The Importance Of Interpretation

1. If tasked with teaching some young interpreters, I would first focus on what interpretation exactly is. Although interpretation doesn’t have a real concise definition, I believe a discussion about the root of interpretation will help the young interpreters have a sense of direction as they continue to learn. It is important to begin with a learning foundation. I would encourage the following definition; “Interpretation is a public service, where you are having a conversation with the public about a person, place, or thing with intrinsic value while building connections with the public to object, so that they too will want to conserve and protect the object.” Will each interpreter use that exact definition? Probably not. Will the definition …show more content…
The visitor needs these questions answered in order to relax and free their mind, so they can just enjoy the presentation, and hopefully avoid any distractions. The next aspect I would focus on is research. Research is arguably the most important aspect of interpretation. Research allows you to present the tangibles of an accurate presentation, which makes you a credible interpreter. I would stress the importance of knowing your source, and being beware of bias. It’s important that the source comes from a credible resource, and your information is accurate. Completing the research, and knowing the facts will lead to confidence in presenting your information. The last point of emphasis I would focus on is the ability to have a conversation with your audience. The research you have done and the resulting confidence that it has given you should allow you to engage in more a conversation with your audience. This aspect of interpretation is the most important because this conversation allows you to relate to your audience and build connections between them and the subject of the talk. To build connections through conversation you need to balance intangibles and …show more content…
Living historians share many principles with interpreters but there are a couple differences. The first difference is obvious it’s the fact that the living historian is acting rather than just giving a guided tour. The living historian is putting on a performance, the living historian is acting as if he or she is in a different time and or place. A living historian is acting as a different person because of this the living historian’s research strategy changes. Instead of being wary of firsthand accounts and taking what they say with a grain of salt, those are the most precious resource a living historian can find if the source is from the person the living historian is acting as. Even if the living historian is acting a conglomerate character, the living historian can read multiple firsthand accounts and take a little information from each to create his or her own character while still being accurate about how the real people acted or felt. Not only are the you resource you are looking for slightly different from a regular interpreter but you also have more research to conduct due to the fact that you are becoming that person in the past. our new research needs to know include the language or phrases common during that time and place. You also need to research body language how different actions promote different feelings (ie: giving a thumbs up in one country doesn’t always mean the same thing in another). Another new aspect of research is the clothing. Clothing is