Jokes May Not Translate Well

I happened to mention to my friend Mark that I am doing an Alpha training session later this week at a Chinese church. I'm not sure but I think the pastor may be translating my presentation. Mark gave me a couple of tips, including this one: don't try to tell any jokes, as they may not translate very well from English to Mandarin. Then he gave me this example.

An American was addressing a group of Japanese business people, with his talk being translated as he spoke. As is the custom with many North American speakers, he began with a joke. Knowing that the audience would not get the joke anyway, the translator translated something like this:
Speaker - the first line of the joke.
Translator (in Japanese): "Our honourable guest is going to tell a joke."
Speaker - the next line of the joke.
Translator: "Our honourable guest is now telling the joke."
Speaker - the next line of the joke.
Translator: "Our honourable guest is now nearing the end of his joke."
Speaker - gives the punchline.
Translator: "Our honourable guest has now finished the joke. Please laugh."
Upon which the entire gathering obediently broke out into hysterical laughter.

Unfortunately the speaker probably now thinks this is the perfect joke to tell every gathering of Japanese business people he addresses. Let us hope that the next translator knows what to do as well, or else the next time he tells the same joke he may be met with a room full of blank stares.

Blessings,
John


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