Revisiting The Role Of Conference Interpreter: Field, Habitus And Capital

The thesis applies three key concepts of Bourdieu’s theory of social practice, namely field, habitus and capital, to analyze the role of the conference interpreter. The present study aims at fulfilling two main purposes: to identify the social reasons why the role of the conference interpreter is hard to define; and to transcend the traditional dichotomy and to construct a monistic view on the role of the interpreter. These two purposes are served with two case studies of conference interpreting events in which the author is involved.Boudieu’s theory of social practice sets a social context for one to perceive the role of the interpreter, and thus directs interpreting studies towards an even broader social space. The dissertation will first illuminate the value of the interpreter’s role in interpreting practices and review the debate on the role of the interpreter among scholars and the application of Bourdieu’s social theory in translation and interpretation studies through literature review. Then a theoretical framework incorporating the three key concepts of Bourdieu’s theory of social practice, namely, field, habitus and capital will be proposed to analyze the case of conference interpreting and to offer explanations for the reasons why conference interpreters choose different roles. Finally, the dissertation will propose a monistic view on the role of conference interpreter based on practical monism. The present study as a whole is expected to help interpreters have a better understanding of their roles from a sociological view, and thereby learn to better protect themselves and achieve sound interpreting results.