Ethics in Interpreter and Translator Training: Critical Perspectives

This introduction to the ITT special issue on Ethics and the Curriculum argues the need to engage more systematically with ethical issues in the context of translator and interpreter training, particularly in view of recent technological, social, political and professional developments that are yet to be explored in the literature in terms of ethical implications. The authors argue that accountability is now a key issue in all professions, and that the responsibility of translators and interpreters extends beyond clients to include the wider community to which they belong. In order for students to embrace this responsibility and develop an awareness of their impact on society, the classroom must be configured as an open space for reflection and experimentation. The article proposes types of activity that may be incorporated in the translation and interpreting curriculum in order to provide students with an opportunity to reflect on ethical questions in their own work and in the work of other translators and interpreters and it outlines some of the challenges posed to educators in this context.