The term
"interpreter" on the most basic level simply means a translator, or more specifically
someone who does oral translation in person as opposed to a literary translator who works
primarily with written materials.
The role of the interpreter is necessitates
by the linguistic situation of the Indian subcontinent. India has over 122 major languages, and
many different dialects. Over 29 Indian languages have more than one million native speakers.
There is no official language, but the two most commonly taught and spoken are English and
Hindi. Medical schools in India teach exclusively in English, and thus Indian doctors may
require interpreters if their patients speak languages with which they are
unfamiliar.
Kapasi works as an interpreter for a doctor due to his fluency
in several languages. Ironically, though, his linguistic expertise is not matched by his
cultural knowledge, and thus he fails to understand Mrs. Das, who is a westernized woman of
Indian descent.
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