Translators and Translation Studies

Abstract The present article examines the role of translation studies in mediating the hegemonic ideology of the New Consumerism, of which advertising is a pivotal mouthpiece. The TS-inspired perspective proposed here draws on green activism, psychology and race and feminist studies, and makes particular use of semiotics as a tool of analysis. The critical method adopted throughout consists of a series of three inoculations (Sagarin et al. 2002) of increased complexity, which seek to raise awareness, principally among translation scholars themselves, with respect to their potential role in exposing and contesting some of the ethically negative aspects of advertising today. Stage one of inoculation draws on a basic understanding of Saussure’s approach to the sign; stage two complements the previous inoculation with Barthian concepts of denotation and connotation; stage three focuses on intertextuality’s systemic, social and subjective nuances. It is argued here that resisting the New Consumerism will benefit from the input of translation scholars. Proposals for engaging with a TS propramme of resistance bring to the fore textual meanings and meaning potentials that we, as consumers, cannot afford to ignore. It is further argued that translation studies will also benefit from participating in this programme of resistance.