The clerk behind the counter just looks at him and says nothing.
The man repeats himself: "W-w-w-where's the m-m-m-men's dep-p-p-partment?"
Again, the clerk doesn't answer him.
The guy asks several more times: "W-w-w-where's the m-m-m-men's dep-p-p-partment?"
And the clerk just seems to ignore him.
Finally, the guy storms away in anger after not being answered.
The customer who was waiting in line behind the muscular guy asks the clerk, "Why wouldn't you answer that guy's question?"
The clerk replies, "D-d-d-do you th-th-th-think I w-w-w-want to get b-b-b-beat up?!!"
Joke Poo: The Parrot’s Problem
A seasoned pirate, with a perpetually seasick expression, stumbles into a vet’s office, clutching his parrot. “H-h-h-he’s g-g-g-got a p-p-p-problem!” he groans.
The vet examines the parrot briefly. “He seems perfectly healthy. What’s the matter?”
The pirate, his face a mask of misery, repeats, “H-h-h-he’s g-g-g-got a p-p-p-problem!”
The vet, starting to get impatient, asks again, “But what IS the problem? I see nothing wrong.”
The pirate persists, repeating his plea several more times.
Finally, exasperated, the vet shouts, “I DON’T UNDERSTAND! What’s WRONG with the bird?”
The parrot, puffing out its chest, squawks, “H-h-he’s g-g-g-gonna m-m-make me r-r-r-r-repeat EVERYTHING!”
Alright, let’s break down this joke.
Core Elements:
- Juxtaposition: The core humor lies in the unexpected contrast between the muscular, intimidating appearance of the man and the clerk’s fear. We expect the clerk to be intimidated by the man’s size, but the added element of the stutter shifts the fear. The clerk thinks the muscular man is mocking him, and fears confrontation.
- Stereotype: The joke relies on the stereotype that large, muscular men are prone to violence and intimidating behavior. It also (potentially) relies on the implicit association of stuttering with being physically weaker or less assertive.
- Misunderstanding: The clerk misinterprets the stutter as mockery or aggression, creating the entire conflict.
- Delayed Explanation: The punchline reveals the clerk’s rationale, which is absurd given the audience’s knowledge of the man’s genuine stutter.
Comedic Enrichment & New Humor:
Let’s focus on the element of misunderstanding related to stuttering. Here are a few approaches:
1. Amusing “Did You Know” Fact with a Twist:
Did you know: While stuttering is a neurological condition affecting speech fluency, it’s often exacerbated by anxiety and social pressure? This means that the clerk’s own anxiety about potentially being mocked might actually have made the muscular guy’s stutter worse, inadvertently creating a self-fulfilling, stuttering-induced misunderstanding vortex of fear!
2. New Joke Structure (Playing on Misinterpretation):
A ventriloquist walks into a therapist’s office. He’s deeply troubled.
“Doctor,” he says, “I’m convinced everyone thinks I have a split personality. They keep telling me, ‘You’re just throwing your voice!'”
3. Self-Aware Meta-Humor:
“I tried to tell my friend a joke about a stuttering guy, but I kept getting s-s-s-stuck on the p-p-p-punchline. He thought I was being sarcastic about how long it takes to tell a joke, and now he’s m-m-m-mad at me. Apparently, c-c-c-context is everything, and I need a c-c-c-contextual understanding of c-c-c-comedy…”
4. Short observation:
The real irony? The clerk might have actually been safer just answering the question. Misunderstandings escalate quickly.
These variations build upon the original joke’s elements, either by highlighting the absurdity of the misunderstanding, introducing factual context that adds a layer of irony, or poking fun at the potentially awkward nature of using stuttering as a comedic device.