【Articles】

German Grammar Lesson Using the Pun:
A Study Based on Jokes and Humor Theory
だじゃれで覚えるドイツ語文法：
ジョーク理論とユーモア理論を援用してYamazaki Asuka（山崎明日香）［ Contents］

1 . Introduction
2 . Using Puns in the Narrative Construction
3 . The Effects of Humor and Laughter as a Result of Using the Pun: Creating a
Relaxing Classroom Atmosphere
4 . Conclusion
Acknowledgements
Questionnaire Survey
References［ Abstract］

This study focused on the teaching strategy of German grammar lessons using dajare（puns）that are not considered part of the conventional studies of German-language
didactics in Japan. Based on joke theory and humor studies, this study examined theeffects of puns on memorization and the creation of a relaxing classroom atmosphere,
as well as the disadvantages that occur during such lessons. Particularly during theearly stages of grammar learning, promoting memorization by introducing the dual
meaning of the pun into the grammar concept is problematic. In a controlled learning
environment, the author attempted to determine whether such grammar lessons onlyused the pun as a temporary auxiliary teaching model to support efficient and effective
memorization.

―1―

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German Grammar Lesson Using the Pun: A Study Based on Jokes and Humor Theory［ Article］
1 . Introduction

The Japanese popular television drama series 99.9 刑事専門弁護士（in Eng. 99.9
Criminal Lawyer）began broadcasting in April 2016, with the second season beginning
in January 2018.1） 深山（Miyama: starring actor 松本潤 Jun Matsumoto）, the hero of
the drama, is an unconventional criminal defense lawyer that makes use of his highreasoning skill and great energy. He revisits difficult cases to prove the innocenceof accused people who would otherwise be convicted of crimes with 99.9% certainty.
Despite the drama dealing with serious crime themes, Miyama is a very humorous
character. This is because he has a habit of making 駄じゃれ（or 駄洒落 dajare, in Eng.
“pun”
）amongst his colleagues quite naturally. This occurs not only in the character’s
daily life, but especially during his criminal investigations. For example, when taking aseat at a table, people commonly utter table-etiquette clichés, such as いただきます！
（Itadaki-masu!, in Eng.“Thank you for the meal!”）. However, instead of using suchphrases correctly, Miyama alters words. For instance, he alters the phrase“Itadakimasu!”while still retaining the same auxiliary ending ます（masu）by saying いただきマングース！（Itadaki Mangūsu, in Eng.“Thank you for the mongoose!”）.
In this way, dajare involves wordplay by creating new meaning through thesubstitution of a certain defined word with one that contains the same or similar
syllabic sound. Since Miyama is both a lawyer（an honorable profession in society）andan extremely good-looking man, but frequently uses humor, this features not only his
uncompromising attitude regarding the repeal of any conventional norms and order,
but also his resourceful and witty personality. Such an unconventional sense of humor
enables solutions to serious incidents that were considered unsolvable by the power
structure while using humor to neutralize the seriousness of a drama that deals withviolent murder cases. Through this wordplay, serious atmospheres instantly become
comical, thereby bringing laughter to the audience and releasing tension. Therefore, theprogram skillfully incorporates dajare into its content in order to sustain the audience’s
concentration until the end of the story.
According to Yushi Odajima（2001, p. 46-47）, dajare originated in ancient Japanese−− − in Eng.
poetry collections such as 万葉集（The Manyoshu,
A Collection of a Myriad− in Eng.
Leaves: 7-8th Century）and 古今和歌集（The Kokin Wakashu,
The Collection of
10th
Century）,
inwhich
枕 詞（Makura
Japanese Poems of Ancient and Modern Times:
Kotoba）poetical epithets began to function as pivot words. It is surprising that such
wordplay was introduced into elegant competitions featuring the ability and originalityof poetic art among aristocrats. This is because 駄 じ ゃ れ（dajare）, from the modern

cultural point of view, is defined as つまらないしゃれ（Tsumaranai Share）（in Eng.
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German Grammar Lesson Using the Pun: A Study Based on Jokes and Humor Theory“boring pun”）by attaching the word 駄（da）, meaning“bored,”to the word 洒落（Share）, meaning“chic”or“stylish”（Morioka, 2000, p. 1076）. This type of dajare
involves rhetorical expressions aimed at the pivot word itself, and sometimes adds
meaningless words in doing so（Ibid., p. 1076）. It has therefore become a widespreadgenre of wordplay.
The literary and cultural situation surrounding dajare is slightly different in the
English-speaking sphere, in which there is a literary tradition involving the wordplay
of puns. According to Katie Wales（1989, p. 384-385）, the pun was introduced relatively
early in British literature, and involved the use of polysemous words“to suggest twoor three meanings or the use homonyms, i.e. different words which look or sound thesame but which have different meanings.”Puns consist of figurative language produced
through the disintegration of a certain word constituted by significant and signifié andby the disharmonizing of the sentence syntax. However, opinions of the pun in the
English-speaking sphere are divided. Frederick Ahl（1988, p. 21, 22 and 25）states thatthe“pun is both not respectable and is regarded as crass,”and that“it is rejected inacademic culture.”Thus, while the pun is considered a very low form of humor, Wales（1989, p. 385）analyzes that the pun has gained high respectability in modern literary
theory as a serious means of revealing subtle conceptual differences in addition to the“endless play”meaning in Jacques Derrida’s deconstruction theory. In his book La（displace）concept. This involves the use
Diffe' rence, Derrida discusses the“déplacé”
of similar words（e.g.,“différence”and“différance”）with different spellings（Derrida,
1984, pp. 67-101）. Derrida believes that such differences produce a sign, while the“motility of play”produces an effect that transcends the category of truth. In this way,
the pun is recognized in Western Europe as a highly appreciated form of rhetorical
wordplay through a reevaluation from the literary point of view for the play concept
contained therein.
Regarding this point, Shuzo Kuki, a prominent Japanese philosopher of the early
20th century, developed his thoughts about the pun in his philosophy of 粋（Iki）as a
value of sick or excellent culture or a fashionable taste linked with Edo（the old name ofTokyo）in Japan. Kuki highly appreciated the effect of the pun during his experiences
studying abroad, and noticed that“light laughing throws a cheerful reflection in aserious gloomy daily life”（Kuki, 1991, p. 36）. Furthermore, he indicates that there
are two kinds of structures involved in dajare; the former can simply be reduced toquantitative relations as being based on identity, the latter is predicting qualitative
relationships on the basis of similarity（Ibid., p. 38）. In this meaning, the former refers
to almost the same one in similar pronunciations such as アマゴ（Amago,“amago
salmon”）and アナゴ（Anago,“congroidei”）, which belong to the same class of fishes
and contain homophonic elements that are connected in parallel. The latter juxtaposes―3―

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German Grammar Lesson Using the Pun: A Study Based on Jokes and Humor Theory

phonetic similarities, such as 九 鬼（Kuki）, クッキ ー（cookie）, and ぐ き っ（Gukittu,“crack”）. This type of mutually similar relevance or irrelevance induces laughter.
Besides, two important points emerge when referring to Kuki’s analysis of thedajare or pun. The first is that the laughter created by using the pun changes theatmosphere and mood of a living space. This means that the pun is a powerful toolfor controlling cultural and mental spaces. The second point involves the linguistic
structure of the pun. By respecting word sound and homogeneity as well as thesimilarity of meaning, the pun generates unexpectedness, incongruity, and surpriseas it deviates from usual word usage to show subtle nuance. Thus, everyday life isactively and constantly updated, and the perception of the world is altered. There isa phenomenon of mutual linguistic and cultural affinity between the pun-user and thelistener. Incongruity in the language arouses the integration of concept and sound while
a comic element is inserted. This is most likely a form of dramatic communication thatcan be recognized as a highly poetical art.
The author of this paper teaches university-level German and believes thiswonderful dajare tradition is an appropriate pedagogical tool. German grammar is
far more difficult for beginners than English. For example, English only uses thedefinite article“the,”while German uses 16 articles depending on the declensions
and changes in case. Since learners must remember these complicated changes, it isnecessary to create a simple tool to support memorization. This paper examines theeffects of a German grammar teaching method that uses the pun in order to analyze
its language strategy. Until now, this subject has not been considered in the researchon didactics regarding German as foreign language in Japan. In this regard, since the1970s, the research on the mnemonic technique for acquiring vocabulary in a second
foreign language based on the psychological and mathematical model became popular,
especially in the United States. This learning method involves the setting of a“keyword”（e.g., the use of a foreign language word, sound, or image that is the same or similar
as one in the native language）to enable efficient memorization for the learner. There
have many studies of this theme regarding the use of mnemonics for acquiring
second foreign languages, including those by Richard C. Atkinson（1973）, Paivio andDesrochers（1981）,Pressley, Levin, and Delaney（1982）,and Horst G. Sperber（1989）.
During the same era, Rainer Scheckel（1991）examined the keyword method
introducing similar sounds or puns along with illustrations. Furthermore, a German
vocabulary study book collection introducing the pun was published by Scheckel andNarita（1997）. With the exception of German language education, study books using
puns have been published for a variety of subjects, including English and history. This
gives the impression that the teaching method has been popularized as a standard
memorization technique in Japan.2）
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German Grammar Lesson Using the Pun: A Study Based on Jokes and Humor Theory

