{
  "export": {
    "source": "https://urth.darkrealm.vip/thread/urth/3195",
    "note": "Exported from an unofficial mirror of a public mailing list. Copyright in each message remains with the person who wrote it.  Email addresses are obscured as `user at host`, the form the original archive published. This file was rebuilt from parsed fields rather than retained headers, so it is faithful in content but not byte-exact.",
    "addresses": "obscured as 'user at host'"
  },
  "archive": "urth",
  "thread": {
    "id": 3195,
    "subject": "These Are the Jokes I Don't Get",
    "messages": 2,
    "voices": 2,
    "first": "2002-04-22T14:14:33+00:00",
    "last": "2002-04-23T17:50:46+00:00"
  },
  "messages": [
    {
      "message_id": "<urth-v0204-770@digest.urth.net>",
      "from": {
        "name": "Adam Stephanides",
        "address": "adamsteph at earthlink.net"
      },
      "date": "2002-04-22T14:14:33+00:00",
      "subject": "(urth) These Are the Jokes I Don't Get",
      "in_reply_to": null,
      "reply_link": null,
      "blocks": [
        {
          "kind": "text",
          "depth": 0,
          "text": "On the subject of laughing...\n\nI was rereading \"These Are the Jokes\" (in CASTLE OF DAYS) the other day, and\nwas reminded that I don't get two of the jokes.  In Thecla's joke, what does\nthe punch line mean?  Are we to infer that the Autarch has actually asked to\ngo under the chatelaine's bed and been refused?  If so, what is this\nsupposed to signify?  If not, again, what's the point?  And Jonas's joke\nseems to be just a weak pun on \"wound up.\"  Is that really it?\n\n--Adam"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "message_id": "<urth-v0204-775@digest.urth.net>",
      "from": {
        "name": "Mark Millman",
        "address": "millman at heimdallr.dyndns.org"
      },
      "date": "2002-04-23T17:50:46+00:00",
      "subject": "Re: (urth) These Are the Jokes I Don't Get",
      "in_reply_to": "<urth-v0204-770@digest.urth.net>",
      "reply_link": "subject",
      "blocks": [
        {
          "kind": "text",
          "depth": 0,
          "text": "Adam,\n\nForgive me, but I believe that you may be over-thinking\nthese jokes.  Don't forget Wolfe's several references to\nhis sense of humor; when he says that it can make women\ncry and strong men faint (I paraphrase, but I'm not far\noff), he ought to be taken seriously.\n\nIn Thecla's joke, the Autarch is upset by the fact that\nhe's never been -invited- to get under the chatelaine's\nbed, unlike all her other lovers, though she protests\nthat he has been accorded every privilege she can grant.\nOne presumes that if Abaia, for example, were to arrive,\nhe might get his wish, but as the Autarch outranks eve-\nryone else in the Commonwealth, she has never needed to\nask him to hide when a more powerful lover shows up.  Do\nnote that either (a) the chatelaine is not married, or\n(b) that the Autarch's sexual access to her is guaran-\nteed regardless of her marital status, since otherwise\none could expect that she might have had to have hidden\nhim from her husband on some occasion.\n\n[Before I finished with this post, Marc Aramini sent his\nreply to you.  I'm pleased, and no doubt he will be as\nwell, to see that we agree.]\n\nJonas' joke is a better and less funny one.  To begin\nwith, all three sailors are _robotniki_ (if I've plural-\nized incorrectly, please excuse the error), but only the\nfirst two are robots in our sense.  The woman's use of\nthe term is imprecise but not inaccurate, especially as\nher speech is influenced by Czech.  Her delivery of the\npunch line indicates that she has recognized what is\nmost important in life, which the first two sailors have\nnot yet done--and, being robots, presumably never will\ndo.  She then acts on her recognition of the importance\nof love.  I think that \"wound up\" in this joke serves\nliterally as no more than a synonym for \"ended\", but be-\ncause of the robot theme of the joke, it is also a grace\nnote, with its reference to wind-up toys (a common\nchildhood experience of robots for people of Wolfe's\ngeneration).\n\nI hope this is helpful.\n\nMark Millman\n(Nacre)"
        },
        {
          "kind": "quote",
          "depth": 1,
          "text": "On Mon, 22 Apr 2002, Adam Stephanides wrote:\nOn the subject of laughing...\n\nI was rereading \"These Are the Jokes\" (in\nCASTLE OF DAYS) the other day, and was re-\nminded that I don't get two of the jokes.\nIn Thecla's joke, what does the punch line\nmean?  Are we to infer that the Autarch\nhas actually asked to go under the chate-\nlaine's bed and been refused?  If so, what\nis this supposed to signify?  If not,\nagain, what's the point?  And Jonas's joke\nseems to be just a weak pun on \"wound up.\"\nIs that really it?\n\n--Adam"
        }
      ]
    }
  ]
}