Why Aren’t You Laughing?
I think one of the things that is hardest to translate from one culture to another is humor. Humor can change quite a bit between cultures and even between subcultures within the same society. The lesson I’m using as an example in this post comes from my favorite web comic, Penny Arcade, which deals with the geek/gaming subculture.
The comic in question is here.
What I love about this comic, besides that I think it’s hilarious, is the sheer amount of background cultural knowledge one needs to understand it. Hopefully it will facilitate a good discussion on the subject. It’s also fun for me to teach because it’s something I’m interested in. I think a teacher’s enthusiasm for a subject often shows through and rubs off on the students.
I really wanted to use it in a lesson when I saw it. I’m not really happy with the lesson I’ve got now and haven’t had a chance to try it out, so if anybody does or has suggestions to improve it, I’d love to hear your ideas.
Even without a full lesson, the comic is a great example of how important understanding culture is when using another language. Of course, not all English speakers will understand the comic either, but that’s part of the point and something that should be brought up with the students. The students don’t need to know everything about other cultures. It’s up to them and you to learn what is important and what isn’t and how to go about learning that information. You can also discuss with your learners if they will actually ever be communicating with native speakers and so need to know this information. Over on Ken Wilson’s Blog there has been a nice debate going on on the importance, or lack thereof, of teaching culture, so there’s no need for me to rehash it here.
I’ve been meaning to blog about the subject for a while myself and since Ken brought it up, now would be a good time.
Language has no real meaning in isolation; the meaning comes from the context in which it is spoken, the background of the speakers, and the culture that created the language. Our old friend @DFogarty goes into a better and more thorough explanation of the Russian philosopher Bakhtin’s view on this on his blog Tao Te(a) Ching. I don’t want to argue much for the importance of teaching culture here, though. I’m just going to give one way in which I think it’s important.
Students who are just starting to learn a language love to look only at form and function. They want to know the structures and the rules (In Turkish kalipler and kurallar), that’s about it. We sometimes have to convince them of the need to understand the context within which the language is used.
I used to work at Wall Street Institute where we rarely taught anything, we just tested the students. Learning is computer-based and native speakers merely check the students progress and decide if they are ready to move on. Within the exams or encounters, as they were called, we simply created a context for the language we wished the students to produce and then it was up to the students. Over and over again you would repeat (fail) students that swore up and down they knew the things you were failing them for. It might be something simple, like “Neither do I”. After setting up a number of situations where the students were supposed to produce the language and instead would produce “Me, too” which is a translation from the Turkish, you would show them their errors and tell them why they needed to repeat. They would always protest, “But I know that !” Of course, what they meant is that they know the grammar structure. What was clear they didn’t know was how, why, or when the language was used.
We all know how important it is to look at the context the language is coming from and how it provides meaning to the language used. Eventually, the students begin to understand that a language is much more than a set of structures and rules that can be put together like some mathematical formula. This can be done by doing something as simple as pointing out the fact that many cultures do not refer do dead soldiers as martyrs or as complicated as analyzing a poem or our comic 
.
Does anybody else use lessons that teach culture? What kind of lessons do you do? Should we bother talking about culture if, as Ken points out, most students will never actually taught to a native speaker in English? What does language without the culture that speaks it look like? If the majority of English speakers are actually non-native speakers, what implication does this have for our profession?
Lesson: Why Aren’t You Laughing?
Related Posts:
The Penny Arcade Mr. Period Series
Ken Wilson’s Contribution to the Culture Debate
Kalinago – The Globality of English
Lesson Ideas | turklis1 | 
December 3, 2009 6:58 pm
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By Henrick Oprea, December 6, 2009 @ 8:12 pm
Teaching humour in the classroom is one of the most complicated things to do. I once had a discussion with a British English teacher in Brazil which was exactly about that. He said he wouldn’t go to the theatre in Brazil, especially to watch a comedy sketch, because he simply didn’t find the kind of humour that funny. He could speak and understand Brazilian Portuguese, so the words were not a problem for him, the problem was simply with the kind of humour and the topics chosen. And, just as you pointed out, this is also true within subcultures. However, I don’t think it’s because people don’t understand the comic strip (in this case in particular). Humour is a personal characteristic. What I find funny may be extremely boring to all my friends, which is actually good.