Regarding this trend in the didactic method, this study examines the pedagogicalthemes involved in memorizing German by especially focusing on grammar rules that
use the pun. Until now, this theme has not been studied through conventional research
conducted in either Germany or Japan. Teaching methods that introduce the pun arevery unusual in the didactic traditions of Japan. This is because the“keyword”method（borrowing the words of Scheckel, 1991, p. 187 and 190）is an“outsider method”as it isnecessary to make the effort to develop such teaching materials. This also relates to thefact that keywords similarly pronounced in the native language do not work as common
and universal mnemonic techniques in other countries. Indeed, in the comprehensive
and systematical research book on the methods of teaching German in German andJapan published by Huneke and Steinig（2002）and Yoshijima and Sakai（2003）, there
is no reference to the mnemo technique, which indicates that this pedagogical method
is a minor one.
Surprisingly, the author realized that many university lecturers are concernedwith using the pun during German grammar lessons. This was discovered when theauthor held a poster session under this theme at the Spring Research Conference of theJapanese Society for German Studies（日本独文学会）on May 28, 2016. This presentation
received unexpectedly significant interest from both Japanese and German participants.
During the subsequent exchange of opinions, it was revealed that some conference
participants had their own mnemo techniques using the pun.
Although teaching methods using the pun are individually introduced as partof personal mnemo techniques during German lessons, there are problems becausesuch techniques have not received much public recognition, and thus have not gained
evaluation as official pedagogical methods. For that reason, the advantages of theirefficiency and memorability are only privately emphasized while the negative effects
are not considered. Based on such awareness of this issue, this paper not only discusses
the language education strategy verified through this theme, but also examines the
problems and efficiency involved in grammar learning that uses the pun.
The research method involved German grammar courses that targeted beginners;
puns originally created by the author were used for the memorization and explanationof grammar rules. The intention was then to build the pun as a narrative architectureon each grammatical item as it connected to the word, thus awakening collective
cultural images. In order to support the memory work of students, the author attempted
to convert the grammar system of an unknown foreign language into an alreadyknown image. It was also expected that dajare or puns, which create laughter andhumor, would increase the learning effect by utilizing the function of disassembling theoriginal meaning of the language, as well as by promoting the emotional involvementof the learner to the grammatical matter. For more comprehensive argumentation, the―5―

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German Grammar Lesson Using the Pun: A Study Based on Jokes and Humor Theory

disadvantages that resulted from this experiment were also examined.
This research was performed during grammar courses for beginners at four
different universities in Japan（i.e., Mie University（Apr. 2015 – Jan. 2016）, Kyoto
Sangyo University（Sep. 2015 – Jan. 2017）, Kyoto University（Apr. 2016 – Jan. 2017）,
and Ryukoku University（Apr. 2016 – Jan. 2017））. The questionnaire survey was
carried out only at Mie University. Since the target readers of this article range fromundergraduate students to German language teachers and researchers of didactics, it isnoted here that amusing grammar explanations are later introduced to promote reading
enjoyment.

2 . Using Puns in the Narrative Construction
As already mentioned, a dajare is referred to as a pun in the English-speaking sphere,
and is studied as part of joke theory not only from the viewpoints of pragmatic andcognitive linguistics, but also from relevance theory. From the viewpoint of conventional
communication theory, Jutta Muschard（1999）, Francisco Yus（2008; 2012）, and Isao
Higashimori（2011）developed the relevance theory of the joke, in which reasoning,
implication, incongruity, and unexpectation are put into focus as constituting the joke
while the reader or listener’s process of understanding is also considered. In addition,sociocultural and commercial values of the pun are found in linguistics. For instance,
Jacques Durand（1987）, Edward McQuarrie and David Glen Mick（1996）, Nobuyoshi
Matsui（2007）, and Folake Abass（2007）analyze that the pun is often used as alanguage strategy in the advertisement industry due to its high effectiveness whencommunicating with the consumer. In this way, there have been many foreign anddomestic studies on wordplay that consists of jokes and puns, with the socioculturalstereotypes involved in the use of these jokes also being clarified. Taking theabovementioned studies into consideration, this section focuses on the memorization
method incorporated into the narrative element through which basic German grammar
categories are learned by Japanese students in the first half of the semester. Resulting
problems are also examined.
2.1. Conjugation of Regular Verbs in the Present Tense
The grammatical category first learned by the beginner is the conjugation of theregular verb in the present tense. Verbs are modified depending on the persons andnumber of subjects by connecting endings to the bare form. For example, as table 1
shows,“lern”（the infinitive form of“lernen,”in Eng. learn）is conditionally conjugatedinto six types（i.e., lern-e, lern-st, lern-t, lern-en, lern-t, lern-en）. In order to facilitate thememorization of basic verb-ending modifications, there is a well-known memorization
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Table 1 動詞の規則変化 Conjugation of Regular Verbs
人称personal
pronoun現在形
present
form

音声
pronunciationich

lern-eエ（e）

dulern-st

スト（sto）

er/sie/es

lern-twir

lern-enihr

lern-tsielern-en

物語的な暗記術
story-likememorization
えー（Ē!）テン（ten ）テン（ten）

ストだって！
（Suto datte!）
てんin Eng.
Oh!
Strike!
Incredibly（Ten）
てこまいだ ！
（tekomai-da!）terrible!

technique in German language education in Japan in which the six ending types areintegrated into four words（e.g., エ , スト , テン , テン（e, st, ten, ten））. This unit ofsimple and comfortable pronunciations provides a great mnemonic effect. Its efficacy issuch that it is seen in almost every German grammar textbook intended for Japanese
beginners.
However, apart from this popular way of using this memorization type, it is possible
to create a story based on these word pronunciations. For example, traffic strikes occur
frequently in Germany. It is thus easy to imagine a situation in which one is suddenly
encountered with a strike and shouts the following sentences: えー、ストだって！てんてこまいだ。（Ē!, Suto datte! Tenteko maida!）（in Eng.“Oh! Strike! Incredibly terrible!”）When I used this pun unit in conjunction with a story in each of the five Germanclasses, it did not promote laughter. Such an unsuccessful attempt to arouse theaudience is a risk that can often occur for the user of the pun. According to slangscholar Akihiko Yonekawa（2003, p. 215）, a situation in which a joke or gag fails to
obtain the favor of the audience is called a すべる（滑る, Suberu）（in Eng.“slip”）.
However, humor researcher Willibald Ruch（2008, p. 34）indicates that it is also areaction belonging to a certain form of humor. That is, the“slip”occurs when a groupdevelops a negative mood that involves mockery, irony, cynicism, or sarcasm as a
response to the performer’s humor. The term“slip”indicates that the structured
laughter of an active performer does not match the passive listener’s recognition. By
laughing at the performer’s failure, the listener’s passive position becomes active. In
Japan, the teacher is often regarded as a classroom authority that students are hesitantto speak to or question. It can be said that a cynical situation in which the すべる“slip”
is made by the teacher paradoxically helps to create a relaxing classroom atmosphere.
It is sometimes necessary to“slip”because continually attempting to make the learner―7―

