“A joke is a very serious thing.” – Winston Churchill
During Tuesday’s class, we discussed the importance of jokes in language. Because jokes are often set in a historical or political context and require background knowledge, different jokes indicate different cultures. Professor Boroditsky provided the following example. The common Navajo joke is “white people like apples.” To understand this joke, people need to have the necessary background. First, they must know that apples are red on the outside and white on the inside. Then, they must connect that piece of information with the historical context – the subjugation of Native Americans by colonizing powers. But by the time the joke is explained, it looses its effect.
In thinking about jokes, I realized that when I attempt to translate jokes from Ukrainian to English, the jokes lose their humor. For a joke to be successful, the listener must draw an instantaneous connection with the elements of the joke, to quickly catch the irony or surprise.
But is it really necessary that we understand jokes in other languages…
YES if you agree with a recent article I read.
The writer elaborated on an anecdote from his friend Ramzeen Azeez, who was told that he was given the Secretary’s post because the others were unable to joke in English. Ramzeen writes: “I was enlightened and lights flashed in the old grey matter: English speaking not only entails proper use of the language but also encompasses its humor.”
In retrospect, it makes sense that the final test of language ability is “the Joke Test.” It is important to understand various jokes. People bond over jokes and jokes are everywhere. English Puns are a cornerstone of English literature. Cultural jokes are prevalent among multi-ethnic communities. I hope that my languages classes incorporate more jokes, because we need to understand the cultures of the places we study…and if we can’t catch on to the subtleties, then the joke’s on us!
I loved the end to his article, so here it is:
“My late mother used to tell me that when someone jokes around, the world laughs with him/her, but if that’s all you do, the world laughs at him/her. The last laugh will reside with the person who can see and be beyond language and language politics, I think.”
Want to test your ability to understand English jokes? Check this out!
http://www.angelfire.com/on/topfen/jokes01.html
And a joke to end my post…
"The problem with political jokes is they get elected."
Article: Humour: the final frontier in language competency?
Source: http://www.dailynews.lk/2010/04/21/fea02.asp
I love this post! I really liked our discussion about jokes, in combination with this post and article about the importance of jokes, even in education, because it was a part of language learning that I never thought about before. Language classes often focus on syntax/vocabulary, etc. When classes deviate from this study of a language's fundamental elements, sometimes the teacher plans lessons surrounding "culture"- which ranges from music to dance to food from various relevant language speaking places. Jokes, to me, seem to be a perfect cross-section between these two areas of study that would prove very useful in teaching students about the culture while also teaching students about the language itself (as well as how the two interact).
ReplyDeleteI think there are a few things that push a language learner from the level of student to fluent speaker and one of them is the ability to makes jokes in that language. As you mentioned, to make a joke in a foreign language, you have to understand so much more than grammar. It's about the cultural, political, and social environment of a country. When I was in Lebanon last summer, when I met new people, I started speaking French with them but quickly diverged to English because I felt it was easier to be myself (in terms of being funny and accurately expressing myself). So jokes are no laughing matter! Tehehe. bad pun. sorry.
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