Negative Humor

This past weekend, my parents and I went and saw The Book of Mormon in Dallas.  Going into the theater, I had no idea of what to expect.  All I knew was that it was a musical comedy created by the creator of South Park and it was about Mormon missionaries.  What I did not know before watching the musical was how crude and negative the humor would be.

For those of you who do not know what the musical is about, you can read a synopsis here (warning: there are spoilers).

While the entire musical is riddled with negative humor, I am going to focus on one scene.  As the Mormon missionaries arrive in Uganda and begin speaking with the Ugandans, the villagers tell the missionaries that they sing a song to cheer them up when they are distressed about their daily hardships.  This song is in their native tongue and essentially means “F*** You, God!”

For many in the audience, they were prepared for obscene and degrading language.  For me, I knew that the musical was a religious satire, but I was not prepared for the berating and assailing language used.  I looked over to see my mother’s reaction, knowing she is a deeply religious person, and saw that she was appalled.  She was shocked at the concept while I was shocked at the fact that the musical has had so much success despite its demeaning messages.

My speculation is that the majority of the audience felt superior to the developing country of Uganda.  There is a certain sense of disengagement from the situation considering that the audience is predominantly American and that the musical is performed in the United States by mainly American actors.  While the audience may be disengaged, the situation, in particular, was still offensive because it insulted the majority religion of the United States; according to a Gallup poll, 77 percent of Americans identify as Christian.

While the strong negative humor shocked me, I understand that the musical was a “somewhat innocuous” medium to ridicule certain groups of people since the majority of the audience seemed to be prepared for the musical …unless they were like me.

Breaking Out Into Laugher - #2

Since my llama story got such a great response from my peers, I thought I would share another humorous experience from the Fort Worth Stock Show.  This time, I attended the sheep dog show.  I went once when I was little but didn’t remember much about it.

For those who aren’t familiar with the sheep dog show.  A sheep dog and its handler enter into the arena at one end and three sheep enter at the other end.  The dog is required to follow a certain course before herding the three sheep into a pen.  The handler commands the dog by verbal commands and/or whistling.  If the dog doesn’t complete this task in the allotted time (5 minutes), it is disqualified.

http://www.texassheepdogassoc.org/images/fort-worth-course.jpg

On to the story.  I went with a group of about 20 (ranging in age from about 3-70+ years old) and had a blast.  However, we do more than just watch the dogs.  We have a “dog draft.”  For each round, we get the list of the dogs, and we all pick a dog and bet a dollar on our dog.  If you win the round you end up making about $15.  However, if your dog bites one of the sheep, your dog is disqualified and you get your dollar back.

In this case, the sheep attacked the dog, and the dog continued to fight back.  What is unusual about this situation is that the sheep first attacked the dog.  Usually, the dogs are so excited to round up the sheep that they run, catch up to them, and bite one of their legs.  Sheep are followers and tend to stick together at all times.  However, in this instance, one sheep removed itself from the flock, faced the dog face-to-face, and pounced.

We all broke out into laughter because of the unexpected nature of the situation.  We all hope that some of the dogs disregard their handlers and go after one of the sheep, but none of us expected any of the sheep to go after the dogs.  The incongruity of this situation made us all burst with laughter.  What was particularly amusing was the handler’s reaction to this situation.  He thought he would be able to control the dog and got visibly upset.  Another reason that this situation was so funny was how long it lasted.  The dog and the sheep kept going back and forth at one other.  The handler couldn’t control the situation and the animals were determined to be defiant.  We felt sympathy for the handler because he had worked to hard to train his dog, but we were more excited to watch what “wasn’t supposed to happen.”

And as we all laughed at the situation, I looked over to my friend whose dog was involved in this incident, and I was thankful that this wasn’t “my dog.”  However, the dog I did pick – Dell – did go on the win his round, and I walked away with $16…just enough to cover the price of parking and a coke.

