Aurelia Klimkiewicz

Ethical Issues in Translation: From Profession to Relation

Since the ethical shift in the 1980s that stands against ethnocentrism (Godard 2001), translation has come to be regarded as a vector of change in contexts of power imbalance whether it is a military conflict, experience of displacement or political crisis. Calling into question translator’s neutrality and self-erasure, the translatorial activity now raises issues of professional institutionalization (habitus), code of ethics (professional standards) and its actualization by practitioners. Therefore, the focus on the translator’s self-awareness and responsibility requires a greater degree of scrutiny on the translation process itself, including context, expectations, decision-making, effect anticipation, and even real consequences. The purpose of this paper is thus to examine potential conflicts that may occur between institutional standards (profession-focused ethics) and individual ethical responses (relation-focused ethics). This will be achieved through the discussion on three case studies that will allow to identify the strengths and weaknesses of both ethical approaches.