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German Grammar Lesson Using the Pun: A Study Based on Jokes and Humor Theory

laugh is not successful from a pedagogical viewpoint.
2.2. Conjugation of“sein”in the Present Tense
I hope I will not“slip”here. In this subsection, the author explains how the conjugationof the German verb“sein”（in Eng.“to be”）is memorized in the present tense. This
activity involves a fictional conversation between speaker A and B about“throwing
away trash.”Speaker A first asks B, 瓶を、瓶を捨てて！（Bin wo, Bin wo Suttee!）（inEng.“Bottle, throw the bottle!”）. In response to A, B quickly answers, いーょ捨てるょ。
（Ī yo Suteru yo.）（in Eng.“Yeah, I throw it away.”）.Speaker A is very impressed by B’s
helpfulness, and says, ジーンと感動、斉藤さんも、ジーンと感動。（Jīn to Kandō, Saitōsan mo, Jīn to Kandō.）（in Eng.“Touched my heart, Mr. Saito is also, touched.”）.During
this emotional conversation, the combination of homonyms between the first and second
halves of the sentences would be heard as meaningless.
Table 2
人称
personsein 動詞の変化 Conjugation of“sein”
現在形
present

物語的な暗記術
story-like memorization

in Eng.

ich

bin

瓶を、
（Bin wo,）

Bottle,dubist

瓶を捨てて！（Bin wo Suttee.）throw the bottle!

er/sie/es

ist

いーょ捨てるょ。（Ī yo Suteru yo.） Yeah, I throw it away.

wir

sind

ジーンと感動、（Jīn to Kandō,）

Touched my heart,

ihr

seid

斉藤さんも、（Saitō-san mo,）

Mr. Saito is also,

sie

sind

ジーンと感動。（Jīn to Kandō.）

touched.

However, with the sudden appearance of the word 斉藤さん（Mr. Saito）, thisunit of pun is very easy to memorize because it brings an emotional impact that isemphasized in the advertisement effect to the listener: they learn the grammar issue
as a memorable phrase; it is difficult to forget regardless of the context.3） Nevertheless,there may be a problem with the way such a meaningless story is used for easy
memorization. This point will be discussed in the next subsection.
2.3. Conjugation of“haben”in the Present Tense
Yus（2012, p. 276）asserted the existence of a“joke frame”that is built into a
conversation or text. The joke frame is the full structure of a conversation or sentencethat is contextualized and related to a joke. It follows the typical set-up/punchline
format. Without recognizing the joke frame or adhering to this process, the recipient
will not understand when they are supposed to laugh. In the process of supplying
sequential information, it is necessary for the listener and reader to identify this joke
frame in order to understand the humor. This subsection deals with the present-tense
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conjugation of the German verb“haben”（in Eng.“have”）based on the joke frame
theory. Then, a unique story involving the joke frame is created that uses phonetic
similarity to the verb form. The theme here is the act of“smoking illegal herb,”which
is forbidden by Japanese law and has recently become a social problem due to increased
use. Since the word“herb”is popular among young people, the author created thefollowing situation using a pun.
Table 3
人称
personhaben 動詞の変化 Conjugation of“haben”
現在形
present

物語的な暗記術
story-like memorization

in Eng.

ich

habe

ハーブ、
（Hābu,）

Herb,

du

hast

ハーブを吸ったら、（Hābu wo suttara,）

I smoke herb,

er/sie/es

hat

はっとした！（hatto shita.）

surprising!

wir

haben

葉は便利、
（Ha wa benri,）

Herb is useful,

ihr

habt

歯がぶっ飛んだ、（Ha ga buttonda,）

teeth blown off,

sie

haben

葉は便利（Ha wa benri）

herb is useful.

In this story, a monologue involving an anonymous person is developed. This person
relates an extraordinarily surprising experience by saying ハ ー ブ、 ハ ー ブ を 吸 っ たら、はっとした！（Hābu, Hābu wo suttara, hatto shita.）（in Eng.“Herb, I smoke herb,
Surprising!”）. It seems that this person experienced a stimulating effect. Fascinated by
the herb, he utters the following phrase: 葉は便利、歯がぶっ飛んだ、葉は便利。（Ha wa
benri, Ha ga buttonda, Ha wa benri）（in Eng.“Herb is useful, teeth blown off, Herb isuseful.”）. In this way of memorizing, unusual and illegal fictional events are connectedwith a serious grammar topic. In this regard, Youichi Kanari, a scholar of literature andreader of this article, commented that a totally monotonous verb change is presented
as a complex of word rhythms（e.g., 五七調（Go-Shichi-chou）（“five-and-seven syllable
meter”））with an attached story. In Japan, there is a poetic tradition utilizing thissyllable meter; poems or sentences that employ the technique provide an elegant andharmonized impression to the listener or reader. Students therefore laughed at thestrange result, in which a serious grammar topic sounded phonetically systematic, but
was semantically comical. This is successfully employed in most German classes.
At the author’s poster session, however, Tokyo-based political scholar Masaya
Watanabe（NHK Enterprises）indicated a problem with the“illegal herb”theme. Since
Japanese students who take second foreign language courses at the university level
are mostly between 19 and 21 years of age, ethical issues may arise when using sucha cheerful theme in combination with the mention of illegal acts. Watanabe personally
liked this pun unit, and laughed many times when I tried to explain it. However, he was―9―

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worried that the 粋（Iki）or 洒落（Share）（in Eng.“stylish,”“witty,”or“humor”）of
the pun would not be understood by many students when the joke was performed by ateacher. This is because many students that have recently graduated high school may
lack the appropriate experience to process the information.
In response to Watanabe’s criticism, Hiroki Iwamoto （an undergraduate at
Kyoto University and one of the highest-performing students in the author’s German
grammar courses）provided an opinion from the student perspective. Hiroki related
an understanding of the attempt to use a teaching method that involved the pun forboth memorization and humor in the classroom setting; he is already an adult withexperience and discernment. Therefore, even if the contents of a theme deal with social
taboos, Hiroki comprehends it as 洒落（Share）（in Eng.“witty”or“humor”）, and does
not regard it as a particularly moral or ethical problem. Hiroki lives in the 関西（Kansai）
region in the west of Japan. His tolerant attitude is related to the region’s cultural
climate, in which people understand humor. In Kansai, humor is pervasive in everyday
life, and has become a medium for the smoothing of interpersonal relations.
The opinion of Arthur Asa Berger（Levis, 1997, p. 475）can be referred to regarding
this point. He regards the comic spirit of jokes or humor as destructive to sociocultural
codes and customs. The relater of a joke does not intend to recommend an illegal act
or taboo within the creativity of the joke’s frame. Rather, he takes an antipodal attitude
toward authorities and taboos. Nevertheless, when dealing with social taboos that
occur within the frame of a joke, it is necessary to consider the balance between theemotional responses of students and institutional morals. When introducing a radical
pun or joke, it should be regarded as a tool to support the creation of a positive andrelaxing classroom environment.
2.4. Declension of Indefinite Article Ending:“ein”
Wilson Bryan Key, a media scholar and author of the famous book Media sexploitation（1976）, indicates that introducing and presenting sexual topics unnoticeably or
perceptibly in advertisements interacts with the reader’s unconsciousness andproduces a large subliminal effect. Mixing sexual messages into advertising creates a
Table 4 不定冠詞 Indefinite Article
masculine

feminine

neutral1

nominative

ein

eine

ein

2

genitive

eines

einer

eines

3

dative

einem

einer

einem

4

accusative

einen

eine

ein

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German Grammar Lesson Using the Pun: A Study Based on Jokes and Humor Theory

