A model for the construction of conversational common ground in interpreted discourse

This article examines the role of the interpreters in cross-linguistic discourse, arguing that earlier analyses of their functions as 'voiceboxes' or mere instruments of linguistic conversion do not adequately describe the processes by which linguistic common ground is constructed between speakers of different languages (Clark, Herbert H., 1992. Arenas of Language Use. University of Chicago Press, Chicago. Clark, Herbert H., 1996. Using Language Cambridge University Press, Cambridge). Central to this analysis is the notion that the interpreter must be engaged in the (re)construction of contextually relevant meaning (Wadensjo, Cecilia, 1998. Interpreting as Interaction. Longman, London and New York). These findings are demonstrated through the development of a model that accounts for all possible turn-types within interpreted discourse, and the application of this model to several stretches of naturally occurring interpreted medical discourse. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.