- Text
Rindercella is essentially the story of Cinderella, but with some letters mixed up in some of the words. For example, “Rindercella lived with her mugly other and her two sad bisters, and there was a very prandsome hince.” and, “at the pancy farty, Rindercella slopped her dripper!” - Context
Rindercella is a story I first heard in 2021, told by a “camp dad” at the summer camp I work at. He told this story at our “big campfire” assembly and it was a huge hit. I had never heard of the concept before, let alone knew its origin, I just thought it was hilarious. I would think that the context that this joke/story is told is similar to my experience; an adult telling it to a group of kids, or even other adults. I would think it would be incredibly entertaining to anyone, as the words are ridiculous and if the storyteller knows it well, it’s very impressive. - Interpretation
My interpretation is that Rindercella is an extremely entertaining take/revival of a classic story. There’s a slight uncomfortable feeling when you’re listening to the story being told, because it feels like the storyteller is on the verge of a slip-up and/or saying a nasty word. Nevertheless, Rindercella has its listeners both on the edge of their seats and doubled over in laughter. The storyteller from whom I encountered this story told it with such a straight face and lack of mistakes, that I left feeling entirely impressed.
Tag Archives: funny
Plug it in! Plug it in!
Text:
A man comes into America and knows very little english initially and what english he does know he learned from television shows. For example, a sitcom comes on and a character says “why yes of course”. A commercial for cutlery comes on where a host talks about “forks and knives”. Then a vacuum commercial comes on and the host says “plug it in”.
One day the man accidentally speeds away unknowingly from a crime scene. When he is pulled over, the police ask him if he is involved in the murder that he was speeding away from. They ask, “did you kill this man”? He replies, using his knowledge of television, saying “why yes of course”. Next, they ask “what did you kill him with”? He answers again using TV knowledge saying “forks and knives, forks and knives”.
The police are startled and bring the man in. Obviously unable to defend himself in court, he is sentenced to death in the electric chair. There, the executioner asks, “any last words”? He replies with the last thing he has left in his English vocab, “Plug it in! Plug it in”!
Relationship to subject:
Although unsure about where this joke story was told, the interviewee said they probably heard it from a friend in middle school. They said it was one of the first jokes they had heard on the darker side, so it was only said to friends and not near teachers or faculty. But this is what made the joke fun. The interviewee said they had not thought of or said the joke for a long time and began reminiscing after saying it, which lead to some funny memories being recalled.
Analysis:
This joke would probably fall into the category of “dark jokes” in my opinion because it involves themes like immigration, death, and language. This joke is funny because it is obviously shocking, but it is also fun because all the information is given early on in a random way, but it all comes together in the end to form the punchline. I found it funny because of the way it was told and I enjoyed how I kind of figured out the ending halfway through. It also seemed to be important to the person telling it which definitely made it more fun.
Interrupting Cow
Text:
Interviewee: Knock Knock
Me: Who’s there?
Interviewee: Interrupting cow.
Me: Interrupting cow-
Interviewee: Moo!
Relationship to Subject:
The subject learned this joke when they were young from their uncle Larry. This was the first knock knock joke they ever learned and because it was from their funny uncle Larry, they thought it was very cool. After she heard it, she introduced it to their middle school and the joke became popular. She thinks its funny because the person hearing the joke does not expect to be interrupted. It is also interactive and lets the person telling the joke and the one hearing it take part in the process.
Analysis:
This joke is tailored more for a young audience and yet I couldn’t help but giggle. The subject seemed very happy and joyful when telling the background of their experience with the joke and how it relates to their family and childhood. The joke is obviously very simple, but it still made both me and the subject laugh. After the joke was told, the subject just told me about their childhood and it was a fun time.
The reason this joke works is obviously because it adds a new layer to the conventional knock knock joke and surprises the person hearing it because they are unable to complete the process they expected to be taking part in. They get interrupted by none other than the “interrupting cow” introduced earlier.
Ponte las pilas: Proverb
Text: “Ponte las pilas” “Put your batteries on”
Context: NO’s relationship to this proverb stems from her Mexican culture and household. All her life, NO would hear this statement being said when it came to school and working hard within entering higher education. She would typically hear this proverb being said by her parents or other older relatives. In her family, they use this phrase as a way to give advice when she feels defeated, overwhelmed, or lazy. Oftentimes NO says it to herself as a motivator to get her work done. NO interprets this proverb as a motivator to get back into the ‘work mode’ and to be productive in life.
