proposes suggestions for teaching and learning of MTI in consecutive interpreting of impromptu speeches.