The Verb Aspect Issue in English-French Translation Classes in a Francophone context

ABSTRACT : Walzing back and forth between English and French texts does make one have a story aboutverb aspects to tell, especially when it is about a teacher who also wears the professional translator’s hat. Thispaper strengthens the idea that verb aspects do make a difference in translation through parallel examples.Alllanguages have particular features that make them singular. But they all have in common the intricacy of verbaspects. While English focuses on two main aspects: simple and continuous, among others, French has manymore. Our experience and practice in classes have proven that students often misuse tenses whether theytranslate from English to French or vice versa. Their attitudes during translation exercises even shows anincapacity to tell the difference between the “présent simple” in French and the simplepresent in Englishwrongly thinking that both tenses are perfect matches. In the framework of the teaching of translation both as asimple school or university subject and a major study field for future professional translators, this paperhighlights the universal translation principle consisting in understanding the message the verb itself conveysbefore saying it in another language.

KEY WORDS: Context, polysemy, semantics, “thème,” tenses,“version”, verb aspects.