highly emotional appeal that effects the consumer, thereby making it easier for them toremember the advertised products. In this subsection, I refer to these advertisement
strategies during grammar memorization techniques by using the pun to include sexual
topics, and also examine the associated and inherent problems.
The grammatical category dealt with here is the infinitive article ending“ein,”（equivalent to the English“a”）. As table 4 shows, the article“ein”is inflected not
only according to the four grammatical cases（i.e., the nominative, genitive, dative,
and accusative）, but also the gender（i.e., masculine, feminine, and neutral）. In mostJapanese textbooks, these cases are practically treated as the numbers 1-4 to facilitate
understanding.
Because this declension is complicated, learners must memorize all 12 endings of thisgrammatical category. Therefore, a number of students lose their motivation to learn
each year at this early stage. Regarding this problem, the author especially focuses ongrammatical genders and modifies them into biological-cultural gender categories, suchas“male,”“female,”and“transgender”（following: TG）,thereby creating a unit of punsin the frame of a joke. Within the framework of the resulting story, the article“ein”
is transformed into Japanese homophony“愛”（Ai）（in Eng.“love”）, and the“idea oflove”of each of the four men, women, and TG-persons are explained.
2.4.1. The Case of Declension in the Masculine Form
It is first necessary to explain the fictional story to the student, as follows:“the men
have a very romantic and platonic thinking about love.”Such preliminary information
seems to entail that a joke will be made. This has nothing to do with the change of thecase or that the case has an imaginary role that is built into the joke frame.
Then, the following stories are told: Mr.“ein,”the first man, tells us that he believes
that 愛は一つ（Ai wa hitotsu.）（in Eng.“Love is for soulmates.”）. He seems to have an
image of pure love. The second man, Mr.“eines,”says the words 愛の巣（Ai no su.）
（inEng.“The nest of love.”）. He dreams of the beautiful life of the lovers. The third man,
Table 5

男性格変化 Declension in the Masculine Form

格
case

男性
masc.

各４人の男性による愛の観念
Ideas of love of each of the four men

1ein

愛は一つ（Ai wa hitotsu.）

Love is for soulmates.

2

eines

愛の巣（Ai no su.）

The nest of love.

3

einem

僕の愛は、眠っている（Boku no ai wa, nemutte iru.）

My love is sleeping.

4

einen

愛は、念じるものだ（Ai wa, nenjiru monoda.）

Love is prayer.

― 11 ―in Eng.

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Mr.“einem,”answers, 僕の愛は、眠っている（Boku no ai wa, nemutte iru.）（in Eng.
“My love is sleeping.”）. He seems to have nothing to do with a love affair. According
to the fourth and final man, Mr.“einen,”愛は、念じるものだ（Ai wa, nenjiru monoda.）（in Eng.“Love is prayer.”）. He seems to have no sexual desire. In this story, the author
ensures that the ideas of romantic and platonic love involving the characters introduced
are regarded as fiction. Now, what ideas do the women have about love?
2.4.2. The Case of Declension in the Feminine Form
Compare to the men, the women in the fictional story have extremely pragmatic andcold ideas about love. The first woman, Ms.“eine,”says with absolute certainly that 愛は無（ね）ー（Ai wa nē-）（in Eng.“There is no love.”）.She does not believe in love. The
second female, Ms.“einer,”has a more physical and sexual idea love, and vehemently
insists that 愛 は 寝 る こ と よ（Ai wa neru koto yo.）（in Eng.“Love is to sleep withman.”）
. Agreeing with that, the third woman, Ms.“einer,”likewise says that 愛は寝ることよ（Ai wa neru koto yo.）（in Eng.“Love is to sleep with man.”）. She thinks a sexual
relationship is necessary for her. Similar to the first woman, the fourth one, Ms.“eine,”utters the words 愛は無（ね）ー（Ai wa nē-）（in Eng.“There is no love.”）. She seems
to be completely disillusioned with love. Unlike the belief of pure love held by the men,
the women conceive of a practical and cynical love.
Table 6

女性格変化 Declension in the Feminine Form

格
case

女性
fem.

各４人の女性による愛の観念
Ideas of love of each of the four women

1

eine

愛は無
（ね）ー（Ai wa nē-）There is no love.

2

einer

愛は寝ることよ（Ai wa neru koto yo.）Love is to sleep with man.

3

einer

愛は寝ることよ（Ai wa neru koto yo.）Love is to sleep with man.

4

eine

愛は無
（ね）ー（Ai wa nē-）There is no love.

in Eng.

2.4.3. The Case of Declension in the Neutral Form
The inflection of“ein”in the neutral form is basically similar to the masculine form. In
this story, different ideas of love are expressed by the transgender persons. As withthe men, the first TG,“ein,”confesses that 愛は一つ（Ai wa hitotsu.）（in Eng.“Love isfor soulmates.”）. The second TG,“eines,”says 愛の巣（Ai no su.）（in Eng.“The nest oflove.”）, while the third TG,“einem,”modestly says 私の愛は、眠っている（Watashi no
Ai wa, nemutte iru.）（in Eng.“My love is sleeping.”）. The forth TG,“ein,”asserts withconfidence that 愛は一つ（Ai wa hitotsu.）（in Eng.“Love is for soulmates.”）. Like themen, the TG-persons seem to think of love as pure and romantic. This similarity exists
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German Grammar Lesson Using the Pun: A Study Based on Jokes and Humor Theory

Table 7中性格変化 Declension in the Neutral Form

格
case

中性
neut.

各４人の TG による愛の観念
Ideas of love of each of the four TGs

1ein

愛は一つ（Ai wa hitotsu.）

Love is for soulmates.

2

eines

愛の巣（Ai no su.）

The nest of love.

3

einem

私の愛は、眠っている（Watashi no Ai wa, nemutte iru.）

My love is sleeping.

4ein

愛は一つ（Ai wa hitotsu.）

Love is for soulmates.

in Eng.

because of the same grammatical change in the male and neutral cases. Therefore, thestory of the grammar change here is similar and memorable.
As mentioned above, while using the idea of the social-cultural gender categories,
the contrast between men, women, and TG-persons is emphasized in order to meetor confound the expectations of the listener. In this regard, Yus（2012, pp. 290-292）
analyzes that the joke produces humor based on the listener’s background knowledge
about information on cultural, sexual, and social stereotypes. However, the joke isperformed whether or not listeners individually support the stereotypical information.
The memorization method using the pun that the author created also takes into accountthe categories of jokes involving sexual roles and ideas.
However, performing a“sexist joke”using such sexual implications and genderstereotypes often results in discomfort to the listener by disturbing them emotionally.
As already mentioned when discussion advertising strategies, sexual topics have an
emotional appeal effect, and are considered to be important factors for evoking theconfidence of consumers. In another study of Key’s The Age of Manipulation（1989）,
unknowingly altering consciousness and controlling the recipient’s mind through amanipulating of meaning occur when the sender uses sexual implications commerciallyand sends message related to the sexually consumed body. Considering theseperspectives warned about by Key, there is concern that providing memorization tips
to the student that involve sexual motives may produce feelings of uneasiness. As
indicated by other research（Levis, 1997, p. 460 and 490）
, it is also undeniable that such“sexist jokes”may be defined as“sexual harassment.”4）
Of course, from the teaching viewpoint, research shows that mnemo tips using
keywords related to male-female relationships or love and romance are particularly
preferred by students, and thus increase their memorization effects（Scheckel, 1991, p.
203）. Therefore, it is necessary to pay attention to the negative and positive aspects ofstudents’ attitudes when demonstrating such a memorizing technique using these typesof puns.

