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When is a raven like a writing desk?
Mal Started conversation Feb 17, 2004
I, too, came across this riddle while playing Alice, and after a few minutes came up with two answers for it:
Why is a raven like a writing desk?
Coz: a) they both have quills, and
b) Poe wrote on both.
When is a raven like a writing desk?
toybox Posted Feb 18, 2004
Wow, most clever . I hadn't thought of that! OK, to be honest, I hadn't been looking for an answer at all .
Did you know there's a 'lost chapter' (called Wasp in a Wig) to Through the Looking-Glass?
When is a raven like a writing desk?
Mal Posted Feb 18, 2004
The reason I thought of one is because I was sure it was an actual joke and therefore had a hilarious punchline. Obviously my two results don't bear out this hypothesis, but the second is least awful.
Really? Where can I find it? Why is it 'lost'?
When is a raven like a writing desk?
toybox Posted Feb 19, 2004
I suspected just the opposite (that it was a punchlineless joke created by Lewis Carroll just to baffle his readers). But as he seemed to like puzzles, your explanation makes more sense.
You can find the lost chapter on http://www.alice-in-wonderland.net/?alice4.html (if I haven't made any mistake writing down the URL ) together with an explanation why it was lost.
Hey, have you noticed the following two occurrences of 42 in Alice in Wonderland:
-there are 42 illustrations by sir John Tenniel,
-in Chapter 12 the King uses "Rule Forty-two. All persons more than a mile high to leave the court."
When is a raven like a writing desk?
Mal Posted Feb 19, 2004
Oh, thanks, cheers.
Ah, most clever. Perhaps it's a conspiracy of pre-Adams authors and illustrators...
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When is a raven like a writing desk?
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