Tag Archives: Joke

Spanish Earth Riddle

Nationality: Argentinian-American
Age: 20

“¿Qué cosa es redonda como una pelota, pero pesa más que un elefante?” “El Planeta Tierra!” (“What is round like a ball, but weights more than an elephant?” “Planet Earth!”)

Context 

MD is my roommate’s friend here at USC. She is originally from Miami Beach, Florida and has lived there her whole life. She was raised by Argentinian parents who immigrated to Florida when they were in their teenage years. She describes her parents as both free spirited and herself in the same fashion. 

Text

MD: My dad would always tell me riddles growing up while he drove me to school in the morning. Sometimes if we were taking my friends to school with us after a sleepover he would tell them to both of us. I remember trying to figure them out and getting upset if my friend got it first. 

DO (Interviewer): Can you remember one that was hard for you to get?

MD: Yeah. He would turn around in his seat at the red light and make hand motions with it. So like he would start off asking “Qué cosa es redonda como una pelota?” Which translates to “What is round like a ball?” And he would make a circle with his hands. And then he’d follow it up with “pero pesa más que un elefante?” And would make this funny elephant sound. Then we would guess. After a few times he finally would tell us. The answer to this one is “El planeta Tierra” which means planet Earth. I remember I was so upset after and thinking how stupid it was. But now I laugh at it. 

DO: What did these riddles mean to you growing up?

MD: Well they were pretty fun to do every morning. Looking back, I don’t know how my dad didn’t run out of ones to say. Riddles were part of our little routine that we had going on. I also loved when I got them right, it made me feel like the smartest kid ever. But it was also just a way for me to chill with my dad and bond with him so I guess there’s a little bit of nostalgia in them now.  

Analysis

This riddle was part of children’s lore for this family. It was a way for her dad to bond with the kids and continues to be an important part of their childhood memories. This was one of the earliest and most impactful introductions to folklore for her. After this specific riddle, I was told a few more that stood out from this time. The riddles being simple and silly allow the kids to have enough knowledge about the topic to understand it but were still challenging enough to have them think hard about the answers. It also served as a confidence booster for the children if they solved the riddle and allowed them to think about things differently since the answer is not obvious. 

Drop Bears

Nationality: American
Age: 26
Occupation: Software Engineer
Residence: California

Text
For this narrative joke, my informant is my older brother (SF). The “Drop Bear” came up in conversation when talking about going on a hike or exploring nature in Australia. My parents had mentioned their plans for the following day on the trip to which my cousin interjected and said, “watch out for the drop bears.” “The what?” my father responded.  “The drop bears.” my cousin repeated, dragging on the anticipation of not expanding and letting other cousins and Australian family back him up.  My cousin then explained, “yea, big angry bears that live in the trees and they’ll drop on your head.”  Drop bears are a species native to Australia that most outsiders have never heard of.  The warnings continue to even suggest bringing a helmet into the Australian forests.

Context
My family, being from the US, was unfamiliar with this concept that is widely known by Australians, and had fallen for the joke. We were visiting our relatives in Australia when I was younger, and my brother had remembered the story.  Though fallacious, drop bears have an extensive amount of detailed history and classifications.  According to the Australian Museum, Drop Bears are carnivorous marsupials, “around the size of a leopard or very large dog with coarse orange fur with some darker mottled patterning,” ranging from “120kg, 130cm long, 90 cm at the shoulder.”  My informant’s interpretation revolved around this story being a funny joke but not much more. He enjoyed the idea that this fooled his parents and aligned with his humor of subjecting gullibility.

Interpretation
My interpretation of this story/species is simply a way to prank tourists for entertainment.  It’s a harmless joke that catches newcomers looking up constantly and watching the trees.  It’s incredible that the legend has become so developed, so much so that the animal has basically all of the classifications any real species would, including appearance, diet, habitat, and regional distribution.  I would say this legend brings Australians together, as they essentially have a nationwide inside joke. 

The “Round Tuit”

Nationality: American
Age: 60
  1. Text
    The “Round Tuit” is a circular, coin sized disk often made out of wood, but could be other materials, with the word “TUIT” printed or engraved.  Sometimes they’re accompanied by additional engravings that say something along the lines of “This is a Round Tuit. Guard it with your life, as Tuits are hard to come by, especially the round ones. This is an indispensable item. It will help you become a more efficient worker. For years we have heard people say, I’ll do it as soon as I get a Round Tuit. Now that you have one, you can accomplish all those things you put aside until you got a Round Tuit!”
  2. Context
    I learned about Round Tuits when I was a child, perhaps around 6 or 7, and barely understanding the concept.  I discovered one laying around at my grandma’s house and asked what it was.  My mom explained the idea, and told me how my grandpa used to own them and pull one out whenever someone would say, “I’ll do it when I get around to it.”  We used to have one wooden one and one red plastic one, and for a while as a kid I would hold on to them in case I had the opportunity to give one to somebody.  
  3. Interpretation
    My interpretation of this folk object is that it’s merely punny humor in the form of an item and right up the alley of my parents and grandparents.  I can see how an object like this would be a funny interjection in a conversation and could also even fall into the category of dad jokes.

Rindercella

Nationality: American
Age: 21
  1. 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!”
  2. 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.
  3. 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.

Jokes – word play

Nationality: American
Age: 18
Occupation: student
Residence: Colorado
Performance Date: 02/20/23
Primary Language: English

Text:

“What are the strongest days of the week?”

            “Saturday and Sunday. The others are all weekdays.”

Context:

DT is an 18 year old from Southern California. He is currently living in Colorado while attending Colorado State University, Fort Collins. He loves telling silly jokes and, when he was younger, he even had books on jokes. This joke was told to me over the phone when I asked him for one of his favorite jokes that he had recently heard. It came from a friend of his that lives on his floor in his dorm. My informant’s friend is originally from Colorado.

Analysis:

This joke uses the homonyms “week” and “weak” to create word play. “Weekday” is used improperly to refer to the strength of the day. This play on words means the joke works better when told orally to someone rather than written out. Since the use of the words is the basis of the joke, it is likely that it only works in English. This points to the joke’s origin in an English speaking culture. It is also interesting that the two days of the week that are the “strongest” are the two days that most Americans (and other cultures) enjoy the most because they are traditionally the days off from school or work. It is also a joke with no inappropriate or crude humor.  This means it can be appreciated by children and adults alike. It can be told in many different settings to a wide variety of people and still be appreciated. Because of the nature of word play jokes, it is unlikely that it gets everyone who hears it laughing hysterically, but it is likely to produce some light chuckles from those who appreciate these types of jokes.