How can I help? An archetype-based approach to community interpreters’ solidarity

Abstract

Considering different archetypes —i.e., collective identity representations— helps to discern the multiple ways in which community and public service interpreters are compelled to be of help. I argue that archetypes are a useful analytical tool for interpreters: It allows them to name competing rationales for solidarity; it helps them identify underlying personal motivations that might otherwise remain unconscious; and it permits a conscious decision-making process for the search of ethical courses of action when faced with dilemmas. Conscious decision-making warrants coherent practice that aligns with high professional standards supporting the communicative autonomy of the parties to an interaction. In this article, I present both the model for this archetype-based approach to interpreters’ professional role as well as the analysis of three interpreters’ narrative accounts of their perceptions of role, solidarity, and the model proposed. This input from the field yields rich insights, illustrates the analytical power of the archetypes proposed, and suggests that an expansion of their list might be in order.