The Oxford German Cartoon-strip Vocabulary Builder [Oxford University Press, 2000] uses 30 comic strips by French cartoon artist Claire Bretecher to illustrate spoken German and slang. Though the publisher rates the level as “lower intermediate and beyond,” the difficulty and amount of text in the comic strips vary, therefore making some accessible even to beginners. In addition, its pronunciation guide, glossary, list of irregular verbs and user-friendly structure make the book a must-have for learners of any level.
Structure of the Vocabulary Builder
The topics covered are easily accessible because each one of Claire Bretecher’s colorful, hilarious and true-to-life comic strips makes up the left part of the spread, usually divided into nine to fifteen panels. The page on the right is divided into three parts:
- the vocabulary used in the comic strip
- additional words and phrases relating to the topic covered
- key structures, namely grammatical peculiarities of spoken German that need further explanation
The comic strips increase in vocabulary and complexity, therefore slowly accelerating the level of difficulty as students make their way through the book. Though each one can stand alone, all cartoon strips revolve around Anita, the 16-year-old heroine, and the little crises in her teenage life. Some of the topics covered are family, going out, communication, traveling, love and relationships, emotions, clothes, television, work and others.
Examples of German Slang Terms
Knowing selected slang words and phrases is a shortcut to sounding like a native German. Watch out for English words used in everyday German though – Germans love them but often their English meaning doesn’t make sense in the German context. Here are a few examples of everyday slang :
das Handy – mobile (phone)
die Bullen – derogatory term for police; literally: bulls
büffeln – to study hard, revise (Büffel is a buffalo)
der Comic – comic book
der Krimi - thriller
die Inliner – inline skates
der Softie – wimp
Typ – guy
simsen – to send an sms
Es läuft nur Mist. – There’s only rubbish on (TV).
Das darf nicht wahr sein! – I don’t believe it! (literally: This cannot be true.)
Advantages of Learning German through Comic Strips
Though humor is one of the most complex parts of any language and therefore the toughest to understand, there are many advantages to using comic strips for self-guided study or in the classroom.
- Cartoons use everyday spoken German and depict informal situations, something students are not often exposed to because textbooks teach standard German.
- Students discover words that rarely appear in written form, a dictionary or formal situations but that will be useful in conversation.
- The illustrations accompanying the text facilitate access to dialogue, context and meaning.
- Students can familiarize themselves with some of the grammatical shortcuts and liberties of spoken German.
- Cartoon strips are short and expose the learner to few new words at a time, thus focusing on one concept and context at a time.
- Students get acquainted with abbreviated forms of words and phrases which are standard in spoken German, e.g. Wie gehts? instead of Wie geht es dir? (How are you?).
- The comic strip-characters, their roles and situations feel real, therefore making the story accessible.
- Because of their punch lines, cartoon strips offer both an incentive to make it to the end and instant gratification for doing so.
- Comic books in Germany are extremely popular with adults, teenagers and children alike, therefore learning through comic books provides a good insight into German culture and living.
Regardless if learning alone, with friends or in the classroom, this Vocabulary Builder will motivate anyone stuck with German or German vocabulary through its use of comic strips. Even someone using German professionally, e.g. as a German translator, can brush up their knowledge of colloquial German. Though basic knowledge of German is recommended, even beginners will enjoy this guide in conjunction with a regular textbook.
How about learning German proverbs and sayings next? Or brush up on German vowel and consonant pronunciation.
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