Date: Thu, 10 Aug 2000 19:34:56 -0500
Subject: Re: the "joke"



Yes, indeed, it did not amuse. But, having lived and taught in Asia, I know
that such columns tend to be fixtures in English speaking newspapers
--generally alongside the Dear Abby corner and various reproductions of
Western cartoons; anything to fill the space when the news get slow. As is
to be expected with linguistic matters, some puns are much better than
other.

I presume the person who forwarded it to us on this list was tickled by the
novelty. As a non-Anglophone who learned my English in Britain and now work
in the States, I often get told by my students that I have "an accent." My
response usually is, "so do you."

Meanwhile, let us not cultivate too thin a skin!

And since I have the floor, I might add that I've followed with interest
the bukhra/bukra/Walcott exchanges. The "Indian" derivation (I mean, the
subcontinent) is fascinating! The generally accepted version is that it is
a West African term (however transformed by its "Caribbeanization") to
designate a white person; hence, in the French-occupied Antilles, its
transformation into beke (with acute diacritics on each vowel) and the
distinction between beke (island-born) and beke-France (newly arrived
interloper).

Cheers, all around, cz

Professor Clarisse Zimra
Dept. English
Southern Illinois University
Carbondale, USA   62901-4503
office tel.  (618)  453 68 13
secretary    (618)  453 53 21
fax     (618)  453 32 53




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