Jokes

Recently I gave a presentation to an audience of approximately 400 people. More than half of the audience were not Japanese and for many of them English was not their first language.  So, the event was held in English but an interpreter was also in the conference hall for those Japanese participants who couldn't understand English.




This gave me a problem.  During the course of my presentation there were several jokes that I knew would not translate or make any sense in Japanese and would possibly be difficult for non-native speakers of English to understand.  




This led me to think about how difficult jokes are for learners of a foreign language. As I see it, there are basically two barriers to understanding jokes:




1. The language itself.  


Unfamiliar vocabulary, grammatical structures, phrasal verbs, idioms etc.  




2. The cultural context.  


Even if you understand the all the linguistic elements of the joke, the grammar, vocabulary etc. without knowing the cultural background it is difficult to understand what is funny.  Indeed, often knowing the cultural background of the joke is essential to understanding why it is funny. Sometimes, jokes that British people might laugh at don't seem funny to Americans or vice-versa.




So with this in mind, I decided to find some jokes for you to have a look at. Some of these will be difficult because of the language, some because of the cultural background.




Jokes about Men




Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day.
Teach a man to fish and you get rid of him all weekend.

How does a man show that he is planning for the future?
He buys TWO cases of beer.

A traveling saleswoman is driving toward home in Arizona when she sees an Indian woman hitchhiking. She stops the car and the Indian woman gets in. After a bit of small talk, the Indian woman notices a brown bag on the front seat. "What's in the bag?", she asks. "It's a bottle of wine. I got it for my husband".
The Indian woman is silent for a while, then nods and says, 
"You made a good trade".

Jokes about Women

My girlfriend just saved me a lot of money - she married someone else.

One day a man was walking along the beach and found a bottle. He looked around and didn't see anyone so he opened it. A genie appeared and thanked the man for letting him out.
The genie said, "For your kindness I will grant you a wish, but only one."
The man thought for a minute and said, "I have always wanted to visit Hawaii but have never been able to because I'm afraid of flying and ships make me seasick. So I wish for a road to be built from here to Hawaii."
The genie thought for a minute and said, "No, I don't think I can do that. Just think of all the work involved: the pilings needed to hold up the highway, how deep they would have to be to reach the bottom of the ocean. Think of all the pavement that would be needed. No, that is just too much to ask."
The man thought for a minute and then told the genie, "Well, there is one other thing that I have always wanted. I would like to be able to understand my girlfriend. What makes her laugh and cry, why is she temperamental, why is she so difficult to get along with? Basically, what makes her tick?"
The genie considered for a few minutes and said, "So, do you want two lanes or four?"

Jokes about Education

Teacher: "Give me a sentence starting with the letter 'I'".

Student: "I is-"

Teacher: "NO! You must always say 'I am'."

Student: "Okay, 'I am the ninth letter of the alphabet'."

Teacher: "What is the outer part of a tree called?"

Student: "I don't know sir."

Teacher: "Bark, boy bark."

Student: "Woof-woof."

A student who changes the course of history is probably taking an exam.

A professor attempting to inspire his students says to his class, "This week is your last chance to study for your final exam next Monday. Time is running out. The exam is now in the hands of the printer. Are their any questions?"
One student inquires, "How many questions will their be?"
Another student asks, "Will the exam require essay answers?"
A third wants to know, "Who's the printer?"