This morning, via BoingBoing, I found this outstanding article in Prospect about the history of the 20th Century Russian Joke. This topic has been near and dear to my heart for two years, ever since I discovered The Rabbit Joke.It's funny, it's political, and it's smart. Everything a good writer needs. Read it and learn...
"Historian Roy Medvedev looked through the files of Stalin's political prisoners and concluded that 200,000 people were imprisoned for telling jokes, such as this: Three prisoners in the gulag get to talking about why they are there. 'I am here because I always got to work five minutes late, and they charged me with sabotage,' says the first. 'I am here because I kept getting to work five minutes early, and they charged me with spying,' says the second. 'I am here because I got to work on time every day,' says the third, 'and they charged me with owning a western watch.'"
Ben Lewis' essay nails the politics and the layers of life struggles lurking beneath these jokes. During the Tribeca Film Festival, he premiered a new documentary: Hammer and Tickle: The Communist Joke Book.
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