Difference between revisions of "April Fool"
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The first of April has been marked by attempts to deceive, practical jokes and so on since the 17th century, when the custom reached England from Germany. It was first known in England as '''All Fools' Day'''. The aim of the practice is to amuse [the perpetrator and bystanders] by 'taking in' (deceiving), and often humiliating, the victim. Victims who betray that they have 'fallen for' (believed) the deception are taunted with the cry 'April fool!'. In early days, the trick was to get the victim to take a letter to someone which only said 'Send the fool on',which could be repeated ''ad nauseam''. But after noon, by custom, anyone purporting to fool a victim actually <u>is</u> the April Fool. In France, Italy and the Netherlands, an April Fool is called an '''April Fish''' ('''''poisson d'Avril''''', '''''pesce d'aprile''''' or '''''april vis'''''), and the traditional joke is to pin a cut-out paper 'fish' to the victim's back. | The first of April has been marked by attempts to deceive, practical jokes and so on since the 17th century, when the custom reached England from Germany. It was first known in England as '''All Fools' Day'''. The aim of the practice is to amuse [the perpetrator and bystanders] by 'taking in' (deceiving), and often humiliating, the victim. Victims who betray that they have 'fallen for' (believed) the deception are taunted with the cry 'April fool!'. In early days, the trick was to get the victim to take a letter to someone which only said 'Send the fool on',which could be repeated ''ad nauseam''. But after noon, by custom, anyone purporting to fool a victim actually <u>is</u> the April Fool. In France, Italy and the Netherlands, an April Fool is called an '''April Fish''' ('''''poisson d'Avril''''', '''''pesce d'aprile''''' or '''''april vis'''''), and the traditional joke is to pin a cut-out paper 'fish' to the victim's back. | ||
| − | ::The practice of serious media outlets publishing a false story 'with a straight face' (~ apparently seriously), as if it were genuine news, on the first of April has been common in the UK since the second half of the twentieth century. Notable examples are BBC ''Panorama''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s | + | ::The practice of serious media outlets publishing a false story 'with a straight face' (~ apparently seriously), as if it were genuine news, on the first of April has been common in the UK since the second half of the twentieth century. Notable examples are BBC ''Panorama''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s report on the [[Spaghetti Harvest]] in 1957 and the ''Guardian''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s Travel Supplement on [[San Serriffe]] in 1977. |
[[Category:popular culture]] | [[Category:popular culture]] | ||
Revision as of 10:17, 17 April 2020
The first of April has been marked by attempts to deceive, practical jokes and so on since the 17th century, when the custom reached England from Germany. It was first known in England as All Fools' Day. The aim of the practice is to amuse [the perpetrator and bystanders] by 'taking in' (deceiving), and often humiliating, the victim. Victims who betray that they have 'fallen for' (believed) the deception are taunted with the cry 'April fool!'. In early days, the trick was to get the victim to take a letter to someone which only said 'Send the fool on',which could be repeated ad nauseam. But after noon, by custom, anyone purporting to fool a victim actually is the April Fool. In France, Italy and the Netherlands, an April Fool is called an April Fish (poisson d'Avril, pesce d'aprile or april vis), and the traditional joke is to pin a cut-out paper 'fish' to the victim's back.
- The practice of serious media outlets publishing a false story 'with a straight face' (~ apparently seriously), as if it were genuine news, on the first of April has been common in the UK since the second half of the twentieth century. Notable examples are BBC Panorama's report on the Spaghetti Harvest in 1957 and the Guardian's Travel Supplement on San Serriffe in 1977.
