Why is a Raven Like a Writing Desk?

.


The famous riddle was originally written by Carroll with every intention of not being answered.
Despite there being no answer it is not surprising that readers have wanted to have one.

 They had puzzled over it trying to make sense of the nonsense afterall.

 This is why Carroll and others, including Sam Lloyd a noted puzzle master, did devise an answer.

It was written inside the preface to the 1896 edition...

"Enquiries have been so often addressed to me, as to whether any answer to the Hatter’s Riddle can be imagined, that I may as well put on record here what seems to me to be a fairly appropriate answer,: "Because it can produce a few notes, though they are very flat; and it is nevar put with the wrong end in front!". This, however, is merely an afterthought; the Riddle as originally invented, had no answer at all"


There are many other answers to the riddle too! Some of them listed on wickipedia are...

  • "Poe wrote on both."
  • "The notes for which they are noted are not musical notes."\
  • "Both have inky quills."
  • "Because both can make you think about the blackness of life."
  • "Both should be made to shut up."
  • "They both have legs."

Others I've found are...
  • "Because you cannot ride either one of them like a bicycle." 
  • "Because neither one of them is made from aluminum,"

Perhaps the best answer is that there is no real answer so all answers are right!


2 comments:

  1. thankyou for this in depth information. Noe I have the answer ro something that has been puzzling me for over 50 years!!

    ReplyDelete