Monthly Archives: May 2011

Folk Saying- Arabian Standard Time

Nationality: Egyptian
Age: 19
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles, CA
Performance Date: April 27, 2011
Primary Language: Arabic
Language: English, French

The informant is a nineteen-year old student born in Australia who’s lived in Egypt for two years, England for two years, Jordan for four years, Egypt for two years, India for four years and currently resides in Los Angeles, CA for university.  He is the son of an Egyptian ambassador and speaks Arabic, English and French. He shall be referred to as SH.

SH describes how in many warmer countries along the equator, people are not as inclined to strictly adhere to a schedule as they would in other countries, resulting in people often being late. He refers to this as running on “Arabian Standard Time,” but says a variant of that is “Indian Standard Time” or other versions. He explains how it is a way of referring to the stereotype of people from those countries as being inclined to be late. However, he addresses this with a sense of humor, smiling as he talks about it. He explains that since people from the tropical climates are used to having long hours of sunlight, it is not essential that they follow a clock so closely and that not too much is lost by being twenty minutes late.

Conversely, much of American culture is derived from British culture, where sunlight is scarce and rarely lasts long. Thus, people from those countries place more value in sunlight hours and thus are more insistent on punctuality.

While this is a negative stereotype, it seems to be embraced by the people who it applies to (at least in the case of SH). Thus, it appears they do not take it as negatively. Rather, SH explains a sort of pride at his country of origin and the lifestyle they live. The use of the term “standard time” suggests this is the official way they choose to address time, thus embracing a culture that is not so strict on punctuality.

Folk Saying

Nationality: Black
Age: 18
Occupation: Political Science Student
Residence: Rancho Cucamonga, California
Performance Date: March 2, 2011
Primary Language: English

“Oh, I see, I see says the blind man.”

“As he picked up his hammer and saw.”

Jessyka told me that she learned this saying from her father at her home in Rancho Cucamonga, California. She could not remember any exact time when she first heard it, because her father, from Louisiana, has been saying it to her all of her life. When Jessyka was first learning the saying, her father would say both lines together, but as Jesskya heard it more and more, her father would say the first sentence and she would respond with “as he picked up his hammer and saw.” When Jesskya uses it now, she just says the first sentence, and hopes that whomever she is talking with responds with the second sentence.

I have heard Jessyka use this saying many times in informal settings when surrounded by peers. She will generally say it after the group has been laughing about some minor miscommunication or after something potentially confusing is explained. She claims that it is a “term of understanding” that she uses to let other speakers know that she understood what had been said, especially in situations where it seemed like there was confusion. Jessyka, like her father, will usually only say the first line of the saying, and hope that someone else will respond. When I asked her if she ever uses it with professors, employers, or anyone else with authority, she responded, “I hope not!” She had similar sentiments about using the saying in a formal setting.

Jessyka gave two explanations for using the saying: one, it builds ties and two, it connects her with an older time. When another person does not respond with the second half of the saying, the saying doesn’t lose its meaning as a “term of understanding,” but Jessyka is momentarily disappointed. She sees using the phrase as way of connecting to people through realizing that she and the respondent “know someone, you know, from the same part of the country.” Using the saying allows for recognition of similarity and builds a sense of familiarity between the original speaker and the respondent.

Since Jessyka’s father is from Louisiana, Jesskya assumes that the saying originated in the South. This point of origin combined with the word play of “see,” meaning both to understand and to see something physically, makes Jessyka believe that the saying was born in “the Jazz Era.” When she performs the saying, she feels connected to “old souls.” She also suggested that this saying is usually passed from parents to their children. Thus, she feels connected with an older time by using the saying.

While I agree with Jessyka that using this saying can create a sense of familiarity and connection between the performer and the respondent, I hesitate to agree that others would use this saying to connect themselves with the past. Although Jessyka’s hypothesis that the saying originated in the South during the “Jazz era” is logical, it is merely a conjecture. Jessyka learnt this folk saying from her father and believes that most people learn the saying from their parents. She uses these circumstantial pieces of evidence to draw her conclusion that, in general, people associate the saying with old times in the past.

Instead, the saying seems to me to be more about exploring the English language. Jessyka learnt the phrase at a young age, right when she was starting to get used to the idea that one word can have multiple meanings. Additionally, her father introduced the saying to her slowly, saying both parts of the phrase until Jessyka clearly understood the linguistic implications of the verb “to see.” Jesskya assumes that children learn this phrase from their parents, and while this may often be the case because parents often teach their children about language, it is not always the case. Personally, I learnt this saying from my peers at a young age. Once my peers and I understood the word play, we found the saying humorous and felt a sense of camaraderie around our mutual understanding and knowledge.  Additionally, a similar phrase can be found in the poem One Fine Day in the Middle of the Night, recorded by the British Columbia Folklore Society. This collection places the poem under the classification of “Ballads of Impossibilities” and explains the saying as an example of word play. In this collection, they provide a few different variations of “I see, I see said the blind man,” but the one included as part of the complete poem is “ask the blind man, he saw it too!” The other lines in the poem include other impossibilities, such as “a deaf policeman heard the noise.” This poem, generally told to children, tests listeners’ understanding of English through contradictions, just like “I see, I see said the blind man” does. Lastly, it debunks Jessyka’s hypothesis that the saying originated in the American South. Jessyka’s saying then, viewed in relation to the variation recorded by the British Columbia Folklore Society, appears to reflect a linguistic exploration of word play and the double meaning of words. The context she learned in it and repeats it in suggests that the saying creates a camaraderie based on shared knowledge.

