While “turns” in translation studies have long been embracing the theoretical complexity integrated into the
discussion of various translation phenomena, the theorisation of the use of technology and its impact on translation remain
under-represented in scholarly literature of the field (O’Hagan 2016). This article
considers the influence of technology on translation and reflects on the question as to how the interactive relationship between
technology and translation may be theoretically conceptualised. Taking an approach informed by sociological theory, this article
combines critical theory of technology (CTT) and actor-network theory (ANT) to examine the relationship between technology and
translation, as well as the translation players involved. With the advent of Web 2.0, techno-empowered collaborative translation
in the online TED Talks environment using Amara subtitling platform becomes a useful locale for discussion. Through a
participant-observation approach, that is, with the author’s experience in the online translation environment, this article aims
to explore how the technological elements in translation often described as “emergent property from new forms of translation
practice” (Cronin 2010, 1) may offer critical insights from an epistemological
perspective, especially the reciprocity between technology and its users.
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Buzelin, Hélèn. 2005. “Unexpected Allies: How Latour’s Network Theory Could Complement Bourdieusian Analyses in Translation Studies.” The Translator 11 (2): 193–218.
Buzelin, Hélèn. 2007. “Independent Publisher in the Networks of Translation.” TTR: Traduction, Terminologie, Redaction 19 (1): 135–173.
Cronin, Michael. 2010. “The Translation Crowd.” Revista Tradumàtica 81: 1–7.
Denison, Rayna. 2011. “Anime Fandom and the Liminal Spaces between Fan Creativity and Piracy.” International Journal of Cultural Studies 14 (5): 448–466.
Feenberg, Andrew. 1990. “The Critical Theory of Technology.” Capitalism Nature Socialism 1 (5): 17–45.
Feenberg, Andrew. 1991. Critical Theory of Technology. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Feenberg, Andrew. 2005. “Critical Theory of Technology: An Overview.” Tailoring Biotechnologies 1 (1): 47–64.
Feenberg, Andrew. 2017. “A Critical Theory of Technology.” Thesis Eleven. 1381. 635–663.
Feenberg, Andrew, and Sara M. Grimes. 2013. “Critical Theory of Technology.” In SAGE Handbook of Digital Technology Research, edited by Sara Price, Carey Jewitt, and Barry Brown, 121–129. London: Sage Publications.
Flew, Terry. 2008. New Media: An Introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Hyde, Adam. et al.2011. Open Translation Tools (Floss Manual). [URL]
Jansen, Dean, Aleli Alcala, and Francisco Guzman. 2014. “Amara: A Sustainable, Global Solution for Accessibility, Powered by Communities of Volunteers.” In Universal Access in Human-Computer Interaction: Design and Development Methods for Universal Access, edited by Constantine Stephanidis and Margherita Antona, 401–411. Cham, CH: Springer.
Jenkins, Henry. 2006. Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide. New York: New York University Press.
Kung, Szu-Wen. 2016. “Audienceship and Community of Practice: An Exploratory Study of Chinese Fansubbing Communities.” Asia Pacific Translation and Intercultural Studies 3 (3): 252–266.
Kung, Szu-Wen. 2017. “A Sociological Turn to Research of Chinese Translation Practice: With Reference to the Translation Production of Harry Potter.” In Routledge Handbook of Chinese Translation, edited by Chris Shei and Zhao-Ming Gao, 189–204. London: Routledge.
Latour, Bruno. 1996. “On Actor-Network Theory: A Few Clarifications.” Soziale Welt 47 (4): 369–381.
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Kelly, Nataly, Rebecca Ray, and Donald A. DePalma. 2011. “From Crawling to Sprinting: Community Translation Goes Mainstream.” Linguistica Antverpiensia 101: 75–96.
Kockaert, Hendrik, and Julia Makoushina. 2008. “Zen and the Art of Quality Assurance: Quality Assurance Automation.” In Proceedings of the Thirtieth International Conference on Translating and the Computer Conference Information: Translating and the Computer, 1–9. London: ASLIB.
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McLoughlin, Catherine, and Mark J. Lee. 2007. “Social Software and Participatory Learning: Pedagogical Choices with Technology Affordances in the Web 2.0 Era.” In ICT: Providing Choices for Learners and Learning Proceedings, 664–675. Singapore.
Northcut, Kathryn M.2007. “The Relevance of Feenberg’s Critical Theory of Technology to Critical Visual Literary: The Case of Scientific and Technical Illustrations.” Journal of Technical Writing and Communication 37 (3): 253–266.
O’Hagan, Minako. 2011. “Community Translation: Translation as a Social Activity and Its Possible Consequences in the Advent of Web 2.0 and Beyond.” Linguistica Antverpiensia 101: 1–10.
O’Hagan, Minako. 2016. “Massively Open Translation: Unpacking the Relationship between Technology and Translation in the 21st Century.” International Journal of Communication 101: 929–946.
Olovan, Maeve. 2014. “Why Do You Translate? Motivation to Volunteer and TED Translation.” Translation Studies 7 (1): 17–33.
Orrego-Carmona, David. 2014. “Using Non-Professional Subtitling Platforms for Translator Training.” Rivista internazionale di tecnica della traduzione [International journal of translation] 151: 129–144.
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Cited by (5)
Cited by five other publications
Xu, Minhui & Tianze Duan
2024. Networking in online collaborative translation. FORUM. Revue internationale d’interprétation et de traduction / International Journal of Interpretation and Translation 22:1 ► pp. 96 ff.
Angelucci, Margherita, Harrison Marshall, Meriem Tebourbi, Joshua Paolo Seguin, Delvin Varghese, Patrick Olivier & Tom Bartindale
2023. Proceedings of the 2023 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, ► pp. 1 ff.
Jiménez-Crespo, Miguel A.
2023. A Missing Link?. In Translaboration in Analogue and Digital Practice [Transkulturalität – Translation – Transfer, 57], ► pp. 25 ff.
2023. Reconceptualizing translation and translators in the digital age: YouTube comment translation on China’s Bilibili. Translation Studies 16:2 ► pp. 297 ff.
This list is based on CrossRef data as of 31 december 2024. Please note that it may not be complete. Sources presented here have been supplied by the respective publishers.
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