Page 154 - Reading Between the Sign Intercultural Communication for Sign Language Interpreters

The Impact of Cultural Differences on Interpreting Situations 139

In the next chapter we will examine our role as interpreters/
bicultural mediators and the scope of our responsibility in rela-
tion to cultural differences such as those above. In chapter 8 we
will consider some techniques to help us deal with these cultural
contradictions. This would be a good place, however, to analyze a
distinction exemplified in some of the previous scenarios. Let us
call it a cultural set, or, more fully, a cultural set of assumptions.

Cultural Set

Cultural differences that manifest themselves in interpreting situ-
ations can be broadly divided into two categories, form and con-
tent. In interpreting with a focus on form, we adjust for differ-
ences such as active versus passive voice, amount of detail, and
general versus specific statements. These challenges certainly
warrant much discussion and preparation. At this point, however,
I would like to focus on the second category, content, which in-
volves the much more complex factor of cultural set.
This content factor comes in two varieties. The first relates to
unspoken, yet pervasive, cultural assumptions (i.e., the importance
of the group or the preciousness of time); the second involves
assumed cultural knowledge of the sets of rules which govern cer-
tain types of transactions, that is, cultural sets.
An example of a conflict regarding cultural presuppositions
was illustrated in Medical Scenario 2, when the Deaf mother ex-
pressed her joy at the thought of having a Deaf child. The doctor’s
reaction would probably have been surprise or disbelief, because
he saw the situation through a different set of assumptions re-
garding what it means to be deaf. In order for the doctor to truly
understand her “Hurray,” he would have to be willing to give up
his unenlightened view of deafness and learn to understand this
woman’s set of feelings, assumptions, and beliefs. The only way
for this to happen would be if the doctor entered the conversation
with a curious and open mind. We hope for this to happen, al-
though we know from experience that all too often it does not.
Similarly, in the third educational scenario, the teacher did not
understand the feelings of loyalty, love, and cultural connection that
the Deaf student associated with the mention of residential school.
The job interview, as a whole, is an excellent example of the
second content factor, the cultural set, in which all American job
seekers are expected to know the implicit “rules of the game.”

06 MINDESS PMKR 139 10/18/04, 12:01 PM