IW 133: InterpreTips: Fashionista - The New Interpreter Model

There she was just a walkin' down the street! Singin' Doowah Diddy, Diddy Dum Diddy doo!

Sometimes the fashions and fads come and go, but then we see them again a few years later. Let's talk about interpreting fads and fashions, shall we? What's old today, may be new tomorrow. Theories, models, topics, ethical standards, they all come and go, change and re-change. Why? Let's discuss it.

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Transcript

IW 133: InterpreTips: Fashionista - The New Interpreter Model

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[ROCK INTRO MUSIC STARTS]

00:00:02 Tim [ONLY TIM SPEAKS IN THIS EPISODE]

Good morning, good evening, good afternoon. Wherever you are, this is the Interpreter's Workshop podcast. I'm Tim Curry, your host. Here we talk everything sign language interpreting the ins, the outs, the ups, the downs, the sideways of interpreting. If you're a student, a new interpreter, experienced interpreter, this is the place for you. If you want to know more, go to interpretersworkshop.com.

00:00:28 

Let's start talking... interpreting.

[ROCK INTRO MUSIC ENDS]

00:00:34

And now the quote of the day from the Bible. Ecclesiastes chapter one, verse nine.

00:00:42

“What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again. There is nothing new under the sun.”

00:00:52

Growing up, I heard this a few times, you might say.

00:00:57

The more and more we think about that quote the more we realize how true it is. Researchers definitely understand that when they have a wonderful idea that they wish to study, they think no one's ever thought of this before.

00:01:14

And then they do a literature review.

00:01:17

They dig through the archives of articles and books, and then they realize, OK, many other people thought of it. But I'm going to think of it in a different way.

00:01:28

And they read more and more and finally come to either the conclusion that they want to re-visit this thought or ask it in a different way. Hmm.

00:01:40

Today we're going to look at the interpreting profession.

00:01:43

We're going to see what has been, what is again, what has been done and what's being done again.

00:01:50

Going to look at the full circle to see if truly there is anything new in our profession.

00:01:56

Let's get started.

[SHORT TRANSITION MUSIC]

00:02:02

It's the end of the year when we start thinking about this full year and what happened, what changed, how we developed, how we grew.

00:02:12

It's a time to reflect on something old and something new. Was it borrowed?

00:02:18

And my cycle of thinking on this topic came about because of a fanny pack.

00:02:25

Or a bum bag, depending on where you live.

00:02:27

Yes, I can admittedly say I wore a fanny pack, especially as an interpreter and as a traveler.

00:02:37

What a convenient way to carry things.

00:02:40

You only need a few things.

00:02:41

Just strap it around your waist and you've got everything at hand. You can use your hands to sign to interpret.

00:02:49

And yet still have everything there. And if it's big enough, you can even put a water bottle in there. You can put all the fashionable things that you need as an interpreter.

00:03:01

I even had a pocket knife in there.

00:03:03

Little scissors.

00:03:05

I didn't have nail clippers or nail file, but I know others who did.

00:03:09

I even had snacks. Ane when I was traveling, a great place to put your passport, your tickets, and later your phone.

00:03:18

It was handy, convenient, out of the way, but I quickly learned that it was a fashion faux pas.

00:03:25

It was a little geeky, little strange, so I had to stop doing that and stop wearing socks with sandals.

00:03:33

Although I don't really wear sandals that much either.

00:03:36

And then I was amazed by what my 6-year-old daughter asked for Christmas this year.

00:03:42

She was telling me she wanted one of those beautiful cool purses that go around your shoulder. I had no idea what she was talking about, except the fact that a purse does go over your shoulder.

00:03:54

A handbag which is odd because it's over your shoulder, but let's not go to that point.

00:03:59

So, she showed me using classifiers what she.

00:04:02

It goes here, Daddy and has little zipper on it has a bag opening here and it hooks together like and I thought, huh. Sounds like the fanny pack. Yeah.

