"I Want to Live in the Soviet Union Too"

Kadi Sarv

In this article I intend to give an overview of Estonian schoolchildren's political anecdotes and conundrums. My source material is taken from the 1992 Estonian school traditions competition. In compiling the list of anecdotes, Marjut Kivelä's typelist of schoolnumber has been used as a model (1982).*

All anecdotes containing political material are discussed, whether they involve individuals, ethnic groups or animals.

Political anecdotes and conundrums can be divided into three groups:

1. Anecdotes and conundrums about statesmen. Typical subjects are a visit, competition or trumping each other;

2. Anecdotes which poke fun at the socialist or communist system, but in which specific statesmen are not mentioned;

3. Anecdotes about conditions of life, in which conditions created by the crumbling system are described.

Political material can also be found in some animal anecdotes, three-nationality anecdotes and in the modification of common abbreviations. In other genres such as song parodies, droodles, etc., one can also detect a political background, although those genres will not be dealt with in this article. Seppo Knuuttila argues that the whispered anecdote is a familiar term in some countries where freedom of speech is limited, and that the anecdote cannot be destroyed, although its voice can be stifled (1992:132-133). Alan Dundes conjectures that in the United States, due to the existence of a free press, political anecdotes (apart from brutal, sexual or racist anecdotes) are not part of oral culture (1987). The political anecdote, above all, is a popular rather than scholarly term.

The political anecdote is, consequently, a forbidden story which one can be punished for telling, and therefore told only to those one can trust, those who hold the same opinions as the anecdote-teller. For that reason Knuuttila's term whispered anecdote is an excellent characterization of the political anecdote. The phenomenon of the whispered anecdote characterizes, above all, a repressive society in which people lack the opportunity to express their dissatisfaction legally.

The conundrum, a subcategory of the riddle, is widespread among children. These are usually spoken, although some are also written down in salmik (memory albums) containing rhymes and sayings which have appealed to the child, or in oraakel (oracle-albums containing predictions about love and life). Apart from predictions and sentimental love stories, almost every memory album submitted to the school traditions competition also contained numerous conundrums. While it occasionally seemed that, due to copying from one album to the other, the conundrums contained were quite monotonous, this copying has played a significant role in the dissemination of the conundrums.

An old-fashioned anecdote, the longer style of delivery of which has been forgotten over time, may sometimes take on the form of a conundrum. The so-called introduction falls away and the colourful punch line of the anecdote is used in the new conundrum. Political matter is just as often found in conundrums as in anecdotes. For some subjects, it even seems that the conundrum expresses attitudes and opinions more colourfully and precisely than the anecdote.

The heyday of the political anecdote was during the 1960s and 1970s. In arguing this, one must rely for the most part on personal impressions, since collecting political anecdotes for the archives was in the Soviet period dangerous (especially for the anecdote-teller), and therefore limited. The Khrushchev "thaw" of the 1960s gave people back the courage to express their thoughts. During Stalin's rule, the spreading of such stories could have led to deportation to Siberia. The eighteen-year rule of Brezhnev can be seen as representing the evolution of Soviet society towards absurdity. At the beginning of the 1960s, power was apparently gentle and did not instil fear in people, but near the end of the 1970s, however, it became more aggressive. Interrogations and raids began to take place, and soon also arrests. To describe the atmosphere of that time, I will refer to Jüri Viikberg's assessment:

This is quite a tense period, people distrust each other and are afraid of a time of massive and far-reaching government prying. The telling of anecdotes is minimal. Political topics have receded from view, and obscene anecdotes, and a handful of anecdotes of an extremely pessimistic nature, have taken their place. January/February 1980. (RKM II 421, 100.)

During Gorbachev's "perestroika" the situation became more free, but this did not lead to a new flourishing of the political anecdote, since one was then able to put one's thoughts and ideas into practise through actual participation in politics.

