ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the critical discourse analysis (CDA) as a methodological approach to explore the nexus between translation as a social phenomenon and broader cultural and political structures. In translation studies, CDA can be used as a methodological approach to explore the nexus between translation as a social phenomenon and broader cultural and political structures. In general terms, the scholar’s critical approach invites us to investigate the way in which arguments are rationalised, and to examine syntactic and semantic representations under the conditions of communicative employment, for we use language strategically, expressively, and communicatively. Habermas’s invaluable contribution to critical theory and the theory of communicative action was influenced by Immanuel Kant’s transcendental methodology and critical philosophy, both of which continue to influence social thinkers and critical discourse analysts to this day. The philosophical investigation into the nature of human knowledge and language representations continues to inform the work of CDA theorists and researchers working with real-life language data today.