00:04:12

Sounds like a waist bag.

00:04:14

Oh, that doesn't sound right. Does it? A belt pouch.

00:04:16

Let's get medieval here and I thought, well, I've got one of those somewhere locked away.

00:04:22

Hidden away from all of those prying eyes. And then I looked it up.

00:04:27

She only knew the word in Czech.

00:04:29

And I realized somebody got the bright idea 20 or 30 years later that they had this stockpile of fanny packs in a warehouse.

00:04:39

What could they do with it? Nobody wants to buy those anymore unless you put it on a model across her shoulder and make it look sleek. It's beautiful, huh?

00:04:48

It's a new fad.

00:04:50

A new fashion statement and I'm here thinking.

00:04:53

You're just putting it on wrong.

00:04:55

We did that before.

00:04:56

Well, now you've got cool designs and Gucci and other high-end labels making their own, huh?

00:05:04

Interesting how things come full circle.

00:05:08

And it got me thinking, what else has come around the same over and over again?

00:05:13

And if we look at the interpreting profession, we can point to many, many things, things that have changed over the years.

00:05:22

The fashions that we've had and how they've changed and how some things keep coming back.

00:05:28

And the next generation that sees these things say I'd never thought about that before. That's so new.

00:05:34

This is so cool.

00:05:34

And they start talking about it. And those of us who have been in the driver's seat for a while…

00:05:39

We're looking in the rearview mirror, listening to them talk about what's new.

00:05:44

And we all know this is not new, it's just new words, new terminology, new studies that are applied to the old terms and now talked about in a new way.

00:05:57

But it's the same exact concept.

00:06:00

What are those things?

00:06:02

Well, first, let's talk about a few of the things that have been there and has evolved.

00:06:07

At least what we think a little more fashionable.

[SHORT TRANSITION MUSIC]

00:06:14

In the interview with Joni Bice, we remembered how interpreters used to wear what we called smocks in the US.

00:06:24

They were a type of vest, an over shirt with short sleeves or with no sleeves at all. But it was a solid color, usually black or dark blue, which would cover up a colorful or a very light-colored dress or shirt that just wasn't appropriate for interpreting.

00:06:43

And so, if there was an emergency and you were driving, you had the smock in your car or with you.

00:06:49

So, if you had to take an assignment quickly, you could just pull the smock on and be “interpreter friendly”.

00:06:56

But that fashion statement quickly went away. Not quick enough.

00:07:00

And then everyone was saying you need to have the interpreter wardrobe, black clothing, appropriate attire, professional looking, no brightly colored fingernails or tattoos on your face or shiny jewelry, strangely colored hair. Definitely no facial hair around your mouth.

00:07:20

Sit up straight.

00:07:21

And then we moved from smocks to black tops to solid colors that contrast with your skin. Because we started to realize, hmm, black doesn't work for everyone.

00:07:33

It needs to be a contrasting color to your skin tone.

00:07:37

However, that even changed when we started doing online interpreting for the telephone, such as companies like Sorenson.

00:07:45

Those are video relay services for the Deaf.

00:07:48

Because of the technology with video and the way the monitors use color, sometimes colors that we would normally think are inappropriate for interpreters actually turned out to be good colors for the screen.

00:08:04

My experience was black was not always good.

00:08:07

Maybe a dark green or a dark blue, or even an earthy orange was appropriate, even with my pale skin color on the screen.

00:08:17

So, the norms in the fashion that were strict…

00:08:21

…slowly changed as we learned and gained experience with new technology and understanding that not all skin tones contrast with dark, solid colors.

00:08:33

The profession was becoming more and more open, more and more understanding.

00:08:37

Should you have short sleeves, long sleeves, three quarter length sleeves?

00:08:42

What if the interpreter's too hot?

00:08:44

What if they're too cold?

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Does this shirt make me look too fat?

00:08:48

Sometimes we have to consider, is the interpreter comfortable?

