Semantic Compression in Note Taking During Consecutive Interpreting: Evidence from English–Uzbek Diplomatic Discourse
Abstract
The aim of this research paper is to examine semantic compression in note-taking during consecutive interpreting by focusing on how compressed notes may underrepresent modality, evaluative stance, and pragmatic mitigation in English–Uzbek diplomatic discourse. The study treats notes as semantic cues rather than a transcript by building on cognitive and pedagogical descriptions of consecutive interpreting as a two‑phase process (listening + written fixation–target-language reformulation). Using a small, transparent corpus of official bilingual diplomatic texts (English and Uzbek versions published by official Uzbek state platforms), the analysis compares minimal “proposition-only” notes with “semantic‑cue‑enriched” notes that explicitly encode modality or stance. Findings show that the main risk of compression is not loss of factual content, but shifts in diplomatic tone, especially when hedges (e.g., it should be noted, would be appropriate), deontic modality (should), and stance markers (certainly, concern) are not represented in the notes. The paper proposes a language‑oriented semantic‑cue layer for note-taking that preserves diplomatic pragmatics while remaining compatible with compression principles.