Text

Once, there was a man who sold fish at a corner.
A man walked up and asked “Are these fish fresh?” and the man said “Not today, maybe tomorrow.”
A woman walked up and asked “Are these fish fresh?” and the man said “Not today, maybe tomorrow.”
A child walked up and asked “Are these fish fresh? and the man said “Not today, maybe tomorrow.”
A bird walked up and asked “Can I kill you?” and the man said “Not today, maybe tomorrow.”
And so, the next day, the bird walked up to the man and shot him.

Context

Learned from a friend of the informant at a summer camp when they were around 8-10 years old. Acts as a folktale and folk joke, where the punchline is simply to catch the listener off guard.

Analysis

Elementary-school children’s humor typically involves some kind of shock value. Death and murder, in particular, are usually the subject of these jokes as most children are unfamiliar with the realities of death, but aware that it is a taboo concept to discuss.

It is also possible that there is a moral element to this tale, or at least a second humorous element. The man who sells fish on the corner only ever speaks a single phrase to those who visit him, even seemingly ignoring or discounting the bird’s request to kill him. To a child, this could be a fictitious representation of a ‘boring adult’, wherein all attempts to gain the figure’s attention are refuted with a single, repetitive phrase.