00:08:52

If they are comfortable, they are more confident. They're not thinking about, Ugh...

00:08:57

…this shirt collar itches me, but rather they're focused on the task at hand, which is more appropriate. Then there was an era where we talked about the interpreter’s toolkit.

00:09:09

And in the beginning, that was make sure you bring enough water.

00:09:13

Make sure you bring a snack.

00:09:14

Make sure you bring fingernail clippers just in case there's one hangnail that's bothering you.

00:09:20

Make sure you have hand lotion.

00:09:22

Make sure you have gloves.

00:09:23

Make sure you have an umbrella with you. And even that tool kit changed overtime.

00:09:29

Me. I didn't wear a purse.

00:09:32

My coats were usually shorter, didn't have big pockets, so the fanny pack. The belt pouch was really nice to put things in, but I didn't like carrying things around.

00:09:44

I didn't like being rained on, working outside in the rain meant I needed a hat, or I needed a hood.

00:09:52

So, I went with the man bag. That's right.

00:09:55

The over the shoulder bag with all of my essentials in it, but that allowed me to have my hands free to interpret, have a hood on my head for the rain.

00:10:05

It was a wonderful tool kit and then we got criticized for using too many plastic bottles.

00:10:10

We went to… the thermos.

00:10:13

The metal bottle, the reusable bottles for our water intake.

00:10:18

Sometimes you add a little lemon.

00:10:20

There was even a time when it was fashionable to have in the office. If you were at the university or at a business they had liquid wax. So the wax would melt and be in a container where you would dip your hand in to get that hot wax treatment to warm up your hands, get them more flexible before working that day. That was unique.

00:10:47

I'd never seen that before.

00:10:49

It was nice, but I also knew the trick to go into the restroom, use the hot water to warm your hands up before you started working.

00:10:59

Those little rituals became sort of a meditation for the interpreter.

00:11:05

Do these rituals and you feel more confident.

00:11:08

You feel like, yes, I'm ready.

00:11:11

I went through these steps.

00:11:13

It's helping you to get your brain in the interpreting process.

00:11:18

I rarely do those today, but some of those rituals, the tool kit, preparation, the thinking about all of those things take less effort to think about now.

00:11:29

They take less energy away from the actual work, but it was a method to keep the mind focused.

[ROCK TRANSITION MUSIC STARTS]

00:11:38

Are you an interpreter fashionista? Of course you are.

00:11:41

And you know what's fashionable now?

00:11:43

That's right, supporting this podcast.

00:11:45

So, Buy Me A Coffee.

00:11:47

Just click on the links in the show notes.

00:11:49

Thank you.

00:11:50

Now let's go back.

[ROCK TRANSITION MUSIC ENDS]

00:11:54

Going back in time, we all had every year a new calendar, a physical diary booklet with all the dates of the year.

00:12:04

Here, with a section to put notes to write down all of your assignments, but you had to keep it with you always, because all the confidential information was inside it.

00:12:15

I will admit I started using a code, a secret double 07 code that no one else could read but me.

00:12:22

But when I got to the point that I couldn't understand the code I forgot what I was using because I kept adding more things to it.

00:12:30

I eventually stopped.

00:12:31

I don't recommend that.

00:12:34

That, along with the paper maps, have gone away.

00:12:37

We have all of that and more in our smartphones of course.

00:12:41

It’s more fashionable to have a smartphone, and a reusable water bottle than anything else now. I used to sit up very straight, as though I was sitting in church being very proper, very professional until I realized in most instances being relaxed and confident, sitting comfortably sitting normally makes everyone else feel comfortable and relaxed as well.

00:13:10

Many things in interpreting theory have changed over the years.

00:13:15

I was brought up on the Colonomos model of interpreting and that now has changed to the Integrated Model of Interpreting. But as I analyze it…

00:13:26

It's pretty much the exact same theory, the same model that we've always been accustomed to.

00:13:32

We say there are models out there that are the practical the social, linguistic, the cognitive models.

