Is 'Why Did the Chicken Cross the Road' just a Dumb-Joke?

Jokes are a great way of making the conversation interesting; they are sometimes incredibly funny and sometimes extremely lame. The ‘why did the chicken cross the road’ falls somewhere close to the latter category.

This extremely generic joke has become famous and almost iconic, despite being overly used and becoming somewhat redundant, it is still widely popular with the masses.

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 ‘Why Did The Chicken Cross The Road’ Origin

“Why did chicken cross the road “is a line that we have often heard, and it is a popular form of the joke that is also a riddle? The answer to the joke is a lame one 'to get to the other side' which shows that the whole logic behind the joke is its anti-humor quality. While the listener waits for a funny reply, it is instead given a straight face lame answer. The riddle made its first appearance in the 1847 edition of 'The Knickerbocker,' which is a New York City monthly magazine.

The magazine had said that there are quips that seem like big conundrums until the actual answer is revealed and one such riddle is ‘Why did the chicken cross the road.' It might sound like a complicated problem but the answer is a simple ‘to get to the other side.'

The jokes popularity hiked after the magazine 'Potter's American Monthly' published a pun version of the riddle, which was, ‘Why should not a chicken cross the road?' It would be a fowl proceeding.’

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Famous ‘Why Did The Chicken Cross The Road’ Jokes

Some famous 'why did the chicken cross the road' jokes are:

#1. Q. Why did the rubber chicken cross the road?

         A. She wanted to stretch her legs.

#2. Q. Why did the chicken cross the playground?

         A. To get to the other slide.

#3. Q. Why did the Roman chicken cross the road?

        A. She was afraid someone would Caesar!

#4. Q. Why did the chicken cross the road halfway?

      A. She wanted to lay it on the line. 

#5. Q. Why did the chicken cross the road?

        A. I don't know, let the chicken mind its own business.

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‘Why Did The Chicken Cross The Road’ Alternative Answer 

This harmless joke also has a very morbid side to it, or so some people think. Recently it was discovered that the meaning behind the famous conundrum could be a lot deeper. The chicken crossing the road could suggest that the chicken died and to get to the other side is another way of saying, the afterlife. The joke can be darker than what we ever thought and the chicken was actually hit by a vehicle and broke on through to the other side.

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Variations On The Joke

Anyone with a normal childhood must have heard the chicken crossing joke the countless number of times and would know what the logical answer to it is. The joke got so popular that it led to the creation of various variants such as what happened when the elephant crossed the road? The answer being, it stepped on the chicken!

Whether it’s an entertaining or a redundant joke or for that matter a riddle that is downright morbid, ‘Why did the chicken cross the road’ continuous to be a popular pun.

Is there any other "Why did the chicken cross the road’ joke that you know of? Do you know whether the animal in question is even a bird or not? Please share your feedback in the comment box below.

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