This paper is available for the academic year 2023-24.
The aim of the course is to expand and consolidate your ability to translate from and into Portuguese. You will reflect on translation practices, improve your understanding of the processes involved and develop strategies to tackle translation problems methodically.
This paper allows you to consolidate your reading and writing skills in Portuguese, enhance your knowledge of advanced grammar and vocabulary, and develop your sensitivity to identify and reproduce register and tone in the translation process. On completion of this course, you further develop your skill to analyse and discuss translation with the appropriated concepts and terminology.
The teacher will provide students with passages organised around specific language structures, register and/or cultural topics to explore. In preparation for this paper, you are advised to read authentic Portuguese texts as widely as possible. The following website compiles works in public domain, including Fernando Pessoa’s poems and Machado de Assis’ complete works: http://www.dominiopublico.gov.br/
This is a weekly class, which means that you will have a total of 20 one-hour sessions throughout the year, eight in Michaelmas, eight in Lent and four in Easter. The into English and into Portuguese components alternate. It is still essential that you supplement the work done in class with independent work. You will find additional materials and suggestions on the paper's Moodle site.
This paper is assessed in a three-hour exam. The exam consists of one passage in English (300 words) for translation into Portuguese, and one passage in Portuguese (450 words) for translation into English. You can access the marking criteria for this paper here.
Past papers and examiners reports are available on the MML Moodle website. When consulting past papers and reports, please bear in mind that from Tripos 2013 to Tripos 2017 this was a two-hour paper and passages for translation were shorter.
The PGC1 paper is one of three language papers you are required to take in your final year. Together, papers C1, C2 (which you can take in Portuguese or in another language) and the Part II Oral make up the equivalent weighting of two full papers. The weight distribution is as follows:
| Paper | Weighting |
|---|---|
| C1 | 70% of a whole paper |
| C2 | 70% of a whole paper |
| CO (oral) | 60% of a whole paper |
You can take C1 and C2 in the same or in different languages. You must take the C Oral in the same language as either paper C1 or C2.
Mr Felipe Schuery | |
Dr Vivien Kogut Lessa de Sá |
