Tales of Juha - Conditioning

Tales of Juha: Classic Arab Folk Humor has definitely been my favorite read this semester.  This could partly be due to the fact that the entire book is purely jokes divided into different topics, but also because even though it is Arab humor, it is still relatable and enjoyable universally.  In addition, it relates to my “Humor around the World” presentation, so that was pretty neat!  And then, I think most importantly, this collection of humor was culturally enlightening. 

This last grouping of reading, which included the sections of “Juha the Butt,” “Boastfulness and False Pride,” “A Witty Rogue,” “Cowardice,” “Justice and Generosity,” and “Critic of Despotism,” may have actually been my least favorite of the three.  I can definitely say that the first day of reading was my favorite, mainly in part to the wit and smartness of Juha.  I can definitively say that wit is my favorite form of humor, therefore justifying my favorite grouping of reading.  But why then did I enjoy this one so much less?  I think this is partly due to the culture references in this section.  While most of the humor in this book is universal, some I think would be funnier or more enjoyable to those who understand and live in that form of culture.  This can particularly be identified with some of the judge jokes, and jokes involving the governor.  Also, since I preferred the first section due to the wit and smartness of Juha, it makes sense that I did not enjoy when Juha was the butt of the joke or viewed as naïve and cowardly.

One of the jokes that particularly stood out to me in this grouping of reading was from the section entitled “Critic of Despotism,” where Juha taught Tamerlane’s donkey to read (135-136).  The way in which Juha taught the donkey to “read” (rather, taught him to turn the pages of a book), was by placing barley between the pages, turning the pages as the donkey ate the barley; then the donkey would begin to turn the pages on his own, in order to get to the barley to eat; after that, Juha did not include the barley between the pages, but the donkey continued to turn the pages of the book.  Juha said the donkey would continue to turn the pages without the barley, because he was looking for the barley.  This situation reminded me of Skinner’s “Operant Conditioning” where learning occurs by association.  At first the barley makes the donkey eat and turn the pages of the book, making the barley a reward for the desired action of turning the page.  Therefore, Juha was promoting positive reinforcement as the donkey had to turn the page in order to get the barley.  Eventually all it took was for the donkey to see the book to know it should turn the pages, because the donkey had been conditioned to do so, and was still under the impression that he would find barley between the pages.

This story also reminded me of The Big Bang Theory,  when they depicted conditioning by Sheldon training Penny to not sit in his spot, or to be quiet and not talk as much.  Sheldon trained Penny by giving her chocolate every time she did something correct or realized a mistake, in order to eventually train her to not have those tendencies. 

 

There are two other particular reasons I enjoyed this particular joke.  First, Juha is depicted as being smart and cunning, opposed to dumb or cowardly like many of the other jokes in this grouping of reading.  It takes some intelligence and understanding in order to get the donkey to respond the way he did.  Second, it reminded me of science and psychology which I love!  The mind is truly fascinating and seeing a correlation in this humor excited me and was noteworthy.