I. Statesmen

Within the category of anecdotes about statesmen, one can find anecdotes which, as opposed to those with true political content, would not be political if one was to remove the name of the main character. These are simply anecdotes which poke fun at human weakness, stupidity and evil behaviour. Only due to connection with the main character's person can these anecdotes be called political anecdotes.

The subjects of political anecdotes are transferred from one statesman to another. A story about one politician may over time begin to be told about another politician, depending on who is topical at the moment. According to Leea Virtanen, the same phenomenon can be seen in folk traditions, where motifs from many different sources accumulate around a favourite figure. For that reason stories told about previous statesmen collect around the name and person of later famous statesmen (Virtanen 1980:99).

Some subjects are firmly attached to one particular politician. The reason for such a firm connection may be, among other things, that the story pokes fun at some special idiosyncracy of the given statesman, which other politicians lack.

Russians

The rule of Vladimir Lenin Ilyitsh (1870-1924) was characterized by revolution and civil war. Those events seldom figure in childrens' repertoire of anecdotes. Instead, pleasant stories about Lenin's "underground" activities, overall fame and immortality are predominant. Lenin lacks any particular individual characteristics in these jokes (his tallness, speech defects, etc. are not made fun of), but rather figures as a general symbol. Forty-four anecdotes are connected with Lenin's name.

One anecdote common throughout Estonia, which is solely connected with Lenin's person (there are 18 copies of this anecdote), pokes fun at his fame.

The teacher is walking with the children in the park. The children see a hedgehog and ask the teacher, "What is that?" The teacher: "Remember children, he is the one about whom there have been so many songs, poems and films made, and about whom we have talked so much!" Little Vasya goes up to the hedgehog, pats it and says, "So that's what you look like, Vladimir Ilyitsh!" (KP 9, 428/9 (3) < Tallinn.)

There is another anecdote (8 copies) which is also connected with Lenin's name alone, in which a rabbit runs through the forest, with his hand on his bottom, afraid of Lenin's coming birthday, on which occasion the communists stick a red flag in every hole.

There are six variations on the story in which an Eskimo or a Chukchi is led to buy goods from the place with the biggest lineup. That, of course, happens to be Lenin's tomb. The desired goods were not received, since the "salesperson" had died. Lenin may appear in anecdotes together with Gorbachev, Stalin and Brezhnev. He himself seldom takes part in these anecdotes, and if so, then he is with Stalin and persecutes him - for instance, forces him to eat with a hammer and sickle (there are 4 versions of this joke). Or else he rises from the dead and goes to a bar, where, when he asks of those present if they recognize him, it is replied that he is a walking ten-ruble note (there are 6 copies of this anecdote). The most widespread anecdote connected with Lenin is the animal story in which a rabbitt goes to the store and asks for carrots (50 copies). The rabbit goes to the store three times, and in the end the salesperson nails the rabbit to the wall by the ears. The rabbit sees Lenin's picture hanging on the wall opposite him and asks whether Lenin also came to buy carrots (the picture on the wall can also be Stalin's, Brezhnev's or Gorbachev's). This is one of the most common jokes among schoolchildren, and which has also numerous non-political variations (the rabbit gets his teeth knocked out; the rabbit asks for nails and then for carrots after all).

Statesmen are also exchanged freely in the next joke: someone wants to go to prison and, to that end, shouts that Lenin and Stalin are in the garbage can, upon which the two indeed stick their heads out and say either that they have been discovered or that they have been betrayed (in one version, Reagan and Gorbachev are in the garbage can together). There are 23 copies of this anecdote.

The main characters also vary in the following anecdote (7 versions):

Gorby, Lenin and Stalin went for a walk in the desert, but there they ran out of food, so Stalin suggested that each should look for food for himself. And so they all separated and went their own way. Lenin soon saw, that Stalin was cooking something in a pot. Lenin thought that maybe he could get a bite to eat, so he went up to Stalin, and said casually, to make conversation, "You know, I don't like that Gorby." Stalin answered, "If you don't like it, don't eat it." (KP 14, 130 (1) < Läänemaa.)