Luckily, I was able to capture the end of this moment on video, and now it can bring laughter to others…

http://youtu.be/KExLFg8MLBo

Conversation Partner Reflection - #3

Cindy and I met again at Fruitealicious.  I was really eager to meet with her because it was Mardi Gras and the week of the Chinese New Year.  When I think of the Chinese New Year, I think of the dancing dragon and the fact that each year is designated by one of twelve animals.  I was excited for her to share the tradition of the Chinese New Year with me and I to share the tradition of Mardi Gras with her.

When she arrived, she immediately started talking about her day of class with the IEP.  She told me that they had learned about Mardi Gras and ate King’s Cake…and didn’t get the baby!  I was a little bummed that she had already learned of one the biggest southern celebrations.  On the other hand, I learned more than I ever could have imagined about Chinese New Year.

One of the most interesting things I learned was how the Chinese New Year has been influenced by the many dynasties over the years.  Kids receive red pockets with money from their parents and grandparents, spend Chinese New Year’s Eve and Chinese New Year with their family, and eat traditional food.  The celebration sounded a lot like my Christmas.  Through the IEP they were going to have a celebration over the weekend that she invited me to, but, unfortunately, I had a prior commitment and couldn’t attend.

One of the things that I wondered about throughout our conversation is her religion.  Maybe it’s the way I was raised, but asking someone about his/her religion can be a bit taboo if you don’t know how he/she will react.  I know that Chinese New Year is based on the phases of the moon but didn’t know if it had any religious background.  She also told me that her mom knows a lot of astrology and horoscopes.  Thinking about this, I know that Cindy wants to share her way of life with me and would be more than willing to talk about her religion, but a part of me feels that it may be intrusive, as many people are private about their faith.

On another note, throughout our discussion, she was telling me about how the animals that are designated for each year represent something, such as: fortune, wisdom, loyalty, and so forth.  She proceeded to show me a necklace given to her by her mom that meant safety and a coral bracelet given to her by her dad that meant something else.  I began thinking about the English language and American traditions, and I feel like we don’t focus on what certain animals and items represent.  Yes, many Americans read and follow their horoscopes, but I don’t feel that my parents would give me a piece of jewelry because the material was supposed to mean something specific and apply to my life.

Talking with Cindy always makes me reflect on my life and the traditions that I grew up with.  Her traditions are nationalistic and pervasive throughout those in her life.  Sometimes I feel that my traditions are unsubstantial considering that China has been around for over three thousand years and America had only been around 300 years.  It’s awe-inspiring to me to see Cindy’s joy for her traditions and her family, but it’s also heartbreaking to see that this is her first time experiencing these traditions away from her family and away from her country.

Conversation Partner Reflection - #2

Cindy and I met at Fruitealicious one afternoon so she could share one of her favorite drinks – milk tea – with me.  When I arrived, Cindy had already gotten there and ordered.  Since I was unfamiliar with milk tea and how to order it, I got something else but am hoping to have the guts to try it the next time we meet!

During our conversation, we compared our cultural differences.  One of the most interesting things we discussed was the role of education in our upbringings.  I went to a private school that was extremely academically strenuous that left me with little free time if any.  I thought her experience would be similar or maybe even less difficult.  I quickly found out that her experience was quite the contrary.  There is even more importance placed on education in China because universities and jobs are so competitive.  She mentioned how she only slept 5-6 hours a night because of how much school and homework she had to complete.  School was so serious that the teachers would make students of the same sex sit next to each other because relationship were significantly frowned upon until the college years.  This conversation opened my eyes because, in my experience, high school was competitive and demanding, but my experience was not nearly as taxing as hers.

We also talked a lot about food.  She pulled up a lot of pictures on her phone of traditional Chinese dishes.  What she considers Chinese food is significantly different from American-Chinese food.  She said how much she missed it because she can’t find anything authentic in Fort Worth.  While she was showing me the pictures, it dawned on me how different our palates must be.  She says that she loves spicy food and that it is a staple in Chinese gastronomy.  However, if I eat anything spicy, I need a gallon of milk to wash it down, and I will have a stomachache for the rest of the day.  Also, talking about desserts, I am an ice-cream-loving, tiramisu-loving chocoholic.  When she showed me pictures of Chinese desserts, they seemed to typically be fruitier and healthier than American desserts.