00:13:41

So many different interpreting models trying to look at it through different lenses perspectives. But if you bring the mall together, they're all saying the exact same thing.

00:13:50

They’re using different words, different jargon.

00:13:54

Coming back around full circle to what it is we do, they all say something about, we have to take into account the speaker's culture, the speaker's upbringing, their age, their use of language, their religion, their status, their authority and all of those things in this particular situation, where do they stand?

00:14:18

What is their viewpoint here and how is that affected by who they are with everything else we’ve said.

00:14:26

Who is the audience and everything about them that I just said?

00:14:31

My word choice, my sign choice is affected by all of those things, and how those words and languages are being used at this time and how they're developing or how they’re code switching at this time. All of those things are taken into account in the theoretical models that we have for the interpreting process.

00:14:55

What's nice about having many different models of sign language interpreting?

00:15:00

Is that each one of us can think, “Which one matches my understanding, my view of the interpreting process?”

00:15:09

Which one works for me?

00:15:12

Which one helps me develop my skills and find the right path to achieve the goals for this particular job?

00:15:21

We even think about ethics, dilemmas, demands, controls and the roles. The role of the interpreter…

00:15:29

How long have we been thinking about discussing, arguing, analyzing the role of the interpreter?

00:15:37

Well, how long have we been interpreting? Hmm. How many metaphors can we come up with?

00:15:43

How many terms can we use to describe our role?

00:15:48

Well, you know my opinion. If you listen to the episode a while back about one role and that is interpreter.

00:15:56

That's my opinion.

00:15:58

But the other terms may help you think about what it is we do as interpreters. What may be fashionable today just might not be fashionable tomorrow.

00:16:09

The signs I used 20 years ago, sometimes I cannot use those signs now because the terminology has changed, or clients determine what signs I should or should not use for different concepts.

00:16:25

But that's part of the role of interpreter.

00:16:28

Match what the client’s needs are.

[SHORT TRANSITION MUSIC]

[ROCK EXIT MUSIC STARTS]

00:16:36

Those of us who have been interpreting for a while know that fads and fashion go out of style, and they come back. Interpreting is no different.

00:16:47

Terminology may change, but the concepts and the discussions and the analyzing of everything comes back again and again and again.

00:16:58

The same topics pop up at workshops, at conferences, in research.

00:17:05

And at first, that sounds like a little boring.

00:17:08

Yeah, but the next generation, the new interpreters to the field also have to go through their developmental stages.

00:17:19

We all have to learn, and we all learn at different levels and times. We each have to learn about all of these concepts in our own time, in our own way, using the vocabulary of our current time.

00:17:34

And while the themes may be the same, regurgitated overtime, the people are different.

00:17:40

And they need to learn it.

00:17:43

We need to keep discussing it and look at it ourselves and remember why we are where we are.

00:17:51

It's all about the same goal. Improving our services for the clients that we serve.

00:17:57

And encouraging, promoting and growing the new generation of interpreters supporting each other of the same experience, pulling us along, reminding us that we are all in it together, that we are all serving the same goals.

00:18:16

The same wants and needs.

00:18:18

The terminology may change, but the respect, comprehension and understanding, and empathy stays the same.

00:18:28

We need to continue that fight. Continue talking about the topics, not just for ourselves, but for everyone, for those who have not heard it yet.

00:18:40

And if they use different language, different terminology, just understand they are also trying to understand.

00:18:49

If they don't always wear black, if they don't always wear sandals and socks together, they're still OK. Their fashion sense may not be as good as mine, but at least the water bottle doesn't leak.

00:19:04

And if they want to wear a belt pouch on their shoulder, try not to laugh.

00:19:09

I mean my girl looks adorable in it.

00:19:12

So, interpreter fashionista, keep calm, keep the interpreting fad going.

00:19:20

I'll see you next week. Take care now.

[ROCK EXIT MUSIC ENDS AT 00:19:58]