Transcription
[Music] Hello everyone. I hope you guys are doing well. Welcome to our YouTube channel. Today, we are going to discuss a very interesting topic. Topic: Skopos.
So, this was asked in your UGC NET English Literature paper, and this is related to translation studies. So, there was this question that was asked in Shift 2 that we discussed also in the class and we discussed on YouTube platform also. So, question: translation studies terms you had to match it. So, this was one of it. What is Skopos Theory? Today, we're going to talk about that Skopos Theory. Okay.
So, let us study about what exactly is the Skopos Theory. So, Skopos Theory is a concept in Translation Studies. Translation Studies, say. And it was developed by a German linguist, H. Vermeer, in the late 1970s. Fundamental movement, functionalist theory of translation. It's a functionalist theory of translation. The main idea behind this theory is very, very simple. Studies, what is translation? Translation is direct word-to-word translation. That you have a source text and then you completely change it into another language. That was translation. But gradually, there were so many different theorists, and all of them came with their own meaning and the ways in which translation needs to be done. And this person, in 1970s, Hans Vermeer, said that translation should not be only done that is word-to-word, but it is the main purpose of translation is to explain the person. Is to tell them what is the meaning about the text. And it is always in accordance with the purpose. So, if you are not having a purpose, then there is no translation.
So, this means that ye theory, action, action theory. What is action theory? Action theory says that the translation is only done in accordance with an action. And action is always taken for a particular purpose. So, this Skopos comes from a Greek word which means aim, your purpose. So, so we deduce that translate basically is done for a particular aim or a particular purpose. This gives the translator a large amount of power. Okay.
So, for the translation, we always need to make decisions during the translation process. In other words, the goal of the translation is more important than trying to only stick to the original text. Original text, stick word-to-word translation. Translation purpose, but according to a particular culture, according to a particular purpose, translation is done. So, if we are talking about a particular situation and you're and you are contributing something to that situation. So, for example, text related story. So, you need to tell the plight of the people because of this pandemic situation. So, translation purpose to make people aware about the problems that people undergo and you know, they went through. So, uh, so this means that particular aim or particular purpose translate. So, this is according to the culture. Interpersonal relations also. Linguistic details are something that should be focused. But linguistic details focus, this is also a drawback that was seen in the Skopos Theory. So, Skopos Theory. So, there were multiple theorists who said that being a linguist, he is not talking about the linguistic aspects of trans, translation. So, this is something that was a, you know, a loophole in this theory. Otherwise, this theory was very famous during that time.
So, what Skopos Theory focuses at? It focuses on the need of the audience. What audience needs to hear. Story, what is the major crux? Then it focuses on the target text. Target text situation. It also focuses on apprehension. The audience is very, very powerful. Reader response theory is there. The audience have their own brain and can decode and comprehend and analyze the text on their own. Then they always have a particular purpose. Culture and contextual backgrounds are very, very important. So, this means that there are three key features of this theory. Three key features. What are these? We always have a purpose, and purpose comes first, and then the translation happens. There is always a target audience, and we always look for the culture and we look at the context for which this happens. And then we have freedom for the translator. And this is a wonderful effort that was made by Vermeer. He said that the translator has a freedom. You just have to look at the context and the culture. It also means that the translator as well as the reader, both have a lot of power. Right.
So, these were the very important concepts. There are other theories also that we will discuss one by one. But Skopos Theory, that is Theory related to translation study, is a very important theory. You need to remember that who introduced this? This main idea was introduced in 1970s by a German linguist, H. Vermeer. And he said Skopos, Skopos means a wide area, a wide purpose, an aim for which translation is done. Right. You can remember these things. These are also important. And these key principles are also essential for you to remember. Right.
I hope you guys understood this. In the next class, I'll try to discuss other theories that were asked in the paper and that are relevant with, you know, and that are relevant exam. I hope you guys understood. I hope you guys like the effort. If you still have any doubts, you can ask me that in the comment section, and I'll surely reply to you. Thank you and have a wonderful [Music] day.