― 13 ―

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2.5. Discussion of Related Problems
Paivio and Desrochers（1981, p. 792）introduced an opinion opposing the idea that themnemo technique of calling a keyword for learning vocabulary when studying a second
foreign language is different from the learning process under natural circumstances.
Rather, they especially recommended the memorization method using keywords for
adult learners because it is easy to set goals. As the author performed, an artificial
learning circumstance involving the pun to memorize a grammatical category can be
immediately used as a simple written test on German grammar.
However, as other researchers emphasize, figurative language（e.g., the pun）
involves ambiguous meaning, and may thus falsify word meaning while leaving thelistener to oscillate in semantic space（McQuarrie & Mich, 1996, p. 433; Abass, 2007, p.
48）. Considering these points, the risk of introducing double meanings or images into
one grammatical matter when promoting memorization cannot be ignored in the initial
grammar-learning stage of a new foreign language. There are items of strong impact
among the pun units within the story designed by the author. Thus, the learner should
be provided with a dual meaning for one grammatical matter by receiving anotherunrelated story. There are concerns that learners consciously remember these items forlong periods of time, and thus retain them whenever utilizing German grammar. This
may lead to the distortion of their recognition of pure grammatical knowledge.
I can offer a humorous example concerning this point. A beginning learner ofEnglish in Japan may never forget the case in which they memorize the number“one”
in English by repeating the Japanese word ワン（Wan）, which is similar to the English
word“bowwow”in the story 犬が〈ワン〉と一回吠える（in Eng.“A dog barks onceas‘one’”）. In this regard, I refer to an investigation by Dwight Bolinger（1980, p. 107）（author of the famous book Language - The Loaded Weapon）. Bolinger analyzed thatthe representation of some states of affair are“skewed by some linguistic mismatch- a word with a double meaning or a construction that makes a false connection.”
Therefore, double-meaning and structural non-uniformity that is constructed througha distortion of the original message created by the pun is sent to the listener. Mnemo
techniques that create inconsistency and a disintegration of the word cause very big
problems during the mental process of repeatedly memorizing.
Another example of the double-meaning problem can be referred to by examining a
Japanese history lesson at the junior high school level in Japan. That is, it is necessary
for the student to memorize that 平安京（Heian-Kyo）, the ancient imperial capital, wasestablished in 794. Thus, useful memorization tips are often provided by the teacher,such as the famous phrase 鳴くよウグイス平安京（Naku-yo Uguisu Heian-Kyo）（inEng.“Singing nightingale at the capital Heian-Kyo”）. This is not only multiplied by
the number 794（Na Ku Yon）
, which uses a homophony 鳴くよ（Naku-yo）（in Eng.
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German Grammar Lesson Using the Pun: A Study Based on Jokes and Humor Theory“Singing”）, but the image of the spring bird うぐいす（Uguisu）（in Eng.“nightingale”）
is also attached. The memorization of this matter is reinforced through the imaginativevisualization of the city’s grand establishment.
This is called the“keyword”method in the study of mnemo techniques. The above
way of memorizing the year 794 is very popular in Japan. For this reason, even whenlong periods of time have passed after students finish school or university entrance
examinations, cases of cognitive bias exist due to the harmful effect of people continuing
to recall 鳴くウグイス（“Singing nightingale”）as a Pavlovian response whenever they
hear the word 平安京（
“the capital Heian-Kyo”）. The historical, cultural, and multiple
images of the capital Heian-Kyo are consolidated into one static image of“Singing
nightingale”through the intensive memorization process for the high school anduniversity entrance examinations, meaning that the consciousness of the students has
been altered.5）
Scheckel（1991, p. 190）offers similar criticism. He recommends memorization
techniques that use keyword and illustrations, however, introduces an opponent opinion
to this argument, saying that these methods negatively affect the mental potentialof students through banalization. I also argue in favor of this critical view. That is,memorization through the convenient using of the dajare or pun is intended to force
students to wear a restrictive cloth of one image; the stronger the impact of the pun
and laughter, the stronger the restriction of this cloth. It then becomes a powerfulcorset that oppresses the human imagination. In promoting memorization techniquesthat use the pun, the teacher should be aware that these cognitive restraint corsets will
be put onto students for long periods of time.
Furthermore, according to the student questionnaire（see page 26,“Questionnaire
Survey”）, although there is a voice that is pleased to be able to support his or her
own memorization, in the positive opinion of a student who feels this attempt as anadvantage and provides a comment such as“unforgettable once I memorize it,”wecan find the problem of distorted mental stamping in the word“unforgettable.”In
this way, unlike the learning processes of native speakers, it can be understood thatlearning grammar by using the dajare or pun for memorization to focus on efficiency is
not only a wonderful and advantageous method. In reality, the negative consequences
should be taken into consideration. These include the introduction of information that is
unnecessary for learning grammatical matters, a dependence on memorizing puns, anda distortion of recognition that cannot be resolved in a short period of time.

― 15 ―

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German Grammar Lesson Using the Pun: A Study Based on Jokes and Humor Theory

3 . T he Effects of Humor and Laughter as a Result of Using the Pun:
Creating a Relaxing Classroom Atmosphere
Regarding speech techniques, the effects of laughter and humor have been foundas early as the classical period. Cicero wrote in his De Oratore（On the Orator）that“Jesting too and shaft of wit are agreeable and often highly effective”（1948, II, liv, p.
357）. In the case of political speeches that must win audience favor, it is necessary toutilize a rhetorical technique that results in laughter. This is because such laughter
can sometimes enable a speaker to overcome an adversary. In his Ars Rhetorica（TheRhetoric, 1966, III, ii, p. 1412a/b）, Aristotle recommended the use of humor and jokes inorder to gain a lively expression during a speech. In addition, he emphasized rhetoric,
unexpected words, jokes that depend on changing the letters of words, and homonyms.
When rhetorical words are used in comical contexts, they are regarded as innovativeand lively expressions. Thus, they produce unexpected, pleasant, and enjoyable results.
In this classical book, humor and laughter are highly evaluated in terms of theirfunction and efficiency regarding rhetorical techniques. Even in modern times, it isoften argued in humor studies that dajare or puns are important elements for creating
laughter during a speech or other form of social communication.
This section especially focuses on the production of laughter caused by the pun,
which is based on the tradition of rhetoric. Each subsection will discuss domestic andforeign research on laughter as well as the cultural functions of humor as indicatedin studies by Éric Smadja（1993）, Avner Ziv（1995）, Levis（1997）, Willibald Ruch
（2008）, Akira Shimizu（2000）, and Yoji Kimura（Ed. 2010）. It will also demonstrate thememorization tips for each grammar category and examine the problems that occur
during these lessons.
3.1. Declension of the Definite Article“der”
New students enter Japanese universities in mid-April.
This is also when people in Japan celebrate the cherry
blossom. There is much excitement about going on
an outing for cherry blossom viewing. Flower-viewing
parties or banquets with お弁当（Obentou）（in Eng.“aFig. 1. お弁当 Lunch Box
Public Domain.
（Source : GAHAG, 0003760
https://publicdomainq.net/）basket lunch”）（fig. 1）and drinks are popular events.
When the spring season concludes, students of German
learn the changing forms of the definite article“der.”However, as shown in table 8, there are 16 total ending
forms. Thus, many students become confused whenattempting to learn them. In response to this problem,

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the author attempted to convert the fourgrammatical genders into biological andTable 8 定冠詞 Definite Article

cultural gender categories, such as“male,”“female,”“transgender,” and “groups.”
These grammar tables are then modified toinclude four variable dishes that are packed
into tiered lunch boxes based on the imageof the spring cherry blossom viewing.

m.

f.

n.

pl.

1

der

die

das

die

2

des

der

des

der

3

dem

der

dem

den

4

den

die

das

die

⑴ In the Masculine Case:“der”
First, the food variations eaten by the man during lunch
are mostly heavy and bountiful. In his lunch box, which isfour-tiered for“der,”“des,”“dem,”and“den,”he packs thefollowing culinary delights from top to bottom: 照り焼き、てっさ、田楽、おでん（Teriyaki, Tessa, Denngaku, Oden）（in Eng.
“Teriyaki beef, thinly sliced fugu, baked dishes pasted with
Fig. 2. ふぐ Fugu
© 落書きアイコン
miso, and stewed food ingredients”）. The Japanese fugu（fig.
（Source:https://rakugakiicon.
2）cuisine packed into this second fold is a risky food that could
com/?p=2408）
bring the eater death in the event that the poison it contains is
not completely removed. Despite this risk, the dish is known to epicureans for its great
taste. Although it seems like a high-risk lunch to the students, it stimulates the appetiteand promotes the subconscious learning of German.
男性のお弁当 Lunch Box for Men

Table 9m.

cuisines

in Eng.

1der

照り焼き（Teriyaki）

Teriyaki beef2des

てっさ（Tessa）

thinly sliced Fugu3dem

田楽（Denngaku）

baked dishes pasted with miso4den

おでん（Oden）

stewed food ingredients⑵ In the Feminine Case:“die”
What foods do the women have for lunch? Carefully looking at table 10, it can be seenthat cases 1（“die”）and 4（“die”）are blank. Only cases 2（“der”）and 3（“der”）arepacked with cuisines. The cuisines are the same i.e., テ リ ー ヌ、 テ リ ー ヌ（terrine,
terrine（in Eng.“terrine and terrine”）.The makes the lunch box seem nearly empty. Is
this woman on a diet? This is not to say that the author is too lazy to think of suitable
ingredients, but that this is a rhetorical and teaching strategy.

