Practical joke

A practical joke or prank is a situation set up to produce what the perpetrator imagines to be a humorous physical outcome at the expense of the target. As the set-up or deception is revealed (too late) to the victim, practical jokes are distinct from slapstick or knockabout, where the goal is make physical events appear miscalculated, inept or accidental. Types of practical joke include:

Related Topics:
Slapstick - Joke

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• false signalling, such a 'kick me' note stuck on someone's back, an 'automatic door' sign on a normal swinging door, or dropping an empty carton on someone's foot after pretending it is heavy;
• surprise disruption, employing for example trip-wires, whoopee cushions, peanut butter on the inside of a car door-handle, or a three legged podium for a public speaker,
• visual deception, such as water-filled balloons, plastic wrap on a toilet seat, "apple-pie beds" which have had the springs removed, fake flowers in the lapel which squirt water, rubber fruit and guns which unfurl a flag saying 'bang',
• fool's errands such as sending someone to buy striped paint or write-only CD blanks. See snipe hunt.
• hoax stories or situations perpetrated on or by the media such as fabricated UFO landings and fake celebrity interviews involing rude or ludicrous questions (see also: culture jamming),
• spontaneous impersonations, such as taking an order for takeaway food from someone who has actually dialled a wrong number,
• verbal and typographical pranks, such as printing a block of text so that the first letters of every line spell out an irreverant message, or teaching someone a useful phrase in another language which is actually an insult.

Practical jokes are features of various kinds of holidays, such as April Fool's Day, Halloween, the Day of the Holy Innocents (in Spanish-speaking cultures) and May Day in Germany. They also feature in various rites of passage, such as stag nights.

Related Topics:
April Fool's Day - Halloween - Holy Innocents - May Day - Germany - Stag night

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The Trapezium of Xenophanes was cited by Aristotle as a notable compendium of practical jokes, but only a few fragments of this work have survived.

Related Topics:
Xenophanes - Aristotle

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Practical joke: See also ►