What would you say are some of the world’s most intellectually stimulating occupations? Scientists have discovered that if we take as our primary criterion the number of brain zones activated in these occupations, simultaneous interpreters would score at or near the very top. Evidently, these professionals are not only required to listen and speak at the same time, but also memorize, analyze, and demonstrate creative thinking on the spot.
But before diving deeper into the benefits and pitfalls of this profession, let’s make sure we have a clear understanding of what the job entails.
When we use the word “translation,” we are usually referring to the process of rendering written information in another language, while “interpretation” entails oral communication. Moreover, the “simultaneous” nature of the job means that the interpreter has to convey the speaker’s address at the same time as it is being delivered with minimal delay. A stark comparison can be drawn with a consecutive interpretation process, in which the speaker pauses to let the interpreter convey the message.
While translation and consecutive interpretation have been around for millennia, the concept of simultaneous interpretation only appeared less than a century ago in the wake of World War II. Its primary purpose was and still is to facilitate diplomacy. It would take twice as long for negotiating parties to make headway [1] in their dialogue if they relied heavily on a sentence-by-sentence interpretation as opposed to a synchronized method.
In short, simultaneous interpreters orally translate speech on the spot, and are often employed in high-stakes situations. Needless to say, the job comes with cognitive benefits, a competitive salary, and prestige. Studies have shown that practicing bilinguals and trilinguals have a lower risk of suffering from Alzheimer's, dementia, and degenerative brain diseases later on in their lives. Additionally, this occupation carries a certain amount of prestige as it is conducted in diplomatic and business situations that deal with the most pressing issues of the time. Furthermore, considering the fact that these interpreters typically complete not more than a few 20-minute-long sessions a day, their compensation would seem impressive if divided by the hour. Fun fact: English-to-Korean interpreters are apparently the highest paid in the business.
However, like any other job, simultaneous interpretation comes with taxing challenges, including exhaustion, lofty responsibilities, and the state of being perpetually “switched-on [2].” Medical professionals have measured that a pulse of up to 160 beats per minute is nothing out of the ordinary for the laboring interpreter.
A few unique challenges arise depending on the peculiarities of the source and output language. In fact, these hurdles often correspond to the struggles foreign language learners face.
For example, the standard word order in Korean is subject-object-verb in comparison to the subject-verb-object structure in English. This means that if an interpreter is translating from Korean to English, and the speaker chooses a wordy object, they won’t be able to communicate any of that information until they hear the verb. An instance like this would call for the interpreter to not only retain large chunks of information in their head, but also to find a way to fill the silence in an attempt to make the listener’s experience as seamless as possible.
It is not unheard of for the interpreters to be kept in the dark [3] as far as the details of the upcoming event are concerned. Thus, simultaneous interpreters have to be well-versed in anything from politics and economics to sports and the environment. Unsurprisingly, these experts tend to set aside a sizable portion of their free time for self-development, keeping up with current affairs, and educating themselves on a variety of academic disciplines and social trends.
The interpreter’s worst nightmare is hearing the speaker say “It’s like in that joke…” When that happens, there are three ways out. The daring interpreters would go ahead with the word-for-word translation praying that the joke doesn’t end with an awkward language-specific pun. Other professionals might choose to tell an alternative time-proven anecdote, often unrelated to the matter but designed to lighten the mood. The remaining linguists profess: “The speaker is telling a joke. While incredibly funny, it is untranslatable, so please laugh.”