THE FUNCTIONS OF HUMOROUS DISCOURSE IN MIND YOUR LANGUAGE

The primary purpose of this study is to reveal the function of humorous discourse identified in the Mind Your Language situation comedy series. The researcher adopted a descriptive qualitative approach to complete this humor research. The data were obtained from the script of that sitcom. The function of humorous discourse found in that sitcom was then classified based on Hay's framework, which divides the function of humor into three main functions: the function of solidarity, the function of power, and the function of psychology. The findings demonstrate that teasing and satire humor in Mind Your Language sitcom are utilized to express solidarity. Meanwhile, humorous discourses that trigger conflict, harm, threaten others or show disagreement are created to express the function of power. Furthermore, humorous discourse to gain an advantage, protect oneself, entertain, or boast is used to express the function of psychology. The context of the conversation given is highly significant in identifying the function of humor. The same humorous discourse provided in different contexts potentially implicates different functions of humor which indicates that determining the function of humor is heavily grounded by the context.

On Translation of Puns in Sitcoms Based on Functional Equivalence Theory—Taking Yes, Minister as an Example

In situation comedies, pun is one of the most effective means of creating comic effect and takes up a considerable part. However, if incorrectly or improperly translated, it can be almost impossible for puns to get across its audience, even when the audience is somewhat capable of English. The reason is that pun, in essence, is a figure of speech, which requires certain knowledge of English literature and culture. The translation of English movies and TV series has become fairly sophisticated, but studies on the translation of pun are relatively rare. This article will introduce and study pun both in Chinese and English literature by the approach of contrast, and discuss the translation methods of puns from the perspective of functional equivalence theory; and then it will take the Chinese subtitle of the famous situation comedy series Yes, Minister as examples to analyze and study the translation methods and strategies of puns used in situation comedies.

Asymmetric representations of languages in contact: uses and translations of French and Spanish in Frasier

In recent years, several authors have underlined the need for a critical approach to Translation Studies in order to explore power struggles in both source and target languages and cultures. Norman Fairclough ’s model of discourse analysis offers textual and interpretative procedures for the analy-sis of linguistic features of texts and their societal implications that can be successfully applied for this purpose. In this article we shall study the representations of languages and cultures in contact in the American situation comedy Frasier, one of the world’s greatest television successes of the 1990s. We shall cover two distinct uses of languages in contact. In our first section, we shall examine the use of other languages in the primary English discourse of the protagonists, notably French and Spanish, and their different representational and ideational implications, before proceeding to analyse the Spanish and French target versions to ascertain whether the ideological components are maintained or transformed. In the second sec-tion, we shall analyse the scenes where two or more languages are involved and the transformative acts performed by the characters. As in the first sec-tion, the target versions in French and Spanish will then be examined in order to identify the translational strategies used to maintain or tone down the ideological components. The final section will discuss the last dimension of Fairclough’s model, that is, sociocultural practice or explanation.

A Manipulation of Semantic Meanings as a Humor Construction Strategy

This research is conducted to reveal how humorous utterances are constructed by manipulating semantic meaning especially dealing with lexical semantics. Lexical semantics provides multiple meanings that portray their meanings’ relationship among a word and they are potentially exploited to elicit humor. This research examines utterances manipulating lexical semantics as the strategy of humor creation in Mind Your Language situation comedy. Applying a descriptive qualitative approach, the findings indicate that five types of lexical semantics are utilized as strategies of humorous utterances creation. Those types of lexical semantics are polysemy, homonymy, homophone, hyponymy, dan synonymy. Because of their multiple relation meanings, the speaker can refer to other meanings to construct different meanings with the hearer. The speaker constructs an incongruent meaning between what the hearer’s perception is and what the speaker meant. The deviation of lexical semantics between the hearer and the speaker completely illustrates the concept of incongruity theory of humor.

“It’s a Man Thing, Gina”: Watching Gender in Martin

In the almost three decades since the hit situation-comedy Martin (1992–1997) originally aired on Fox, the show has not only enjoyed a vibrant second life through syndication and streaming platforms, but has functioned as a form of television heritage, reflected in fashion, music, games, and memes. Martin has developed a particularly loyal following among black millennials, many of whom were too young to watch the show during its original network television run. In this article, I explore the series’ representations of black women through individual and focus group interviews with 26 black viewers. My interviews reveal that participants have ambivalent relationships with the show. While several cite Martin as their favorite show of all-time, they were disturbed by the show’s troubling depictions of black heterosexual romantic relationships and its reliance on stereotypical representations of black women.

Derry Girls and containment: conflict-related and transgenerational trauma in Northern Ireland

In this article, I consider role of the television show Derry Girls in providing containment for the unbearable aspects of conflict-related and transgenerational trauma in the context of Northern Ireland. Derry Girls is a situation comedy set during the political conflict of Northern Ireland in the 1990s. The show provides nostalgic, satirical and affectionate observations on the seemingly mundane and at times farcical misdemeanours of a group of young people living out their everyday lives in the backdrop of sectarianism, bigotry and political violence. First airing in 2018, 20 years after the peace agreement in Northern Ireland, Derry Girls offers a forum for experiencing a flavour of life in the height of the Troubles, evoking strong emotional reactions in audiences through laughter, consternation and tears. I consider the role of psychosocial studies in framing understanding of the show as a cultural outlet for and container of societal level trauma and collective pain.

TINDAK TUTUR DIREKTIF BAHASA MELAYU PONTIANAK DALAM SITUASI KOMEDI “KELUARGA 69”

Pontianak Malay is one of the languages in West Kalimantan. Study of language should be done from various linguistic approaches. One of them is pragmatics. Family 69 is a Pontianak Malay language sitcoms program. This program is broadcast by PONTV. The Malay language used in this event is a portrait of the condition of the Pontianak Malay language used in the speaker community. The problem discussed is the type and form of Pontianak Malay language directive speech in a family situation comedy 69. The approach used in this study is the pragmatic approach. The research method used is descriptive qualitative. The theory used is imperative theory and speech act. The source of the data in this study is directive speech acts in the Family 69 sitcoms broadcast by PONTV. The results of the discussion note that there are six types of directives in the Pontianak Malay language directive in the Family Situation 69 comedy, namely commands, orders, invitations, prohibitions, omissions, and suggestions. The manifestation of the Pontianak Malay language directive speech in the Family Situation 69 comedy is twofold, namely direct and indirect directive speech.