When Beethoven passed away, he was buried in a churchyard. A couple days later the town drunk was walking through the cemetry and heard some strange noises coming from the area where Beethoven was buried. Terrified, the drunk ran away and got the priest to come and listen to it. The preist bent close to the grave and heard some faint, unrecognizable music coming from the grave. Frightened, the preist ran and got the town magistrate.
When the magistrate arrived. He bent his ear to the grave, listened for a moment, and said "Ah yes. That's Beethoven's Ninth symphony, being played backwards".
He listened a while longer, and said "there's the eighth symphony and it's backwards, too. Most puzzeling". So the magistrate kept listening "there's the seventh…. the sixth…. the fifth…."
Suddenly the realization of what was happening dawned on the magistrate; he stood up and announced to the crowd that had gathered in the cemetry, " my fellow citizens, there's nothing to worry about. It's just Beethoven decomposing"
Joke Poo: When Newton Checked Out
When Isaac Newton passed away, he was buried in a university garden. A few days later, a student was walking by and heard some strange noises coming from the area where Newton was buried. Intrigued, the student peeked over the fence and saw apples floating upwards from the grave. The student ran to the head of the Physics department.
The professor came and observed the floating fruit. After a moment of intense concentration, he proclaimed, “Ah, yes! That’s classical Newtonian mechanics in reverse. Each apple is defying gravity at a constant, predictable rate!”
He watched a little longer, muttering, “And there’s another… and another… all perfectly inverse to the gravitational constant.” The professor pondered, stroking his chin. “This is quite peculiar, but theoretically… understandable.”
Suddenly, the realization dawned on the professor. He stood up straight and announced to the small crowd that had gathered, “My fellow academics, there’s no need for alarm. It’s simply Newton decomposing…into his component elements.”
Alright, let’s analyze this Beethoven joke!
Joke Dissection:
- Setup: Beethoven dies and is buried. Strange noises are heard emanating from his grave, causing escalating concern (drunk, priest, magistrate).
- Misdirection: The escalating investigation implies something supernatural or mysterious. The focus is on identifying the music.
- Punchline: The escalating concern of music being played backwards finds a mundane, yet humorous, explanation: Beethoven is decomposing. The word “decomposing” is a clever double entendre, also sounding like “de-composing” (as in, the opposite of composing).
- Humor Source: The humor comes from the juxtaposition of the high art (Beethoven’s symphonies) with the low reality (physical decomposition), and the clever pun on “decomposing.” The escalating reactions of the townspeople are also funny, building up to a letdown that is the punchline.
Key Elements:
- Beethoven (classical music)
- Decomposition (biological process)
- Backwardness (musical and literal)
- Escalating Concern (building tension)
Comedic Enrichment & New Humor:
Let’s play with the “Beethoven and Decomposition” angle and throw in a “Did You Know?” fact:
Did you know: Beethoven, while composing some of the most uplifting and transcendent music ever written, suffered from chronic abdominal pain and digestive issues throughout his life?
New joke:
Why was Beethoven’s gut so upset after he died?
Because he was decomposing faster than a Chopin waltz! But hey, at least his insides were finally experiencing music in reverse – just like those poor townspeople thought! Maybe that’s why rigor mortis hit him so hard – his body was trying to conduct itself one last time!
Actually, thinking about it, maybe the grave wasn’t emitting music at all. Maybe it was just Beethoven’s ghost indigestion. He probably ordered too much food on Door-Dash right before the end, then he couldn’t pay the piper!
Explanation of the New Humor:
- Building on the “decomposition” theme.
- Adding the historical fact about Beethoven’s digestive problems for extra irony.
- Further plays on the high/low juxtaposition – “Chopin waltz” vs. “Beethoven’s gut”.
- Extends the pun on “reverse” and “backward” from the original joke.
- Introduces more contemporary elements for added humor (Door-Dash, rigor mortis).
The aim is to enhance the original joke’s cleverness with additional layers of unexpected detail and playful absurdity, all while staying true to the core comedic elements.