Annotation:

The British Columbia Folklore Society

Mike Ballantye 2004. One Fine Day in the Middle of the Night. http://www.folklore.bc.ca/Onefineday.htm, accessed April 28, 2011.

Mexican Good Luck Ritual- Money in Water

Nationality: Mexican
Age: 47
Occupation: Civil Engineer
Residence: Sacramento, CA
Performance Date: March 15, 2011
Primary Language: Spanish
Language: English

The informant is a 47-year old civil engineer working in California, originally from Michoacán, Mexico. He lived a modest life as a young adult, studying to be an engineer. He then moved to the United States with his wife to raise their family and make his career. He primarily speaks Spanish with English as a second language.  He shall be referred to as JB.

JB’s father owned a small convenience store for a time. He explains that with both his father and other business owners, it was good luck for the business to not spend the money made on the first sale of the day. Instead, that money is placed in a small glass of water left somewhere behind the counter. In addition to this, it was very important that the first person to walk into the business in the morning did not leave without making an actual purchase. JB explained this could simply mean being as friendly a salesperson as possible or even offering a deep discount to the customer. If the first person to walk in did not make a purchase, it was bad luck for the rest of the workday and vice versa.

JB believes that this is a matter of reflecting yourself as a good businessperson. If you let the first potential customer go without making a purchase, this could easily mean that the same could happen with the next. He said there’s a strong importance in making every possible sale count, and by successfully making the first, you are setting yourself up for a successful workday as a whole.

I agree with JB’s high value in displaying your ability as a salesman with each customer, especially with wanting to guarantee a sale on the first person to walk in. As JB was witness to this in a father-son context, it also demonstrated a desire to instill strong business values in a small child, as well as instilling a value in thorough work throughout life. However, he wasn’t able to provide too much reasoning for the money in the glass of water.

My first interpretation is that it serves as a public display of the salesman’s competence for those that are keen-eyed enough to notice. If another salesman were to walk in and not see money in the glass, they would immediately suspect that the business owner had not made his or her first sale of the day yet and thus think less of his or her ability. Thus, the money in the glass of water becomes a sort of quality assurance mark. At the same time, water has a very protective nature to it. JB grew up in a Catholic community where everyone was baptized around the time of their birth. In that ceremony, water cleanses the person of sin and gives them God’s grace for the remainder of life. In a much less formal manner, putting the money from the first sale in water grants it a level of protection, hopefully for the remainder of the workday.

Mexican Folk Remedy- Rubbing Alcohol and Salt

Nationality: Mexican
Age: 47
Occupation: Accountant
Residence: Sacramento, CA
Performance Date: March 15, 2011
Primary Language: Spanish
Language: English

The informant is a 47-year old accountant working in California, originally from Michoacán, Mexico. She lived a modest life as a young adult, having to take care of her family at a very young age while still finding success in management. She then moved to the United States with her husband to raise their family and now works in accounting. She primarily speaks Spanish with English as a second language.  He shall be referred to as MB.

MB explained that this was a home remedy she learned from her own mother. It is a simple matter of mixing a solution of rubbing alcohol and salt, then rubbing that over a person’s feet and lower legs to cure a cold. MB herself could not explain how it worked (and it certainly doesn’t seem to make any sense on a medicinal level), but she asserts that it always managed to cure a cold both in her childhood and for her children when she became a mother.

MB explains that rubbing alcohol is a common ingredient in home remedies, as it was a cheap and accessible resource for those without too much money where she grew up. As mentioned above, these solutions were very simple and meant to be easily executed before relying on a doctor for medical advice. Money was often very tight, so any kind of folk remedy was preferred to a costly visit to the doctor (except, obviously, in cases that required it).

I believe that the seemingly non-medicinal nature of this remedy is reflective of MB’s Catholic origin. As the town was made up largely of the devoutly religious, they were unlikely to question that which made no scientific sense and instead function more on faith. After all, there doesn’t seem to be any scientific reasoning for either of these remedies, but MB insists that they served their purpose for herself and her siblings. At the same time, I can personally testify to the reliability of the salt-alcohol solution—I do not know how it works, but only that it can clear up a cold overnight.

Jewish Joke

Nationality: American
Age: 24
Occupation: Freelance Editor
Residence: Los Angeles, California
Performance Date: April 2, 2011
Primary Language: English

“A Jewish family were sitting down to a family dinner, and the son asks his father if he can borrow $50. The father responds, ‘$40? Why do you need $30?’”

My informant first heard this joke a few months ago at a bar with his friends. He now shares the joke in similar friendly, jovial atmospheres. He told it to a group of our friends one night when we went out to dinner and after someone made a comment about him being Jewish. His joke, in response to the comment, sparked an exchange of jokes among the group.

My informant tells the joke because he feels that it strikes a balance between exaggerating a stereotype, that Jewish people are stingy, and being overtly offensive. Since he identifies as Jewish, he never feels uncomfortable saying the joke, but only says it when surrounded by people whom he thinks will not be offended.

Another reason that the joke may not be seen as offensive is that the joke is somewhat complimentary of the Jewish father. The joke implies that the Jewish father is intelligent enough to trick his son into believing that he originally asked for $30. This joke plays on two Jewish stereotypes: stinginess and craftiness. The joke retains its humor despite generalizing about a group of people because neither of these stereotypes is exceptionally insulting, but Jewish and non-Jewish people alike acknowledge the stereotypes.