Introduction

This chapter presents a comprehensive view of how culture reveals itself at each logical level; practical examples of cultural differences; translating and interpreting issues in terms of logical levels. The words of Leonardo Zanier, poet from a mountain community in the North-Eastern tip of the Alps, clearly express the close relationship that is felt between the enclosed valleys and the unfulfilled desire of the inhabitants to be free of their surrounding environmental constraints. It is when political or religious ideology is not the subject of discussion, but part of the general background environment, that it can create tensions for the translator and interpreter. Brislin cites an article by Arsenault which discusses how the introduction of air-conditioning in the Southern States of America made an impact on 'the cultural value of Southern hospitality'. Literary and artistic styles change, and literary critics argue as to whether a text needs to be analyzed with respect to its temporal setting.