A PRAGMATICS ANALYSIS OF CONVERSATIONAL IMPLICATURES
OF ISLAMIC JOKES FOUND IN www.mrjam.typepad.com
I.
INTRODUCTION
The
objects of this pragmatics study are taken from mrjam.typepad.com/diary/2010/02/5-best-islamic-jokes.html.
The objects are jokes in Islamic culture. Jokes sometimes make the readers confused
of what exactly the content of the joke is. They may not get the point of the
story or the conversation of the jokes. In some
ways, this is strange. Telling jokes, along with telling stories (which is a
similar activity), is one of the most frequent and widespread activities around
the world. All countries, all cultures, all languages have their own jokes.
Unlike telling stories, however, jokes are sometimes not funny or often
completely incomprehensible to people who are not part of that culture. Consider
the example below
Confused about her permitted activities in a
relationship, a religious girl went to a Mullah(Muslim Cleric)to know what she
can do with her boyfriend.
She asked the Mullah,” Can I kiss the boy I
like, even if he doesn’t like me?”
The Mullah replied,” ASTAGFIRULLAH!!!!!!!!”
Then she asked, “ Can I kiss my boyfriend?”
The Mullah replied,” NAUZUBILLAH!!!!!!”
Finally out of despair she asked, “ Can I kiss you?”
The Mullah, “BISMILLAH”
The Mullah replied,” ASTAGFIRULLAH!!!!!!!!”
Then she asked, “ Can I kiss my boyfriend?”
The Mullah replied,” NAUZUBILLAH!!!!!!”
Finally out of despair she asked, “ Can I kiss you?”
The Mullah, “BISMILLAH”
The joke above is tightly
connected with the Islamic cultures which may be weird for people coming from
outside the Islam religion. The word Astagfirullah,
Nauzubillah, and Bismillah are the words commonly used by Islamic people. The word
has its own meaning used for certain condition. People who don’t come from Islamic
culture may get confused to understand the jokes. However, by paying attention
to the co-text and context in this conversation, the implicit meaning of the
utterance can be known.
Jokes are
sometime hard to understand because of the real meaning which is invisible. The
last part of the conversation doesn’t make sense, sometimes with the previous
utterance. However, this is the way to make the joke funny and make the readers
guess the meaning on his/her own. It is common for the reader to not understand
the jokes.
To answer or to
observe the invisible meaning of the jokes utterances, this study is made. In
other words, this study is intended to observe the conversational implicatures
found in the jokes. The theory is used to find out what implicative meaning
behind the conversation is and what the relation of the jokes with the theory
of the maxims is.
II.
DISCUSSION
Conversational
implicature is something implied in a conversation. It is left implicit in
actual use of language[1].
Conversational implicature are known into generalized and particularized
conversational implicatures.
Cooperative
principle is the notion which appears in conversational implicatures. It comes
into subcategories called maxims. The maxims are maxim of quality, maxim of
quantity, maxim of relation, and maxim of manner.
1. Maxim
of quality: Be true by not saying what you believe to be false and that for
which you lack adequate evidence.
2. Maxim
of quantity: Be brief by making your contribution as informative as is required
and no more than is required.
3. Maxim
of relevant: Be relevant.
4. Maxim
of manner: be clear by avoiding obscure expression and ambiguity and being
brief and orderly.
Conversational
implicatures can happen when the speaker follows or flouts those maxims. The
choice of following of flouting the maxims in the conversational implicatures
is depending on the motives of the speakers. The jokes, however is usually
flouting the maxims to gain the funny side of the joke. By flouting the maxims,
the joke will not be flat and the readers of the joke will guess its invisible
meaning on their own.
Analysis 1
The data
A Muslim goes to a Christian service.Afterwards, his Christian friend asks him: "what did you think?"
He replies: "The singing and stuff was okay, but the commercial went on much too long."
Data analysis
1. The
underlined words in the jokes have implied meaning. The utterance is fine in
which the Muslim answers the question briefly, clearly, and orderly. In the
utterance he says but the commercial went on too long, it
implies that the speech delivered by the priest is boring. He thinks that the
sermon is like the commercial advertisement.
2. The
maxim flouted in this conversational implicatures are (maxim of quality) and
maxim of relevant. (It is clear that the Muslim doesn’t speak honestly. He
deliberately deceives the addressee for several reasons). The Muslim also
answers the question by giving something irrelevant with the question.
Considering the context which is in Christian service, the utterance but the
commercial went on too long is rather irrelevant. The maxims flouted may be
for some motives.
1. He
wants to be polite because his friend comes from another religion.
2. By
flouting the maxim, he assumes that his friend cannot catch the real meaning so
that he will not be offended.
3. For
the utterance itself, flouting the maxim is used to make the utterance funny.
3. From
the Islamic and cultural point of view, flouting the maxim in the
conversational implicatures can be used as the comparison of two different
religions. In this joke, the religions meant are Islam and Christian.
Considering the co-text in the conversation, sermon in Christian is drawn by
delivering the song first, and having many attributes in delivering the sermon.
The sermon itself may be a long speech with the persuasion just like in the
advertisement. The Muslim in the conversation may feel it is different from
sermon in Islam in which
Analysis 2
The Data
Confused about her permitted activities in a
relationship, a religious girl went to a Mullah(Muslim Cleric)to know what she
can do with her boyfriend.
She asked the Mullah,” Can I kiss the boy I
like, even if he doesn’t like me?”
The Mullah replied,” ASTAGFIRULLAH!!!!!!!!”
Then she asked, “ Can I kiss my boyfriend?”
The Mullah replied,” NAUZUBILLAH!!!!!!”
Finally out of despair she asked, “ Can I kiss you?”
The Mullah, “BISMILLAH”
The Mullah replied,” ASTAGFIRULLAH!!!!!!!!”
Then she asked, “ Can I kiss my boyfriend?”
The Mullah replied,” NAUZUBILLAH!!!!!!”
Finally out of despair she asked, “ Can I kiss you?”
The Mullah, “BISMILLAH”
Data analysis
1.
The underlined words of the jokes have implied meaning.
The words Astagfirullah is Arabic word which is used to show. It can be said
that the Mullah doesn’t allow the girl to kiss the boy she likes. In other
words, the Mullah says No. The next is the word Naudzubillah. It is also Arabic
word which is show to. It can be said that the Mullah is absolutely doesn’t
allow the girl to kiss her boyfriend. The implied meaning is the Mullah
extremely says No. The last is the word Bismillah. It also Arabic word, in
Islam perspective the word Bismillah usually used to start doing something.
Analysis the underlined utterance:
Maxim of quality : False (?)
Maxim of quantity : informative (giving new information)
Maxim of relation : relevant
Maxim of manner : clear
The maxim flouted in this
conversational implicature is maxim of quality. The mullah answer by giving
false sentence. Considering the context which is in the mullah, the utterance
" bismillah" is false. Bismillah in Islamic perspective means the
word used to start doing something. Muslim readers reading the joke will assume
that a girl can kiss the mullah, whereas muslim girl can't kiss bots except her
Muhrim (husband, father,son) in this case the mullah giving false answer, and
this is what makes the joke funny.
The maxim flouted to make the utterance funny.
Types of implicatures of the
underlined belongs to the generalized conversational implicatures.
The underlined words in the joke
have implied meaning. The utterance is fine in which the mullah answer the
question briefly, clearly, relevant and informatively. But in the end. The
mullah say " bismillah " to girl question " can I kiss you
?". it implies that the girl can kiss the mullah. That the false argument,
becauseactually the girl can't kiss he also.
