This is one of my favorite jokes.
Four people are riding in a train carriage in Czechosolvakia in
1974: an old Czech woman, a young Czech woman, a Russian soldier, and a
Czech worker.
The train goes into a dark tunnel. There is the sound of a loud
kiss, and then a louder smack. When the train emerges from the
tunnel, the soldier is nursing the side of his face, and the Czech
man has a big grin.
The old woman thinks “That girl is well brought-up! The soldier
tried to steal a kiss, and she gave him what he deserved.”
The young woman thinks “What a funny soldier! He tried to kiss the
old lady instead of me.”
The soldier thinks ruefully “What a clever Czech guy! He stole the
kiss, but I was the one to get slapped.”
The Czech thinks “What a day! I got to smack a Russian soldier in
the face, and all I had to do was kiss the back of my hand.”
I like it because the way all the pieces fit together is so perfect
and ingenious. Everyone thinks something different that is consistent
with the different information they have. It's like a tiny farce in a
box.
I also like it because it looks at first like it's going to be about
sexual assault, but then the sexual assault evaporates at the last
moment. (Yes, it's about regular assault instead.)
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