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Table 10

女性のお弁当 Lunch Box for Womenf.

cuisines

in Eng.

1

die

2

der

テリーヌ（terrine）

terrine3der

テリーヌ（terrine）

terrine4die

In this regard, we can refer to the study of“unsaid”rhetoric conducted by MarcellaBertuccelli Papi（1996, pp. 191-196）. That is,“unsaid”words or attitudes are often
connotatively implied in text or speech. These hidden items are incorporated into
sentence structures. This“unsaid”component complements the semantically logicaland clear“said”sentences in order to constitute perfect meaning. Referring to thisrhetorical theory, the author showed the students this unfinished schema involving thelunch box by incorporating a pun with the expectation that they would complete cases
1 and 4 by themselves.
In fact, according to ad-rhetoric researcher Jacques Durand（1987, p. 308）
, theunusual suppression and ellipsis involved in these rhetorical items are designed forreaders to fall into a process that requires an understanding of what is missing. This isconsidered to be a very difficult rhetorical technique. Therefore, students may be able
to memorize“die”from the presence of the blank spaces during the process of fillingthe words in on their own. In such a way, it is sometimes important for teachers not
to prepare everything perfectly. Rather, they should incorporate playfulness into theprocess since it allows students to voluntarily fill incomplete ellipses.（For that reason,
if someone knows an appropriate pun for the article“die,”please let me know!）⑶ In the Neutral Case:“das”
The lunch box for a transgender person is filled with unusual and eclectic cuisinesthat combine Japanese and Mexican dishes. Thus, the box contains the following foods
for cases 1 to 4: タコス、てっさ、田楽、タコス（Takosu, Tessa, Denngaku, Takosu）
Table 11

TG のお弁当

Lunch Box for TGsn.

cuisines1das

タコス（Takosu）

taco

2

des

てっさ（Tessa）

thinly sliced fugu3dem

田楽（Denngaku）

baked dishes pasting with miso4das

タコス（Takosu）

taco

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in Eng.

― 18 ―

German Grammar Lesson Using the Pun: A Study Based on Jokes and Humor Theory（in Eng.“taco, thinly sliced fugu, baked dishes pasted with miso, and taco”）. This is acurious assortment of foods. One must be careful to eat the fugu, a perishable fish.（Theexplanation of the plural form“die”is omitted at this time.）
As explained above, the grammatical items are connected to the beautiful scenerythat accompanies traditional cherry blossom viewing by using homonymy and thesimilarity of words and sounds. These collective cultural images and memories（which are well-known to students）often evoke emotional reactions in the recipient.
In this regard, researcher of literature Aleida Assmann（2007, pp. 83-404）analyzes
that collective cultural images, symbols, or landscapes directly link to the national
memory, which functions as a cultural tool to evoke national identity and emotion.
The grammatical matter is associatively bridged by the mental scenery of the learner,
which means that another image is overlaid onto the grammatical information. This
contributes to a reduction in learning time since students do not have to memorize thegrammar system from the beginning. By changing an unknown and foreign grammar
system into a known image through the creation of a narrative relation, the emotional
involvement of learners is promoted. This facilitates grammar programming.
3.2. Declension of the Relative Pronouns:“der/die/das/die”
In this subsection, we will learn a
Table 12 関係代名詞 Relative Pronouns
way to memorize the declensions of
m.
f.
n.
pl.
the relative pronouns according to
1
der
die
das
die
case and gender. Looking at table 12,
2 dessenderendessenderen
it can be seen that there is a great
3
dem
der
dem
denen
deal of overlap between the relative
4
den
die
das
die
pronouns and the define articles withthe exception of the five declensions shaded in gray（i.e.,“dessen,”“deren,”“dessen,”“deren,”and“denen”）. The author created a joke framing a narrative story for these
five changes. First, as fig. 3 shows, there are two utility poles with very sloppy electric
wires attached. The state of these wires is depicted as follows: 電線が、
でれーん。
電線が、
でれーん。送電ねん！（Densen ga, derēn. Densen ga,
derēn. Sōden nen!）（in Eng.“The electric wire hangs
lo-o-oosely. The electric wire hangs lo-o-oosely. What a

Fig. 3. 電線 Utility Poles
Public Domain.
（Source: Pixy. https://pixy.org/4256565/）

power transmission!”）.
Using the rhetorical anadiplosis and homologyof the sound, the pun gains rhythms that are easily
memorized regarding the grammatical items. In
addition, a loose image of the electric wire is reinforced
through repetition. Despite this, however, the― 19 ―

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Table 13

電線の物語 The Story of the Utility Poles

dessenderen

dessen

deren

denen

電線が、
（Densen ga,）（
“The electric
wire”
）

でれーん。
（derēn.）（“hangs lo-ooosely.”）

電線が、（Densen ga,）（
“The electricwire”）

でれーん。
（derēn.）（“hangs lo-ooosely.”）

送電ねん！
（Sōden nen.）（“What a powertransmission!”）contrasting visual image of the powerful transmission combines with it to present a
funny impression. In the last phrase, 送電ねん（Sōden nen.）（in Eng.“What a powertransmission!”）, the word ねん（nen）is a form of dialect in the Kansai region. It is aparticle meaning assertiveness, and represents the word related to standard Japaneseなのだ（nanoda）（in Eng.“It is.”）（Makimura, 1979, p. 543）.Many prominent comedianscome from the Kansai region. Thus, the Kansai dialect is well-known by audiences of
television comedy programs or talk shows. In this context, Makoto Yoshimura（2017,
pp. 19-67）says that the Kansai dialect is called“language in life,”which symbolizes
a language that counters the standard and normative. It is strategically used for
producing laughter by countering standard Japanese values. Therefore, the author
introduces such local words and sounds to create laughter in order to help students toenjoy their environment and time spent learning.
3.3. The Cases of the Personal Pronoun in the Accusative
Here, we discuss the German personal pronouns in the accusative
form only; there are four singular cases（i.e.,“mich,”“dich,”“ihn,”
and“sie”）and three plural forms（i.e.,“uns,”“euch,”and“sie”）.
As fig. 4 depicts, the author designed a nice story by casting
ミッフィー Miffy（a famous small female rabbit characterized by
the Dutch painter Dick Bruna）. Using the cases“mich,”“dich,”“ihn,”“sie,”and“es”（shaded gray in the schema）, we canfollow the next story, as such: ミッフィーちゃんの弟子は、インド人でーす。
（Miffī-chan no, deshi wa, Indo-jin dē-ē-su.）（in Eng.
Miffy’s assistant i-i-is an Indian.）For the three plural cases（i.e.,“uns,”“euch,”and sie”）, I provide the following phrases: う ん
そーだねー。美味しいね～。G だよ～。
（Un sō-ō-da ne. Oishī nē-,G dayō~）（in Eng.“Yea-a-ah, that’s ri-ight. Wonderfu-ul…! Go-o-Fig. 4. Miffy
Illustrations Dick Bruna© Mercis bv, 1953-2018.
（Source: Miffy, https://www.miffy.com/）

od!”
）
.
In this story, the world-famous character Miffy is arranged to have a fictionalsocial connection with the Indian people who exist in reality but seem exotic toJapanese students due to geographical distance. Durand（1987, p. 317）, who analyzed
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Table 14