This anecdote can also be told with either Chapayev, Brezhnev and a cannibal walking in the desert/forest (in which case Brezhnev gets eaten), or else with representatives of three ethnic groups - a Russian, a Chukchi and a Mongol (the Russian gets eaten).

Lenin appears in 20 conundrums. The most widespread conundrum connected solely with Lenin is the following: Why does the marriage bed have three places? Answer: Lenin is always with us (36 copies).

In one very widespread conundrum, it is asked what Lenin and a rat have in common, to which it is answered that they both operated underground (43 copies). A few versions have been specifically modified for Estonian conditions, and in those, Lenin's place is taken by the well-known Estonian revolutionary Viktor Kingisepp.

Lenin's name has also been used in a few fairly widespread conundrums, which had originally been connected with other statesmen, for example: Why did Lenin wear a Panama hat?. The correct answer, however, has in most cases to do with Khrushchev. A similar displacement has taken place in conundrums which ask what similarities there are between a given statesman and Karlsson (a character from Swedish children's literature), the correct answer being that both said Only peace! (11 copies). Although this conundrum was originally about Brezhnev, there are versions in which the main character is Lenin.

As regards the adaptation of abbreviations, Lenin's name is found in only one, that being for the abbreviation NLKP (Estonian abbreviation for Communist Party of the Soviet Union) - näljase Lenini kondine perse `starving Lenin's bony ass'. There are 74 copies of this abbreviation.

The rule of Yossif Stalin (1879-1953), which lasted from 1928 to 1953, has become fixed in the national consciousness as a bloody period, characterized by the words arrest, deportation, collectivization and the Second World War. The same atmosphere is to be found in anecdotes about him.

In jokes one meets Stalin mostly in hell. In one of these he is up to his waist in boiling water, since he is standing on Lenin's shoulders. In another, he creates, even by the standards of hell, such terror that devils come to the gates of heaven asking for political asylum. Stalin may also be in a garbage can with Lenin or hang on the wall in a store next to a rabbit who had come to buy carrots.

Stalin's name appears in 40 anecdotes. He often acts together with Lenin in stories in which there is no political material (for example suffering from a call of nature in a boat or on a train, far from a toilet). He also often replaces a number of statesmen in more widespread anecdotes.

Anecdotes which correspond more properly to Stalin's personality and which involve only him are less common, and there are only a few instances of these to be found in the competition material. In this instance the time separating today's schoolchild from the period in which Stalin ruled exerts an influence. It is not inconceivable that such anecdotes were also earlier seldom told, since the speaker would have been afraid of ending up in a Siberian prison camp.

One anecdote which is known across Estonia and which is quite definitely connected with Stalin specifically is the account of his visit to the insane asylum (9 copies).

Yossif Stalin pays a visit to the insane asylum. The insane are standing in two rows. Those in one row are singing the anthem of the Soviet Union. Stalin: "Why aren't the others singing?" The doctor: "They're already sane." (KP 8, 457 (1) < Tallinn.)

In some versions Hitler visits the insane asylum, and in others the insane sing We live well in the land of the Soviets.

Among conundrums, those connected with Stalin are few in number. His name appears in only five conundrums, and there is in most cases only one copy of each of these.

Stalin is, however, often used in adaptations of the abbreviation USSR (in Russian SSSR). Some variations common in Estonia are: Stalin sõidab Siberi rongis `Stalin rides a Siberian train', of which there are 38 copies; Stalin sõitis seaga ratsa (ka Riiga või Rootsi) `Stalin rode a pig (also to Riga or Sweden)', of which there are 44 copies; Stalin (siga) situb saba rõngas `Curly-tailed Stalin/A curly-tailed pig shits', of which there are 16 copies.

Nikita Khrushchev (1894-1971), who was in power from 1953 to 1964, is known in history as the politician who condemned Stalin's personality cult. "Khrushchev's thaw" has become one of the political terms which describes the 1960s. His appearance, behaviour and the many strange innovations he attempted to implement in the field of economics, however, are most important as material for anecdotes about him. The best known of these are the prioritization of corn cultivation, the farming of virgin land and the growing of potatoes in square clusters.