I didn’t take part in Ken’s discussion, but I believe we should teach culture. Granted: many students won’t really talk to native speakers. However, who am I to decide that? Should I, as a teacher, limit what I’m teaching based on the preconception that my learners are not going to have to talk to native speakers? I don’t think so. It’s the same as telling my learners that they should be happy with their level of English (for instance, B2 in the CEF). Who am I to say this? What do I know about this student’s future in order to tell him when it’s enough. The fact that most learners want to simply be able to communicate in the target language so that they can travel to Disney on their holidays does not mean that I should limit all my learners’ objectives to that.
By Karenne Sylvester, December 6, 2009 @ 8:17 pm
Okay, this is the 3rd time I’m back to your site simply because I know I wanted to say something about it but wasn’t sure how to phrase what I wanted to say!
I agree with you that culture is important to teach – one of my recent lesson plans is that I am getting my students to create an official “welcome guide” to Stuttgart for the Chinese interns that regularly come over and work for a brief time in their offices.
There have been various cultural misunderstandings in the past so this will serve as an intro – in one of my other groups at the same company we’re making a guide to China and Chinese culture for the managers who regularly go over to train there.
But I hadn’t thought of including a comic…
I think comedy is probably the hardest thing in the world to translate because it so incredibly dependent on so many thousand bits of stories, so much background and ways of living that we can almost never make it translate.
I’m not sure about this lesson… because I’m not sure about the relevance or the “connect” to your students’ lives, unless of course, they’re heading to the US.
I hope you don’t mind that critique – the fact is your lesson plan is very well laid out and you definitely put time and energy into it… and I’m a die-hard dogmeist always searching for the link in language…
What do you think of my thoughts?
Karenne
p.s. how can I subscribe to your comments – so I know you’ve replied?
By admin, December 7, 2009 @ 12:19 pm
In the conversation over on Ken’s Blog Andy Hockley brought up the idea of teaching intercultural communication skills rather than culture per se. It very much depends on our learner’s context, but I thought that idea definitely had something to it.
The point of the lesson, and the reason I used humor (besides the fact that it amused me
) is that I think it makes it clear to the students how cultural and contextual knowledge is important in understanding language. I agree that it’s not relevant to their lives and that the humor quite possibly won’t translate even if they had the prior knowledge. My aim with the lesson is simply to demonstrate to the students its relevance and then use that as a jumping off point to discuss learning about culture and context in the class. By pointing out the sheer amount of background knowledge needed and because many of the words are simple yet the students probably won’t understand their connection (to American football for example), it should get what I’m trying to convey across.
I agree very much with your critique and I think that a more relevant lesson topic could be found, I just happen to like this comic
Not always reason enough to bring it into the classroom, but I’ll admit I indulge myself from time to time. Do you have a particular method for bringing up the importance of culture and context in your classes? I’d love to get some more ideas on this.
Thanks for pointing out the subscription thing. Most people’s blogs have that so I assumed mine did automatically as well. The plug-in is installed now and should be working.
By admin, December 7, 2009 @ 12:32 pm
Hi Henrick, thanks for stopping by. I feel the same way as your friend about most Turkish humor. I get it, but it just isn’t humorous to me. You’re absolutely right that understanding the comic strip won’t necessarily lead people to finding it funny. A joke is rarely funny if you have to think about it. For me, the point of the exercise is not to have the students understand the humor as much as it is to have them notice the importance of understanding so much more in the language besides just grammar and vocab. The comic in question brings up lots of culturally rich info like Proust, Final Fantasy, American football, fantasy football, and beer. I chose it for that rather than for the humor.
Interesting point on the culture. I suggest taking a look at Ken’s comments as it was quite an interesting discussion (you can find the link at the bottom of my post). I think the argument is that, if the majority of your students will never talk to a native speaker, why should time be spent on native speaker culture in the class? Wouldn’t it be more beneficial to focus more on language contexts we know they are likely to encounter? There is also the issue of watered down NEST culture like what we have for breakfast, which was one of Ken’s main complaints. You’re right that we shouldn’t limit them, but the question is more one of focus. If all of your students did only want to travel to Disney world, wouldn’t it be better to focus largely on language about Disneyland and travel? Do they need to talk about politics or religion or know what American geeks find funny?
Personally, I think teaching culture is quite important, but these recent online discussions have really made me think twice about what I teach, how much I teach it, and if my students will find it useful.