人称代名詞 Personal Pronoun
ich

mich
ミッフィーちゃんの（Miffī-chan no）（Miffy’s）
wir

du

er

dich
ihn
弟子は、
インド
（deshi wa,）
（Indo）（assistant i-i-is） （an）

sie

es

sie
人
（Jin）
（Indian.）es
でーす。
（dē-ē-su.）

ihr

sie

uns
euch
うんそーだねー。
美味しいね～（Un sō-ō-da nē-.）（Oishī nē-）（Yea-a-ah, that’s ri-ight.） （Wonderfu-ul!）sie
G だよ～。
（G dayō）（Go-o-od!）

the rhetorical figures, says that the rhetorical arrangement of constituents emulating
the grammatical formal rules is called an anacoluthon, which brings about impossible
images. Here, feelings of incongruity are created by placing Miffy in a mismatch, which
produces an emotional impact to the listener by fantasizing the grammar item.
Students were pleased with this memorization tip. I remember a grammar class at
Mie University in which the students normally took their lesson quietly and withoutsocialization. However, when I presented this memorization method using“Miffy,”I
heard the students begin to bustle. They were whispering to each other about what
had occurred in the class while suppressing laughter. Perhaps they were upset anddesperate to internalize their joviality. Such a strange scene may be unique to Japan.
This point will be problematized later on in the discussion.
3.4. The Declension of Adjectives: Weak Inflection
It is especially difficult to muster the weak inflection of adjectives among German
grammar categories because the forms are made complicated by adding the endings“e”or“en”to the adjective according to the gender and case. As such, the author
developed well-suited puns for students. As table 15 shows, there are eleven“en”
endings in the adjective inflections shaded in gray. Japanese words with the same
alliteration 宴 会（Enkai）（in Eng.“party”）are used as paronomasia and repeated inTable 15

形容詞の弱変化 Declension of Adjectives
m.

f.

n.

pl.

1

der gut-e Manndie gut-e Fraudas gut-e Kind

die gut-en Kinder

2

des gut-en Manns

der gut-en Fraudes gut-en Kindes

der gut-en Kinder

3

dem gut-en Mannder gut-en Fraudem gut-en Kindden gut-en Kindern4

den gut-en Manndie gut-e Fraudas gut-e Kind

die gut-en Kinder― 21 ―

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German Grammar Lesson Using the Pun: A Study Based on Jokes and Humor Theory

each case in order to achieve the effect of epizeuxis, which increases emotional intensity.
Furthermore, the grammatical gender categories are converted into biological andcultural ones（i.e.,“male,”“female,”“transgender,”and“groups”）. The grammaticalcases from 1 to 4 are replaced by the number of days, from the first to the fourth day,on which people schedule their parties. Thus, in this joke frame, the party plans ofdifferent genders and groups are arranged for the fourth day. See below:【☆ Party Schedule: From the First Day Until the Fourth ☆】As the end of December approaches in Japan, restaurants and bars everywhere are fullof people engaging in parties and banquets（fig. 5）. The man in this story particularly
loves a drink of alcohol, and, with the exception of
the 1st day, is very busy getting ready to party. As
shown in the schedule（table 16）, the man plans todrink on the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th days. Looking at hisschedule, it can be seen that the plans are to 宴会、Fig. 5. Party「かんぱーい☆」
宴 会、 宴 会（Enkai, Enkai, Enkai）（in Eng.“Party,（Cheeers!）
party, and party”）. The depiction here creates a© ビヨビヨイラスト工房 https://ameblo.jp/
humorous atmosphere through the repetitive effectbiyobiyo523/entry-11419715684.html/）of the word, which is a consecutive and typologicalrepeat.
In contrast, the woman and the TG person will not drink as much alcohol. Their
party schedules show nothing for the 1st or 4th day. However, there are parties on the
2nd and 3rd days. This is noted with the words 宴会、宴会（Enkai, Enkai）（in Eng.“Party
and party.”）. What will happen if many people gather? It is a matter of course thatparties are held every day. The following phrases describe the situation: 宴会、宴会、宴会、宴会、それでええんかい！（Enkai, Enkai, Enkai Enkai. Sorede een kai!）（in Eng.“party,
party, party, and party. Is such a thing really ok?!”）.I think it is really extravagant!
The exaggerated drinking-party image is derived from the epizeuxis using theTable 16

宴会のスケジュール（4 日間） Party Schedule（4 days）

呑み助の男性a hard-drinking man

女性a womanトランスジェンダー にぎやかなグループ
a TG-person
a busy groupeen 宴会（Enkai）

2nd day en 宴会（Enkai）

en 宴会（Enkai） en 宴会（Enkai）

en 宴会（Enkai）

3 day en 宴会（Enkai）

en 宴会（Enkai） en 宴会（Enkai）

en 宴会（Enkai）

e

それでええんかい！
（Sorede een kai!）

1st day

e

rd

e

th

en 宴会（Enkai）

4 day
en 宴会（Enkai）

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German Grammar Lesson Using the Pun: A Study Based on Jokes and Humor Theory

sound“en.”The last phrase, それでええんかい！（Sorede een kai!）, which is placed opposite to the word 宴会（Enkai）（in Eng.“party”）, indicates a chiding voice. However,it includes a homonym of“party”宴会（Enkai）, and is an epanalepsis to repeat thephrase for emphasis. In this phase, the old adjective えぇ（Ee）,“good”（良い , Yoi）inthe standard language remains only in the Kansai dialect（Makimura, 1979, p. 86-87）, isused. This sentence provides an ironic nuance, and indicates a surprising（but fun）feeling for the group that is drinking every day.
3.5. Discussion
According to this experiment’s questionnaire survey, the majority of respondents
positively evaluated the German grammar lessons that used the pun in terms of theirmemorization effects and atmosphere. A total of 82% responded that they regarded
this method as an easy memorization tool, while 72% acknowledged its memorization
effects. However, some negative evaluations were included through comments such as
the following:“As the lesson become enjoyable, I cannot concentrate”and“It was forme better to memorize the grammar in usual way.”These minority opinions cannot beignored. Evoking laughter during lessons is not necessarily good.
In this regard, humor studies researchers Akira Shimizu（2000, p. 68-72）andKimura（2010, pp. 6-12）analyze that laughter is understood as a“release”in themental mechanism. It thus becomes a trigger for the discharge of suppressed mental
stress and energy. Indeed, even in research involving the effects of laughter fromthe medical viewpoint（Shimizu, 2000; Morita, 2010; Hirosaki, 2010）, only the positiveeffects of laughter on the body and the mental mechanism are emphasized as if suchan emotional phenomenon solves everything in this sick and depressed society. In thistype of research, laughter is idealized as a panacea.
However, laughter is not only a physical and mental phenomenon of“release.”It isalso a certain experience that places a load on the mind and body. Therefore, evoking
laughter through the use of a pun during class should result in mental stress for the
students. Due to the strong impact of laughter, using the pun to learn grammar may
cause problems. For instance, the student may only memorize the pun as uselessinformation or only store information about an amazing scene presented during class,which can remain as a traumatizing mental picture for long periods of time. The author
has particular concerns about this point, which does not emerge through a simple
questionnaire survey. Even though this research achieved satisfaction and the method
was favorable among students, it is not possible to accurately estimate its effects unlessthe resulting negative effects are observed over the long term. We must pay attention
to the fact that there are cases in which learning through artificial memorization thatevokes laughter by using the pun at the early grammar-acquisition stage could bring― 23 ―

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German Grammar Lesson Using the Pun: A Study Based on Jokes and Humor Theory

disadvantages that are not visible to the teacher.
Nevertheless, we should positively acknowledge the comments from students who
regard this method as“relaxing”and“enjoyable.”According to a study by Tetsuya
Hattori（Morita, 2010, p. 74）, the generous culture of humor that had been enjoyed inJapanese society until 1889 receded into the background; laugher rapidly disappeared.
This is a result of changes in the Japanese political and social systems. That is, people
were placed under great stress because it became necessary to constantly learn
information from the West. Hattori sees pre-modern authoritarianism as having caused
the loss of laughter in Japan.
As the laughter-suppressing tradition was formed in modern educational settings,
students tend to repress both opinions and laughter during class. Under such
suppression, students are often seen quietly fighting off laughter when teachers
make jokes. It seems as if they are afraid to diminish the teacher’s authority throughlaughter. This trend is particularly prominent in the Kanto region around Tokyo,
while the Kansai region around Osaka and Kyoto is relatively released from such
authoritarianism.（The author mentioned the case of Watanabe in Tokyo and Hiroki in
Kansai. See the argument presented in section 2.3.）
In this regard, catharsis is exerted when a certain tension arises between the person
making the joke and the target of the joke, but it is impossible to successfully make ajoke under too much tension（Levis, 1997, p. 458）. Therefore, when introducing a pun,
it is first necessary to build a relationship of mutual trust between the teacher and thestudents while creating a relaxing atmosphere. Furthermore, humor researcher Ziv（1995, pp. 48-70）observed that laughter and humor gain more efficiency when they are
performed by people in higher positions than those to whom the gestures are directed.
This is because such gestures release tension while building mutual communication,
regardless of position and class. Therefore, I believe that using the pun during grammarclasses brings relaxation and eases authoritarianism whether the teacher slips or not.
（Regarding the meaning of“slip,”see section 2.1.）

