The need for translation and the developement of Traductology. History of its developement

After the introduction, the writer provides a historical overview of traductology and of its major achievements until the present time when it has expanded inmensely, with obvious consequences for the trainint of translation and for theoretical reflection on the activity of translating.

The article then reviews the various theories that have arisen through history, showing how they revovlved around two major discussion ponits: tanslatability (or lack of it) and faithfulness to the original, without solving the basic problems. Thus, it was not until the second half of the 20th century, coinciding with the growth in the world of translating, that the first systematic attempts at theonzing were to be found.

After a brief overview of these efforts, the author proposes to classify them depending on whether they treat translating as 1) an inerlinguistic operation, 2) an intercultural oeration, 3) an intertextual operation.

At the present time, a new way of analysing the act of translating has been proposed, whereby all the elements involved int the act are taken into account on the basis of its textual nature.According to the author the starting point has to be the consideration that translating is a textual activity, but at the same time a communicative act and an activity of the subject. Thus, it is not only the mechanismes of textual change that have to be studied, but also the elements involved in the communicative act and the mental processes set in motion by the subject-translator.

The advances achieved over the last few years have brought about greater acquaintance with the act of translating and have led to the birth of a new discipline, traductology, in spite of the existence of diferent approaches. the developement ofthis discipline is running parallel to the growing need for and development of translation in present-day society as a vital element ofr cimmunication between peoples and to safeguard one's own language and culture.