By Alice M, December 7, 2009 @ 1:34 pm
Culture and language are totally interwined.I remember how proud I was when I first understood the TV show “Have I Got News for You” from A to Z!! such joy!!
But I find culture and references very hard to teach. Here is my little grain of salt (mon petit grain de sel !): everyday I grab the free press and show the students the headlines, with images. French journalists (like all journalists in the world) love puns and love to play with words, so we have a ten minutes look at the big titles, it gives us a moment to talk about what they know of French politics and current affairs, and to see the underlying references to the puns and headlines.
By admin, December 7, 2009 @ 2:25 pm
Hi Alice, thanks for your grain
Should I take your comment with a grain of salt as well? Oh puns… how I love thee 
I really like your headline activity. I used to do an idiom of the day, which often brought up a lot of cultural discussion. I like the headlines idea a lot. I tend to shy away from them because they are a form of English little used outside of headlines, but you’re right. It’s a great starting point for current affairs and culture discussions. I’ll give it a try. Thanks for the tip!
By Nicky, December 8, 2009 @ 2:40 pm
Hey Nick, been meaning to comment on this post for a while, just getting around to it.
I’ve come to appreciate Spanish humor a great deal, more so than just about any other ex-pat I know. Don’t know if that’s a testament to my language skills, my degree of integration, or a general dumbing-down of my tastes. Also, it’s easy to stereotype “Turkish humor” or “Spanish humor” or “Japanese humor” as being a certain way, but at least in the case I know best, Spain, there’s actually a wide range of styles and flavors. There’s Eugenio on one end and Chiquito de la Calzada on the other. Buenafuente and Crónica marcianas. Fart jokes and cerebral verbal humor. But the key is the cultural knowledge, esp. in the latter. I think people who poo-poo Spanish humor do so because a lot of it goes over their head.
I know American football is probably unfamiliar to your students but fairly easy to explain, since it’s sports after all. As far as RPGs, I don’t know about in Turkey, I mean, I was an RPGer once(yeah, I was known to throw around some 20-sided dice when I was a kid), but not sure if there’s a lot of RPGers over there. Maybe with the advent of the FF saga that stuff’s gotten around more.
As far as your LP goes, I think it could be improved by broadening the focus a bit–specifically, I think you could open it up with a discussion of hobbies and interests, specifically one related to the internet, get students talking about what kind of sites they visit, etc. To sort of set up the schema for the reading, which after all is about the dissonance between one character’s geek tendencies and the guilty pleasure of sports. I tend to use humor (in the form of videos or articles) in this way: to freshen up an area of subject matter that students have seen a million times or that can inherently be a bit boring.
End of rant!
By admin, December 8, 2009 @ 6:46 pm
Wow, thanks for the great input. WoW has a huge following over here, so most male students are familiar with the RPG genre. You also chucked some dice around in days of yore, huh? I often wish I could give my students a +3 English Speaking Notebook of Beyondness. It would make my job much easier. Are you also familiar with the Shivan Dragon and Swords to Ploughshares I wonder? So much youth wasted on my involved and wonderfully constructed fantasy worlds
I usually open up my topics if my original intro falls flat or gets little response. I like to narrow it near the topic just because I feel it transitions better, but you’re right in that it might get them talking a bit more.
I love using humor and your lessons are rife with it, which I love. I still haven’t posted a number of my funny ones, but you can check The Easter Bunny Hates You lesson over on the lesson plans page for a taste of my brand of class humor.
By Karenne Sylvester, December 8, 2009 @ 8:53 pm
Hi ya! it works
Re culture and intercultural competence – I did a couple of workshops and then a seminar on how to teach these but… sorry, I’m going to be pedantic… I teach when it crops up naturally in context!!! Don’t hate me cause I’m dogme.
K
By admin, December 9, 2009 @ 7:46 am
I just taught a doctor visit lesson where we brainstormed some sicknesses and symptoms. We forgot dogmeitis! I’ll be sure to inform them today
. Truthfully, I’m more and more dogme these days. We ended up doing that lesson yesterday cause I walked in and 2 of the students had gotten sick the night before.
I try to teach most things in context as well, but I don’t mind bringing the topic up myself. There is an idea in dogme that even the topics should come from the students. I don’t think this has to be true all the time.