Abderrahman Boukhaffa's Vision: Rethinking Translation Ethics Through Self-Care

Morocco World

13-02-2025

Translation is often perceived as a passive act, a mere transposing of meaning from one language to another. Yet, beneath this supposedly tranquil surface lies the tangled undergrowth of power, ethics, and professional tethers around every decision taken by the translator.
Conventional ethical frameworks note loyalty to clients and fidelity to the source text, but what happens when these principles conflict with a translator's intellectual and moral agency?
In this discussion, Abderrahman Boukhaffa contests traditional notions of translation ethics, advocating for a self-care approach that empowers translators to navigate the industry on their own terms.
For Boukhaffa, translation is more than a mechanical act of transferring words from one language to another. It is an intellectual and ethical endeavor shaped by power configurations, professional constraints, and the translator's agency.
His latest work challenges conventional approaches to translation ethics, arguing for a self-care framework that empowers translators within an industry often dominated by external forces.
In an interview with Morocco World News (MWN), Boukhaffa shares his academic and professional journey, his critique of existing ethical models, and the broader societal responsibilities of translators.
A scholar's path from Morocco to Canada
Boukhaffa's academic career spans multiple countries and languages, beginning with a B.A. in English Studies, specializing in linguistics, from Mohammed I University in 1999.
He later earned an M.A. in Translation, Communication, and Journalism at the King Fahd School of Translation in Tangier before moving to Canada for a PhD in Translation Studies at the University of Ottawa.
During his doctoral studies, he held various prestigious scholarships, including the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) Scholarship, valued at $105,000, as well as the Ontario Graduate Scholarship (OGS) and the University of Ottawa Excellence Scholarship.
These allowed him to take on assistantship positions and further fine-tune his skills.
However, his love for writing came even before his academic career.
'My first major publication was a book in Arabic titled 42 Days in the Land of Uncle Sam,' he recalls. This early taste of writing and publishing instilled in him an appreciation of language and its power, which undergirded much of his work on translation ethics.
Power, language, and the ethics of translation
Meanwhile, Boukhaffa's career path wavered between teaching, translation, and research. However, the relationship between language and power is the question that has always preoccupied his mind.
He attributes this fascination to his upbringing in a bilingual Amazigh -Arabic environment.
'I grew up in a very bilingual environment, speaking both Amazigh and Arabic simultaneously, which made me aware of the structural and stylistic similarities and differences between languages at a very early age,' he explains.
This awareness was deepened as he engaged with French and English, which led him to consider how some languages dominate others due to historical, political, and economic forces.
Boukhaffa's research focuses on how power operates within the translation industry itself, especially in fashioning ambiguous ethical decisions.
'Ethics is not just about the relationship between the translator and the text,' he argues. 'It's also about the translator's position in a hierarchy where clients, publishers, and institutional norms dictate ethical choices.'
His book goes against existing ethical frameworks that prioritize faithfulness and loyalty to clients over the translator's intellectual and ethical agency.
Rethinking translation ethics – the self-care approach
In contrast to hegemonic ethical theories in translation, such as the ethics of otherness and functionalist approaches Boukhaffa proposes a model grounded in self-care, drawing on Michel Foucault's concept of ' Epimeleia Heautou .'
For him, the idea is simple but powerful: 'One cannot genuinely care for others without first practicing self-care.' He argues that translators, often undervalued and constrained by rigid codes of ethics, lack the autonomy to make meaningful ethical choices.
Existing ethical codes, he contends, reinforce external control over translators rather than fostering genuine ethical decision-making. 'These codes function as ideologies of alienation,' he says.
'They serve the interests of powerful clients, not the translator or the broader society.'
The limits of professional codes of ethics
Professional codes of ethics are often seen as safeguards for integrity, but Boukhaffa's research highlights their limitations. 'In professions like medicine or law, ethical codes contribute to professional recognition and autonomy,' he says.
'But in translation, they often do the opposite.' Translation codes prioritize client satisfaction and contractual obligations over intellectual autonomy, he explains, lamenting that this reinforces a perception of translators as service providers rather than experts.
Another major issue is that these codes ignore the complexity of ethical decision-making. 'Ethics is situational,' Boukhaffa argues.
'A principle that is ethical in one case may be unethical in another. Yet, translation codes operate as if ethical dilemmas have simple, universal solutions.'
He gives the example of faithfulness: 'Should a translator 'faithfully' translate harmful or discriminatory content without intervention? Sometimes, ethical responsibility requires deviation from strict fidelity.'
Furthermore, these codes fail to address larger social and environmental concerns. 'Why do ethical codes not consider the impact of translating for corporations with unethical practices?' he asks.
'If a translator is working on materials for a company known for environmental damage, do they have an ethical obligation to intervene in some way?'
Practical applications of self-care ethics
Boukhaffa's self-care ethics framework has practical implications for translation studies, professional organizations, and translator education.
He advocates for a more flexible, non-coercive ethical charter that gives translators greater control over their ethical decisions. 'Rather than imposing rigid rules, we should equip translators with the intellectual tools to critically engage with ethical dilemmas,' he says.
In translation education, he calls for a shift away from passive ethical training toward a transformative learning model.
'Students should be encouraged to reflect critically on their role as translators and the ethical consequences of their work,' he explains. He believes this approach will not only empower translators but also improve their symbolic recognition within the profession.
One of Boukhaffa's studies illustrates the potential of an empowered translator. In 2018, he analyzed the Arabic translation of Bernard Lewis's book The Crisis of Islam: Holy War and Unholy Terror. 'The translator actively resisted Lewis's negative portrayal of Muslims by strategically reframing parts of the text,' he says. Even the title was altered to Islam and the Crisis of the [Modern] Era: Holy War and Unholy Terror (الإسلام وأزمة العصر: حرب مقدسة وإرهاب غير مقدس), subtly shifting the original message.
Translation ethics, beyond the profession
Boukhaffa's work also explores the broader societal responsibilities of translators. He believes translation ethics should extend beyond professional concerns to engage with social justice and environmental issues.
'Translation is not a neutral act,' he argues. 'Translators mediate narratives that can either reinforce or challenge dominant ideologies.'
He points to cases where translators can play an active role in resisting unethical discourse. 'If you're translating corporate documents for a company with a history of environmental violations, should you add a footnote clarifying their record? Or should you refuse the project altogether?'
Unfortunately, he laments that these essential questions are missing from current discussions on translation ethics.
A call for intellectual and ethical empowerment
At its core, Boukhaffa's work is about reclaiming intellectual and ethical agency for translators. 'Freedom is the ontological condition of ethics,' he says, quoting Foucault. 'If translators lack autonomy, they cannot act ethically in a meaningful way.'
Boukhaffa sees his self-care framework as a pathway toward greater recognition, allowing translators to assert their expertise rather than being confined to the role of linguistic intermediaries.
His research, which is still ongoing, focuses on integrating his self-care ethics framework into translation education while also exploring how future translators can be trained to engage more critically with ethical hurdles.
'This is an evolving conversation,' he says. 'But the first step is shifting how we understand ethics, not as something imposed from above, but as something we cultivate within ourselves.'
By subverting enshrined norms and advocating for translator empowerment, Boukhaffa's work presents a bold vision for the future of translation ethics. He longs for a world in which translators are not just passive agents of language transfer but active participants in shaping discourse, power, and ethical practice. Tags: academic writingLiteraturemoroccan authorMoroccan scholartranslation