In this second journalism translation project by students of the MéLexTra JET master’s degree in English-French translation at Lille 3 University, this blog is aimed at readers of Mediapart English who wish to learn a little more about the French media coverage of the debates surrounding the government's bill, now law, allowing same sex couples to marry, adopt and have access to Artificial Reproductive Technology.
Who are we?
Ten students completing their second year ‘JET’ master’s degrees (Traduction Juridique et Technique) specialising in legal and technical translation between French and English. This project is part of a module (Thème journalistique) in which French journalism is translated into English. It is overseen and edited by the module’s teacher.
Translators:
- Alexandra BILTHAUER
- Stéphane DEVOS
- Charles EDDY
- Perrine JÉGOU
- Sophie KOWALCZUK
- Justine LAMARRE
- Eugénie LEGENDRE
- Adrien MARTEL
- Sophie PACIER
- Andréa ROME
Editor:
Sam TRAINOR
What sorts of articles are translated?
The principle concern is to give non-French readers a basic idea of how the proposed legislation would change French law, what impact it is likely to have on French society and how public and institutional reactions to these changes are mediated by the French press. The articles are therefore relatively diverse. They include reports and comments on demonstrations (both for and against the legislation), summaries of the debates in the National Assembly, interviews with key players and affected members of the public, opinion pieces on various sides of the debates, and so on. They come from a wide variety of local, national and international French news media sources, appearing in print, broadcast and online. Part of the point of the project is also to give non-French readers an insight into the various political leanings of the different sections of the French media and how these correlate (or not) with their positions regarding this issue. Articles have therefore been selected from sources with a broad spectrum of political leanings.
Where can the original articles be found?
In every case, copyright and publishing details are provided in the translations: the original authors, photographers etc. are always indicated. Links are also provided to online versions of the original articles in their original publishing context, wherever possible.
What is our translation policy?
Translations are initially provided by groups of 2 or 3 students, one of which is the initial or lead translator. These are sub-edited by the editor and posted online. They then undergo a final modification by the translators. Stylistically, the translations are relatively close to the originals and there is very little structural or syntactic reorganisation involved. Articles are not therefore modified to suit English journalistic ‘news style’. One of the key goals of the project is to give non-French readers an idea of how the candidates are presented in the French media. French journalistic style is therefore preserved in the translations. For a related reason, a number of terms are left in French, with links to the glossary article being preferred to explanatory translations. These include, for example, the abbreviated party names (like UMP and PS) and titles of political offices such as député.
What are the glossaries?
There are certain terms, names, abbreviations and references that recur in the articles that require a little further explanation. Instead of providing cumbersome explanatory notes within the articles themselves, glossaries are available that can be linked to directly from the articles. Alongside translations of the party names, political titles, and so on, there are also short explanations of the media outlets concerned and some of the key issues.
The first three glossaries are maintained from last year’s project, while the fourth is a new glossary specific the LBGT rights topic:
- Glossary 1: Party Names
- Glossary 2: French Media
- Glossary 3: Political Context
- Glossary 4: LGBT Rights, Political and Social Context
What kind of English is used?
Mediapart being a European publication, British English spellings are used throughout as are predominantly British English grammar and vocabulary. However, the French constitution and political context being closer in some circumstances to the language culture of the United States than the United Kingdom, there are a handful of globally recognisible American English idioms that have naturally been incorporated.