While we were talking about food, I asked if something was crunchy, and she did not know what it meant.  To me, crunchy is an inherent term, and I honestly had no clue how to describe it.  I thought that it would be easy for me to explain English terms to someone else since I am studying to be a Spanish teacher and have taken courses on how to teach ESL (English as a second language).  However, I am used to translating between two languages – finding the direct translation.  In this case, the only way I could describe it was the texture of a potato chip in the sense that when you bite into it, it makes a distinct sound.  I sounded crazy in the middle of the restaurant mimicking the sound it makes.  However, this was a really important lesson for me because it reminded be how important it is to have someone who is non-judgmental and willing to help when learning a second language.  I got really frustrated myself because I couldn’t explain an English word, but it reminded me to have patience because I’m sure Cindy was struggling much more than me.

As we continued to talk about food, she told me that she wanted to cook me something authentically Chinese.  That got me thinking; I would love to cook Cindy something authentically American.  But what exactly is that? A hamburger? Thanksgiving dinner? Pot roast?  Meatloaf?  The list goes on and on...or should I take her to get good Texas BBQ since “Texas is the best country in the world?”

Conversation Partner Reflection - #1

My conversation partner for the semester is Cindy.  As soon as I got her contact information, I emailed her, and she replied immediately.  We set up a time to meet at Union Grounds, and I began anticipating our meeting.

I was apprehensive about how well we would be able to communicate.  Britt has told us that she would try to match us with an intermediate to advanced English speaker.  I was hoping that we would be able to converse with ease but was scared if we were unable to.  Cindy is from China, and I know none of her native language.  However, I knew somehow we would make it work.

The day came for Cindy and I to meet.  I sat at table at Union Grounds and looked for someone who might be Cindy.  I saw a girl, on her iPhone, standing in line for coffee, and I thought she must be Cindy since she was the only Asian girl in Union Grounds.  I was terrified to walk up to her merely assuming that she was Cindy based on her physical appearance.  I proceeded to take out my phone and text her.  As soon as I started writing the message, I realized that it wasn’t an iMessage but a regular SMS.  Therefore, I concluded the girl in line couldn’t be Cindy.  I finished my text saying where I was sitting and what I was wearing, and I pressed “send.”  She easily found me and, lo and behold, it was the girl I first suspected could be Cindy standing at the counter.  While that first assumption turned out to be true, our conversation included many assumptions, on my part, that were culturally inappropriate and ignorant.

We introduced ourselves and sat down and conversation flowed naturally.  I quickly learned that she has wonderful English and language would not be a barrier between us.  In fact, she is one of the chattiest people I have ever met.  I found it hard to get a word in!  We talked about our families, our homes, our favorite foods, our pets, our schools, our hobbies, our taste in movies, and so forth.  Since it was our first day to meet, our conversation felt somewhat superficial.  There was one moment when I felt extremely culturally unaware.  We were talking about our parents and their jobs, and I asked if she had any siblings.  She quickly responded, “Of course I don’t…because of the law.”  It was a common, American question to ask, but it was ignorant of me to have forgotten that that was the custom.

She shared how excited she was to be able to share the Chinese culture with me.  I assumed that she would want to know more about the US since she had only been in the country for three weeks.  However, she wanted to tell me about their customs, their traditions, their way of life, and their language.  She started out teaching my how to pronounce her name, Xuejun.  Even in the five minutes it took for her to teach me her name, I learned how different the Chinese alphabet is from the English alphabet and how Chinese people introduce themselves by their family name (last name) first.

The time flew by and when we decided to end out conversation for the day, we had been talking for nearly two hours!  We planned to meet at Fruitealicious the next week so she could share a typical Chinese drink with me – milk tea.