In his time, Khrushchev was a very popular character in anecdotes, but he is little-known among today's schoolchildren. Anecdotes about Khrushchev originate either in his unusual, vulgar behaviour or strange appearance. Now Khrushchev's appearance, as well as anecdotes about him, are beginning to be forgotten.

There are only a couple of copies of each of the 11 anecdotes in which Khrushchev appears. These are mostly connected with his glaring personality.

Khrushchev goes to inspect the pigpens at the collective farm one day. In one pen the pigs are afraid and hide under the feeding trough. Khrushchev: "Where are the pigs?" A worker brings them out from under the trough. Khrushchev: "What, are those pigs? A pig should look like this!" - and gets down on all fours. (KP 45, 44 (14) < Pärnumaa.)

In only a few anecdotes does Khrushchev take the place of other statesmen.

In conundrums, also, most attention is given to Khrushchev's appearance and his "achievements" in agriculture. Three of six conundrums describe his appearance and two are about virgin land and corn cultivation. The only well-known question is: Why does Khrushchev (or Lenin or a Russian) wear a Panama hat? One always covers manure with straw (16 copies).

During the rule of Leonid Brezhnev (1906-1982), which lasted from 1964 to 1982, the socialist system reached its final crisis. The arms race, the assistance given to developing socialist countries and corruption brought the Soviet Union to the brink of economic disaster. The head of state, how ever, travelled around the world and spoke of peace. Brezhnev's frequent decoration with all imaginable medals and honours, among other things, inspired jokes about him.

Brezhnev is spoken of in 68 anecdotes. Half of these are connected with him alone. Neither Lenin, Stalin or even Gorbachev are so firmly linked to such specific anecdotes. Most common as objects of fun are his striking idiosyncracies, failings and oddities: his senility resulting from old age and sickness, his habit of reading his speeches from the text, and his morbid love of medals and military decorations. The large number of anecdotes in circulation among schoolchildren about Brezhnev can be explained partly by the fact that he ruled quite recently (in comparison to Khrushchev) - his rule still exists in the memory of older schoolchildren and partly by his large number of bizarre idiosyncracies (compared to Gorbachev).

Brezhnev's habit of reading his speeches from the text is ridiculed in 5 anecdotes. The best known of these is the joke in which Brezhnev opens the Olympic Games (7 copies).

Brezhnev reads an opening speech at the 1980 Moscow summer games: "O! O! O! O! O!" An advisor whispers to him: "Start reading from further down, those are the Olympic rings." (KP 11, 408 (6) < Tallinn.)

To my surprise, I found the same joke in M. Kivelä's classification of Finnish school humour, but there the joke's protagonist is Ahti Karjalainen (or Kalevi Sorsa, both Finnish politicians). For Estonian schoolchildren, however, this anecdote is connected only with Brezhnev.

Mockery of the stupidity and senselessness of Brezhnev and the communist system are the subject of 9 anecdotes. One fairly widespread joke tells of the Russian desire to be the first to reach the moon (5 copies).

Brezhnev calls the launching site, "The Americans have beaten us by making it to the moon first. Our men must fly to the sun." At the other end of the line they try to make him change his mind, "They'll be burnt by the sun." Brezhnev: "We've already taken care of that. Take-off will be at night." (KP 9, 625/6 (4) < Tallinn.)

Brezhnev's weakness for medals is described in 6 anecdotes. Let the following animal anecdote serve as a representative example of this group (4 copies):

Brezhnev goes into the forest to hunt but gets lost. All animals are sent to look for him, but he cannot be found anywhere. Finally Rabbit returns, panting. He is asked whether he has seen Brezhnev. Rabbit: "I didn't see Brezhnev, but it's funny, you know, Wolf is shitting medals." (KP 11, 200 (17) < Tallinn.)

