Title: What We Can Learn from Short Stories and Jokes
Author: Shih Wei
Publisher: Pen Culture Solutions; 1st edition
ISBN: B0BVSK4JZC
Pages: 117
Genre: Short Stories /Humor
Reviewed by: David Allen
Pacific Book Review
Myths, legends, stories and jokes come to us from both individual and collective psychologies. Sigmund Freud made a cottage industry out of identifying so-called ‘parapraxes’ and slips of the tongue, which he argued were the royal road to the Unconscious. Freud considered jokes and parables the gateway to the Unconscious.
In this handy and very accessible volume, Shih Wei has collected 200 short stories and jokes, each retold by the author. On one level, the narratives speak for themselves; on another, they transcend the ordinary and banal by illustrating important life lessons and dipping into the archetypal. Consider the following anecdote:
Get Better Soon
Joe was a jolly retired man. He volunteered to entertain patients in hospitals. He would sing some funny songs (strumming along a guitar) and tell silly jokes to cheer up the patients.
One day, after entertaining an elderly man in a hospital, he said to the elderly patient when bidding good-bye, ‘I hope you get better soon.’
The man replied, ‘I hope you get better too.’
Lesson: Sometimes you will be amazed at how people see you.
Or consider the following:
A Lovely Couple
Wife to husband: Look at the lovely couple next door. Mr Tan kisses his wife every morning when he leaves for work. Why don’t you do the same?
Husband: I would love to, but I don’t know her well enough.
Lesson: It is better not to leave room for ambiguity. An ambiguous statement is one which can be interpreted in more than one way.
The book is organized by topic. There are sections on honesty, impermanence, greed, ‘people pleasing’, and lots more.
For those who find object lessons and morals to stories comforting and aesthetically pleasing, the interpretations accompanying these jokes and tales will be most welcome. What We Can Learn from Short Stories and Jokes is a welcome addition to the literature of fairy tales, myths, and trans-cultural narratives. Regardless of their origin, these narratives apply to us all. Author Shih Wei takes a hands-on approach to jokes and storytelling that is refreshing in its directness, accessibility, and humor.
Behind the myriad displays of cultural diversity in this book lies an important truth: we are brothers and sisters under the skin. Readers of all ages will instantly recognize themselves in this omnibus of self-reflection and lapidary taletelling.