4 . Conclusion
This examination of German grammar lessons involving the dajare or pun indicatedtheir usefulness in promoting memorization. This method also created a relaxing
atmosphere despite individual differences. As the puns resulted in laughter, the tenseclassroom atmosphere relaxed, thereby altering student attitudes. Even students whoare skeptical about the effects of the pun acknowledge the effects of creating a positive
atmosphere. The questionnaire survey revealed that many students regarded thisteaching method as one without disadvantages. However, problems exist. These include
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German Grammar Lesson Using the Pun: A Study Based on Jokes and Humor Theory

the continued distortion of recognition regarding grammar matters and the long-term
harmful aftereffects of language learning owing to correct and original knowledge
through other representations.
Further examination is required to study these problems from the long-term
perspective. Japanese educational institutions and examination industries that place
excessive emphasis on memorization are deeply relevant to teaching methods that use
the dajare or pun. Thus, this figurative rhetoric must be regarded as an educationaland socially important tool or strategy for processing information, as we can alreadyconfirm its usefulness in and cultural significance. On the other hand, as mentioned in
the discussion in section 2, we must also consider disadvantages such as the flattening
and uniformizing of thought when teaching through this method.

Acknowledgements
I would like to thank all students who participated in this experiment for theircooperation. I would also like to thank Tomohiko Matsumura, who is a German literaryscholar at Kyoto University. Matsumura encouraged me to present this theme at aposter session at the JGG conference. Without his encouragement, this research would
have never been publicized. I express my gratitude to him here. I also appreciate allparticipants who attended my poster presentation for exchanging their opinions. It wasa very amusing time. Among them, a young German researcher in didactics at Dokkyo
University showed the most interest in my attempt, and provided insightful comments.
I also express my gratitude to him.
This research began when a student at Kyoto Sangyo University asked me in 2011or 2012 whether I knew any memorization tips for German grammar except for“e · st ·ten · ten.”After that time, I occasionally thought of puns while on a train or in a café,
which gave me much enjoyment. I remember nearly everything about this law student,
including his face, attitude, and high motivation to learn German. Unfortunately, I
cannot recall only his name. However, this is a good thing; here, I can thank him forthe opportunity to think of this research theme, which I dedicate to all people who
require such a way to memorize German grammar, from students to teachers andresearchers of didactics. I also thank Youichi Kanari as the first reader of this paper.
Kanari provided me with valuable insight and encouraged me throughout this study. I
also give my appreciation to all reviewers for their many useful comments. This advice
helped me greatly in my revisions. Finally, I would like to thank Masaya Watanabe,
Hiroki Iwamoto, and Junichi Yoshimura for their cooperation in preparing this paper.
This research（2015-2017）was supported by the Kaken grant（18K00487）from theJSPS, as well as the research fund of the College of Commerce, Nihon University（2017）.

― 25 ―

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German Grammar Lesson Using the Pun: A Study Based on Jokes and Humor Theory

The English editing was conducted by Editage.

Questionnaire Survey on the German Grammar Lesson Using the Dajare / Pun
This questionnaire survey was conducted at Mie University during the 2015 wintersemester. It targeted 47 students in two classes. The majority of these students
positively evaluated the teaching of German grammar using the pun in terms of its
memorization effects and creation of a positive atmosphere. They provided many
positive opinions, but there were also some negative evaluations. I specify them below
for reference.（The respondent numbers are indicated in parentheses.）
1.

2.

3.

Are the puns easy
for memorizing
grammar?

very easy

normalnot easy

82%（39）17%（8）

0.4%（2）How do you
estimate thememorizing effect?

very effective

normalineffective

72%（37）

14%（7）

0.4%（2）Is the pun an
obstacle to yourlearning?

no hindrance

normalinterrupted

91%（43）

0.6%（2）

0.2%（1）

Positive Comments:“It is easy to memorize.”“I can memorize it while having fun.”“Easy to memorize.”“I want you to introduce more puns.”“I can take the lesson while relaxing.”“Once I
learn it, it is hard to forget.”“The lesson becomes interesting.”“Miffy’s pun is good.”“I can use it for exams.”“I want you to also introduce proverbs, etc.”“I was able
to concentrate on the lesson all the time.”“The effect is enormous.”“Great.”“As anintentional pun, it has enough effect.”“It is easier to memorize than just to explain
the grammar.”“Enjoyable.”“Easier to memorize compared to when it is not used.”“I
wanted to know more about other puns.”“I could concentrate on the lesson all the time
when I did not stay focused.”

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German Grammar Lesson Using the Pun: A Study Based on Jokes and Humor Theory

Negative Comments:“It was not effective.”“It was for me better to memorize it in the usual way.”“It isimportant whether I want to transcribe the pun.”“As the lesson become enjoyable,
I could not concentrate.”“It was funny, but I did not remember the pun.”“Althoughthere is an effect, it is suitable for high school students.”“Ordinary.”“‘e-st-ten-ten’wasbest.”“It was easy to memorize, but sometimes I do not notice the pun.”

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〔注〕1 ）The drama series 99.9 刑事専門弁護士 “99.9 - Criminal Lawyer”of the Japanesecommercial broadcasting station TBS. I referred to the following website: Accessed
24 Feb. 2018.（http://www.tbs.co.jp/999tbs/）I really recommend this television
program for the pun-user and -lover.
2 ）In addition, my colleague and linguist Junichi Yoshimura（The University of
Shiga Prefecture）, who is a witty man and loves dajare, actively uses it during his
German courses, which attracts students.
3 ）I created this pun with the word“Mr. Saito”when I recalled my colleague whosename is Sho Saito（The University of Tokyo）. He is a researcher of Western
history of philosophy. Although he is a respectable and serious person and I havenever heard of him using puns, I thank him for his cooperation.
4 ）Here, Watanabe and Kanari commented that male teachers should especially be
careful about this sensual topic because the Japanese university system attempts
to prevent sexual harassment in all cases.
5 ）Regarding this point, Kanari considers the pun as a great form of study support
because it is easier to use than the normal technique. He still remembers a famousphrase used for an examination question from long ago, as follows: Such the year
“962,”the year of the crowning of Otto the Great of the Holy Roman Empire（オット ー 大 帝 苦 労 人（Otto Taitei Kuro-ninn）, which means“Otto the Great was ahardship person”）. This is multiplied by the number 962,“Ku Ro Ninn”. However,
we are not sure whether Otto the Great experienced these hardships to obtain
success or whether he had seen the world. Nevertheless, his fictional depiction as“ahard-working man of difficulty”is fixed in the memories of Japanese students.

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German Grammar Lesson Using the Pun: A Study Based on Jokes and Humor Theory

要旨
本稿は、日本におけるドイツ語教授法において従来まで考慮されてこなかった、「だじゃれ」を導入したドイツ語文法の教授成果とそのストラテジーについての報告を行うものである。だじゃれやジョークの言語研究は、英語圏で盛んである。だじゃれには社会文化的な高い価値が見出されており、そのコミュニケーション効果や訴求効果により、広告業界
で言語戦略として導入されている。本稿では、これらのジョーク理論だけではなく、笑いの作用について研究したユーモア理論を援用しながら、本テーマの教授方法を実践するなかで得られた記憶効果や良い雰囲気作りの効果のみならず、その問題点についても検証する。とりわけ、初期文法学習の段階において、文法概念にダブル・ミ―ニングを導入して暗記を促すことに、問題を見出せる。人工的な学習プロセスにおいて、効率を重視した暗記対策のための「だじゃれを利用した文法学習」が、一時的で補助的な教授モデルとしてのみ利用される可能性を見出すことを試みる。

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