Often Brezhnev also appears in anecdotes simply in his capacity as Soviet leader, and within that category of joke he may be replaced by other Soviet leaders - most commonly Gorbachev. Brezhnev also appears interchangeably with other politicians in widespread types of anecdotes.

Another common anecdote is that of the aeroplane crash (replacement character Gorbachev), in which the habit of always responding to the leader's speech with prolonged applause is mocked.

Brezhnev is flying by aeroplane. Suddenly the bottom of the plane falls out. All passengers hold on for dear life. Brezhnev coughs and ... all applaud. (KP 10, 184 (2) < Tallinn.)

There are 13 types of conundrums to do with Brezhnev. In the most common of these it is asked: What do Brezhnev and Karlsson have in common? Twenty years ago the answer was: They are both moderately fat and in their better years, and both fly around the world and wave their fat little hands, saying "Peace, only peace!" (in Estonian the word for peace also has the meaning of calm, and so the pun). The response has now been shortened, although the final sentence remains. It often seems to be the case, in fact, that when the distance in time between the speaker and the protagonists of an anecdote becomes sufficiently large, then the nuances fall away and all that remains is the punch line. And so one could ask the same question about Karlsson and Gorbachev, or even about Karlsson and Lenin.

The same tendency can be seen at work in the only abbreviational adaptation connected with Brezhnev. In this case the "abbreviation" is LOLL (in English `stupid'), which is short for Leonid, olen laudas. Leida (Leonid, I'm in the cattle-shed. Leida). There are 7 copies of this abbreviation. In the 1970s anecdotes about Brezhnev and the decorated communist worker, milkmaid Leida Peips, were quite common. It is unlikely that today's schoolchild would know of the Leida referred to, but the joke remains amusing.

Mikhail Gorbachev (born 1931), the last leader of the Soviet Union, was in power from the years 1985-1991. His rule began with reforms and perestroika and ended with the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, following the August coup. In that period perestroika, "the new thinking", the anti-alcoholism campaign and the Russian head of state's new custom of going everywhere with his wife became popular material for jokes.

Gorbachev's name appears in 73 anecdotes. Most of the anecdotes in which he takes part involve the leaders of the Soviet Union and the United States visiting each other. In general, he takes part in a number of older jokes about statesmen (37 such anecdotes). Usually he meets with Reagan or Bush, the US presidents who were in office at the same time as he was.

Gorbachev and Bush bet on who has better pilots. Gorbachev comes to America and Bush selects his best pilot. The plane does all sorts of death dives, etc. But Gorbachev still claims that his pilots are better. Bush comes to Moscow and Gorbachev calls for the commander of the air force and tells him to find the best pilot. The commander says that they are all drunk. Gorbachev says to choose the most sober one. The commander responds that they are all drunk. Gorbachev: "Alright then." The plane takes off, does all sorts of tricks, death dives, etc. All of a sudden the plane turns upside down with the pilot hanging on to the outside. Bush asks what the pilot is doing. Gorbachev answers, "Oh, he's just performing in-flight maintenance." The pilot falls to the ground and Bush asks, "What is he doing now?" Gorbachev answers, "Ah, he just forgot his size 17 wratchet, that's all." (KP 5, 502/3 (16) < Harjumaa.) (5 copies.)

Gorbachev, as the last leader of the Soviet Union (and as a man who ruled while today's children were in school) has taken the place of previous leaders of the USSR in earlier jokes about them, such as, for instance, that in which Gorbachev and Bush (Reagan) promise to shoot all alcoholics they come across in the other leader's country. Bush, accordingly, shoots half of the population of Russia, while Gorbachev shoots a couple of drunken people. The next day, it was discovered that an unknown criminal had killed the employees of the Russian embassy (3 copies). That joke was previously well-known with Nikita Khrushchev as the main character.