Analysis: The cultural value that I see present within this proverb is the fact that Mexican culture usually revolves around the connotation that Mexicans are hard workers and they can accomplish anything if they simply put their mind to it. Given that this proverb is a motivator, I can claim that the personal values are expressed within the motivation, determination, and productivity that this proverb can emit to the receiver. Considering that I have heard this all my life within my Mexican culture as well, I see this proverb as an influential piece of advice that is told by older relatives for that extra ounce of motivation that you need when you find yourself in times of defeat, laziness, or entering a momentous time in your life (Ex: starting college, first day at a new job, going to a job interview). Considering its legitimate translation is “put your batteries on”, I consider this proverb to be an accurate concept considering putting new batteries in is hypothetically what you need to do in order to perform better given that the more “power” you put on, the more motivated you will feel to get back to work.
TCHANTCHÈS
–Informant Info–
Nationality: American
Age: 53
Occupation: Senior VP for a development company
Residence: Pheonix, Ariozna
Date of Performance/Collection: 2022
Primary Language: English
Other Language(s): N/A
(Notes-The informant will be referred to as MW and the interviewer as K)
Background info: MW is a father of 2 who grew up and now resides in Pheonix, Arizona. He lived in Belgium for a period of years, which is where he heard this story.
K: Ok! What’s the name of the story, where did you hear it, and what’s the uh…context of the performance?
MW: It’s titled “Tchantches” and I heard it from my friend Fish while I was uh staying in Belgium when I was like 19. I was just told it by Fish, but he said that he uh…was told it when he was like a child, like as an uh…campside or bedtime kinda story like to uh teach kids what they should be I guess. Kind of like a fable? Its hard to equate to an American story.
K: Ok, whenever you’re ready
MW: Ok so uh…this is a bit of a long one. So, the story goes that Tchantches was born way back in like…700 or something like that in Belgium between like 2 paving or uh cobblestones. His first words were demanding a Belgian drink called uh…God, I don’t remember (The informant pulled out his phone and googled it at this point) Peket! A drink called Peket
K: Is that like alcohol?
MW: Oh god yea, it’s the thing every Belgian drinks to get wasted *laughter*. Anyways, so he demanded Peket and his father, who adopted him, gave him like a cookie dipped in it. Then uh..later on at his baptism I think, the person dunking him in the water bumped his nose and it became all like messed up and disfigured and became like…it was used for carnival masks. Because of this, he became avoidant of going outside until a big crowd, because he had become beloved in this area, encouraged him to go outside during uh Saint-Måcrawe’s Day. He would come out smeared in like chimney soot on a chair escorted by a bunch of people, where everyone would get drunk *laughter*. There’s a moral in there somewhere, about how even ugly people can be loved which was kinda an odd thing. There’s a bunch of statues and stuff of him all over Belgium, and he’s famous for being a part of a puppet show! That’s where most kids hear the story for the first time.
K: Very ugly duckling meets Pinocchio
MW: Very. There’s also a part to the story where he meets I think Charlemagne’s nephew but that was added on later and is kinda dumb, I don’t even remember it. But he’s supposed to kinda represent the ideal Liégeois (Belgian). Rebellious, independent and could drink his body weight, but incredibly kind and willing to die for those he loves.
Interpretation:
I really liked this story! I think, and the informant also agreed with me later on, that there’s a large element of Pinocchio In this story or a lot of similarities. A boy who is born in odd circumstances faces some major hardships, and with the help of people he loves and who love him, gets over those hardships and becomes a hero in a sense. I also would like to note how Tchanctes is supposed to be an ideal Liegois. He’s famous for being drunk pretty much all the time, from his first words demanding alcohol to, as the informant would later mention after this story was told, his dying words being for Peket. That obviously speaks volumes about what people idolize as a perfect man. Alcohol is a large part of so many cultures, especially in places like Belgium. In a sense, it’s definitely humorous, but it’s also serious. From the way the story was told to me, it was almost as if Tchantes was kind and good normally and when drinking. He is a character that you’re supposed to aspire to be like, and this is only reinforced by the statues and puppet shows and festivals held every year. It’s interesting to note how young children are told the full story. In American culture at least, many parts deemed inappropriate for children, like alcohol, are left out until they are older. In this story, children are told about alcohol as soon as they can comprehend it. Again, it speaks volumes about the importance of alcohol in Belgian culture.
For another version of this story, see: Sherzer, D. E., & Sherzer, J. E. (1987). Humor and comedy in puppetry: Celebration in popular culture. Popular Press.