I was wondering whether something has been written about the motiv of language and misunderstandings as a results of miscommunication with language in Seinfeld.
This is obviously one of the "Leitmotivs" in Seinfeld. I remember the episode in which George tries to use the sign language skills of Jerry's girlfriend to find out what his girlfriend and another guy are talking about. Another time Jerry is obliged to appear on a t.v. show wearing a pirate type t-shirt because of a misunderstanding with Kramer's girlfriend who whispers and cannot be heard by anybody. There are several similar episodes involving George in which people, ususually his bosses or future employers - assume that he has understood what he is supposed to do but in fact he hasn't. He just shows up at the company because he thinks that he got the job. At the Yankees he is supposed to to something (with accounting?) and is afraid to ask what exactly his assignment is. Of course usually pretends to know what is going on which leads to funny situations. In one of the episodes in which George quits having sex and becomes intelligent one of the major signs of his increased mental sharpness is his ability to learn languages and as a matter of fact the same ability leads to the loss of mental sharpness. he impresses the waitress with his knowledge of Portugese, sleeps with her and falls back!
The bosses in Seinfeld (Mr. Steinbrenner, Mr. Peterman) tend to monologue instead of dialogue which makes communication with them impossible...
By the way, Kramer is the one with the least problems in communication. He understands his girlfriend perfectly while nobody else can hear her, he knows sign language etc.
I am sure there are many many other examples...
Nima