Anecdotes about Raissa and Mikhail Gorbachev fall into a group of their own. In presently widespread anecdotes there is no mention of other statesmens' wives. The most important as material for these anecdotes were Raissa Gorbachev's appearance (her similarity to a monkey - 3 copies) and Mikhail's western habit of going everywhere with his wife.

Gorbachev enters the sauna. The men who were already there cover their privates with their water-buckets. Gorbachev: "What are you guys afraid of, I'm a man too?!" - "But isn't Raissa with you, we thought she went everywhere with you?!" (KP 7, 63 (8) < Iisaku.) (12 copies.)

There are eight conundrums involving Gorbachev's name, but none of them is particularly well-known or relevant to him alone.

Russian statesmen appear in the school traditions competition material in 167 anecdotes and 38 conundrums. In addition to the more famous statesmen mentioned above, jokes about Yeltsin, Chernenko, Andropov, Kosygin, Sobchak, Yazov, Krupskaya, Dzerzhinski, Beria, Bulganin, Zhdanov, Podgorni, Gretchko, Rozhkov, Ligachev, Zhirinovski, Catherine the Second and Kutuzov can be found in the material presently under examination. Their role, compared to that of the more famous men is, however, very small. Such anecdotes are rare and there is only one copy of each.

Other Countries' Statesmen

Statesmen from other countries are poorly represented in Estonian schoolchildrens' repertoire of anecdotes.

German politicians are mentioned in 21 anecdotes and 3 conundrums. The most common characters in these stories are Hitler (who appears in 10 anecdotes) and Marx (who appears in 5 anecdotes and 3 conundrums). Hitler acts in most cases together with Stalin, although the two are also interchangeable in one set of anecdotes. They are popularly considered as more or less equals, being despots of the same period. In anecdotes, Marx is usually connected with Engels or Lenin. For example, Brezhnev asks Karlsson where his friend Engelsson is (2 copies). In one conundrum it is asked in what language Marx and Lenin corresponded (the correct answer, of course, is that they didn't correspond, since they lived at different times).

Anecdotes about Stirlitz and Müller form a group of their own. These jokes were inspired by the popular Soviet film Seventeen Spring Moments, in which the brave Soviet spy (Stirlitz) deceives the highest echelons of the German army and the Gestapo and always comes out the winner. In terms of content, these stories belong to the realm of the absurd, although political background is present.

Müller enters his office and notices that Stirlitz is doing something by his safe. "What are you doing there?" he asks. "Waiting for a tram," says Stirlitz. Müller leaves his office. A little while later he returns and sees that Stirlitz is no longer there. "Ah, he took the tram then, I suppose!" (KP 2, 218 (33) < Virumaa.)

American statesmen appear in 35 anecdotes and 2 conundrums. About German politicians, one can find anecdotes which jibe at their characters or elements which distinguish one politician from another, but American politicians in childrens' anecdotes are indistinguishable from each other, and most often represent the office of president. No distinction is made between Bush, Reagan, Carter, Nixon, Roosevelt or Truman. The content of these jokes is mainly meetings of and conflicts between the leaders of the Soviet Union and the USA. The representative of the Soviet Union is the one who is most often deceived - only in a few cases does he outsmart his foreign counterpart.

Gorbachev and Bush are debating whose country has the best thieves. Gorbachev visits America and is surrounded by a group of men. Later, Gorbachev discovers that he is wearing only his jacket and pressed pants, but nothing else. Bush visits Russia and goes for a ride in a Zaporozhets (a very noisy, primitive Russian car, which has its motor at the back). All of a sudden the car grinds to a halt and Bush goes to have a look under the hood and says, "There really are better thieves in Russia. They steal your motor out of your car while you're driving." (KP 12, 56/7 (2) < Tallinn.) (9 copies.)

Other countries' political figures are mentioned also. A few times the English (Nelson, Churchill, Thatcher) and French (Napoleon, San-Martin, Mitterand) appear in anecdotes. Swedes, Italians, Romanians, Finns, Hindus, Cubans and other nations are represented by only one politician each.

