Professional identity and training of translators in the context of globalisation: the example of subtitling

Abstract

This paper argues that the pressures placed on translators working in a globalised context amount to a professional identity crisis which should also concern academic translator training programmes. Focusing on the example of subtitling, the paper first shows that the role of subtitlers within the subtitling workflow has been fragmented because of structural changes in the industry, such as outsourcing and the use of template files. The issue of translation quality is key in this context. An analysis of the French and Greek subtitles of an episode of the The Sopranos, which were based on a template file, will suggest that quality may suffer as result of the centralisation of the subtitling process, which has become less reliant on the specialist competence of subtitlers. Broadening the discussion, it will be argued that translators in general are often called to play an extremely flexible and less specialist role in the industry. A pertinent response by translator training courses would be to shift the emphasis from specialisation to the development of a core translation competence, as a means of redefining and empowering the professional identity of translators.