IntroductionMirror Mirror on the Wall
Table of contents
As is stressed repeatedly in the literature, IRT (Interpretation Research and Theory) is a young discipline, with a few forerunners in the fifties, several attempts at experimental studies in the sixties, and a real take-off—at least quantitatively speaking—in the seventies (see Gile 1995). At this time, twenty years later, IRT has still not reached adulthood and has yet to find its way(s) forward, an issue which is often discussed in the literature—this special issue being no exception. Moreover, texts on interpreting are published at a rate far beyond that of actual research production, thus producing much repetition if not textual harassment of readers. For both these reasons, it seemed more appropriate to try to present in this special issue a view of the IRT community and its operation than to take up the more conventional approach and focus on research findings. The papers presented here are somewhat heterogenous stylistically, and to a lesser extent thematically, but the collection has a focus: through the requests and indications sent to the authors, it was designed to give the reader an insight into the operation of the interpretation research community and the issues it is facing. It was felt that this viewing angle would be more meaningful to Target readers more familiar with written translation research, who could compare the situation discussed by the authors with their own, and possibly gain some new insights.
References
