Les caractéristiques du texte selon M. Bakhtine et selon les auteurs de la théorie interprétative de la traduction

This article compares the conclusions of the authors of the Interpretive Theory of Translation on the text as the object of translation with the « discourse theory » of Russian thinker and literary critic M. Bakhtine, contained in his various writings on the philosophy of language. Danica Seleskovitch and Marianne Lederer share the same view as Bakhtine on the definition of the text and its main caracteristics in verbal interaction. We show that, unbeknownst to each other, Mikhaïl Bakhtine and the authors of the Interpretive Theory have reached similar conclusions on the text defined as a unit of communicative interaction. First of all, a text is determined by its sense as a whole, unlike words and sentences which only possess language meanings. Second, a text (and its sense) is unique, non-repetitive and original, while words and sentences, inasmuch as they are linguistic units, can be repeated and reproduced ad infinitum, because they exist even outside the context of a communication situation. Furthermore, texts, as verbal interaction units, always possess an author and are receiver-oriented ; they are always linked to other texts (intertextuality) and point to « values ». Other characteristics of the text, mentioned only by Bakhtine, are also described here ; notably, the change of speakers, the « finished » aspect of the discourse utterance and its expressive intonation.