Business and Translation as Power Games: the automotive industry in Brazil

Abstract

Abstract:Corporate translation represents a real paradox for Translation Studies (TS): while the discipline's academic institutionalization and the origins of many translation training centres are heavily indebted to the globalization movement, fundamental research on communication in the economic pulse of this movement is still underdeveloped. The various impacts (in terms of economy, manpower and prestige) of international operations, which largely depend on multilingualism and translation, represent an excellent motivation for studying multinational companies' behaviour, especially at the intersection of language and power. With this in mind, the present article focuses on PSA Peugeot Citroën's activity in the Brazilian market in the expectation that the character of its power structure will be revealed in its external communication. A descriptive methodology was used to analyse all 2013 press releases on its Brazilian corporate website, in comparison with those on Argentinian and International sites, to determine how questions of power can explain textual shifts. The analysis demonstrates the extent of Brazilian publishing autonomy and the subsidiary's relationships with other corporate divisions. This case study can be considered an illustration of how corporate translation can quickly lead to core issues within TS. NEGÓCIOS E TRADUÇÃO COMO JOGOS DE PODER: A INDÚSTRIA AUTOMOBILÍSTICA NO BRASILResumo: A tradução realizada pelas empresas representa um paradoxo para os Estudos da Tradução. Embora a institucionalização acadêmica da disciplina e a origem de muitos centros de treinamento de tradutores estejam claramente relacionados ao movimento de globalização, a pesquisa fundamental sobre a comunicação na área econômica continua pouco desenvolvida. As múltiplas consequências (em termos econômicos, de mão de obra e de prestigio) das operações internacionais, amplamente dependentes do multilinguismo e da tradução, constituem excelentes motivos para estudar o comportamento das empresas multinacionais, prin-

Translatorial Linguistic Ethnography in Organizations

“…Although fieldwork methods are gaining popularity in Translation Studies, research skills in this area are not widely taught, making fieldwork a learning experience for most researchers. Even more importantly, the theoretical conceptualizations of organizational issues are not as robust as they might be if an interdisciplinary team was working together (for an example of an extensive textual analysis of translation in a MNC with a clear opening for input form the OS side see Brunelière, 2017).…”