ABSTRACT

This paper presents findings from observations of literary translation workshops with secondary-school MFL pupils, revolving around a literary translation from L2 to L1 which does not require pre-existing language skills in the L2. Our research questions were: what skills do pupils mobilise when they work in groups on a literary translation? What can we say of the pupils’ engagement and motivation? The data shows that pupils mobilise three categories of skills: metalinguistic, linguistic, and literary. Our first contention is that metalinguistic reflection feeds into both linguistic and literary aspects of the exercise and contributes to binding them together. The pupils displayed engagement most intensely when finding a translational ‘solution’ with expressive potential (that ‘sounds good’). Their motivation was maintained through oral performance: pupils engage in vast amounts of vocalisation. We suggest that the spontaneous performative aspects of literary translation workshops help pupils process text, negotiate the linguistic territory across source and target language, and evaluate the aesthetic potential of their writing. Our second contention, therefore, is that translation in schools should maximise possibilities for moments of performance, opting for literary texts with strong expressive quality and potential for vocalisation.

摘要

本文介绍了对中学 MFL 学生文学翻译工作坊的观察结果，围绕着从 L2 到 L1 的文学翻译，这不需要 L2 中预先存在的语言技能。我们的研究问题是：学生在集体进行文学翻译时会调动哪些技能？对于学生的参与度和动机，我们能说些什么？数据显示，学生可以调动三类技能：元语言、语言和文学。我们的第一个论点是元语言反思融入了练习的语言和文学方面，并有助于将它们结合在一起。当找到具有表达潜力的翻译“解决方案”（“听起来不错”）时，学生表现出最强烈的参与度。他们的动机是通过口头表演来维持的：学生们参与了大量的发声。我们建议文学翻译工作坊的自发表演方面可以帮助学生处理文本、跨源语言和目标语言协商语言领域，并评估他们写作的审美潜力。因此，我们的第二个论点是，学校翻译应该最大限度地提高表演时刻的可能性，选择具有强大表现力和发声潜力的文学文本。