Page 24 - Reading Between the Sign Intercultural Communication for Sign Language Interpreters

Introduction 9

versed in the assumptions and conventions of both groups we
deal with in order to effectively identify when they are at odds
with each other. Sometimes we may even be called upon to ar-
ticulate to one participant or another why certain ways of doing
things in Deaf culture clash with ways of doing things in hearing
culture and vice versa.
Second, and perhaps even more important, is the ability to
identify cultural influences in ourselves. That they go largely un-
noticed makes them all the more powerful. Interpreters are sup-
posed to be neutral facilitators of communication, but we are not
blank slates. We come with our own biases, many of which were
culturally formed. Without a thorough understanding of our own
cultural assumptions, we cannot effectively perform our job as
interpreters.
The subject of Deaf culture is clearly an indispensable one for
sign language interpreters. Some of the topics in the chapter on
Deaf culture will probably be familiar to readers who have spent
years interacting with Deaf people. I believe, however, that the
range of topics compiled here has not been presented in one place
before. Chapter 5 was cowritten with distinguished Deaf educator
Thomas K. Holcomb and benefits greatly from his many insights
into his native culture. Dr. Holcomb also acted as a consultant in
checking the accuracy of the rest of the book. In the Afterword,
he speaks directly to interpreters.
In Part 2 we will finally look at how all of these aforemen-
tioned cultural factors get played out in common interpreting situ-
ations. By examining in chapter 6 both parties’ cultural presuppo-
sitions, we will be in a better position to predict where differences
might lead to misjudgments between the parties. In chapter 7 we
will examine how Deaf people view our role and contrast that to
the way we as interpreters perceive our role (e.g., does “profes-
sional” connote coldness or competency?).
On the subject of role, we will consider the roles of profes-
sional mediators and spoken language interpreters in order to see
if the commonalities between our tasks outweigh the differences
and if we can benefit by modeling ourselves after these profes-
sions. We will then examine in depth what our role should be.
Where does our responsibility begin and end? How do we differ-
entiate the cultural factors we can adjust somewhat from other
factors which, although they affect communication, may be out
of our control?

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