Exploration Of Techniques For Interpreting At Press Conferences From The Perspective Of The Interpretive Theory

This thesis conducts a study of the techniques for interpreting at press conferences(IPC)by using both qualitative and quantitative analysis.The research begins with an introduction to the Interpretive Theory and IPC.Then,it summarizes the interpreting techniques with the help of the Interpreting Theory and illustrates each of them with examples.Finally,it makes quantitative analysis of the interpreting techniques employed in the interpreting corpus of Premier Li's press conferences from 2014 to 2016 and provides reasons for their usage.Through this study,the author has procured the following findings.First,the major challenges for interpreters at press conferences are as follows: 1)authority of the spokesmen;2)immediacy of interpreting;3)the different cultural and social backgrounds between the source and target languages.The Interpretive Theory,which emphasizes “conveying sense rather than linguistic forms”,“the de-verbalization stage in the process of interpreting” and “cognitive supplement”,functions as an effective theoretical support for Chinese-English IPC.Second,in line with the Interpretive Theory,six interpreting techniques have been proved on the basis of qualitative analysis of the corpus of Premier Li's press conferences from 2014 to 2016,namely,compression,addition,logical processing,elaboration,conveyance of emotion and anticipation.Last but not least,in light of both qualitative and quantitative analyses,it is concluded that the five major interpreting techniques(anticipation excluded)at each press conference are employed at a different rate,but their sequence at all the three press conferences remains the same,and the adoption of each technique is driven by multiple motivations,which can be divided into primary ones and subordinate ones.Clearly,it is of much significance to explore the techniques employed in Chinese-English IPC from the perspective of the Interpretive Theory and examine the motivations behind their usage based on statistical data.The interpreting techniques and the regularity of their usage may serve as a guide to interpreting practitioners and help them enhance their interpreting ability and achieve more effective interpretation.