Estonians

There are still very few anecdotes about Estonians in schoolchildrens' repertoire. They are mentioned in only 17 anecdotes, and of those 12 are specifically linked to only Estonian politicians. The most widespread of anecdotes about Estonian politicians is the pun in which the meanings of the names Toome, Väljas and Otsasson are played upon.

A man goes to the store, but finds it empty of goods. Then the man starts off in the direction of the Office for Political Education to ask for advice. A man wearing a tie says to him as he walks past, "Toome." (in Estonian this means "we will bring".) The man is gladdened by this news, and thinks to himself that oh, that's good, they will bring the goods. Another man walks past and says, "Väljas." (in Estonian this means "outside".) The man is surprised, and assumes that it means that the goods are outside. A third man walks past and says, "Otsasson." (in Estonian this means "sold out".) The man says, sadly to himself, "I came too late again, they're already sold out." (KP 8, 254 (5) < Tallinn.) (19 copies.)

There are three copies of the anecdote - again a pun - in which Rüütel (or Väljas) go to Gorbachev with the complaint that houses can no longer be built, because there is a lack of building material. Gorbachev answers: Ja ponimaju (in Russian this means `I understand', but in Estonian it sounds like `Japanese houses'). Rüütel returns home and says that Japanese houses are going to be built in Estonia.

Four anecdotes (there are only one or two copies of each) involve Savisaar, two involve Käbin, and one each involve Lauristin, Lebedev, Meri, Vaino and Tõnurist.

There are three conundrums about Estonian politicians, two of which are of Estonian origin. The meaning of names is also played upon in the following conundrum:

What does Karl Vaino do at the Kremlin? - He looks out to see if Väljas is cold. (Väljas also means `outside' in Estonian.) (KP 43, 533 (19) < Pärnu.) (2 copies.)

As a digression I would like to mention some parodies which characterize the potential folklorization of works of literature (for example the jokes connected with the film Seventeen Spring Moments). A Form 7 girl from Tallinn 7th Secondary School has sent a unique parody of Estonian politicians to the school traditions competition. The names of some characters from Oskar Luts' Spring (Kevade) have been replaced with those of Estonian politicians, and the following parodies resulted:

1. When Raig returned from yet another trip abroad, the land reform law had already been accepted in the Supreme Council. (KP 8, 595 (1) < Tallinn.)

2. "Who sank the draft of the constitution?" - "Uluots did! Uluots did!" - "I thought I would put the Supreme Council to work upside down, and then enjoy watching how the Estonian Republic grinds to a halt." (KP 8, 595 (2) < Tallinn.)

It seems that Oskar Luts' Spring has become such a part of Estonian culture that it is in the process of being transformed into folklore. Let the following conundrums serve as evidence for this assertion: "What is the name of your party?" - "Communist." - "What a strange name." - "Its subjection is like that." Or: "Who was the greatest communist?" - "Toots, since he was the first to paint the world red."

II. The Socialist and Communist System

Among those anecdotes which criticize the socialist and communist systems can be found anecdotes which contain sharp political material but in which there is no mention of any specific statesman or politician. There were 59 such anecdotes, and 78 such conundrums. It is interesting to note that conundrums outnumber anecdotes in this category. There are no well-known anecdotes, although there are many popular conundrums. The number of possible topics is very large, so the material can be subdivided into three groups: 1) communism and the communist party; 2) the KGB, the army and the police; 3) politics and the economy.

Among anecdotes which poke fun at communism and the communist party, one can find jokes about the absurdity of the communist system, about communists (communist party members), young communists, pioneers and "timurites" (young children who helped the old and others who needed help; named after a boy, Timur, from a youth story by Arkadi Gaidar, a Russian author). Most of these anecdotes are represented with only a couple of variations each. One of the best known is the following story, about Timur and Little Red Riding Hood.

Little Red Riding Hood is going to visit her grandmother, and is walking merrily through the forest, when she suddenly feels that her underpants are whing! gone. "That's strange!", she says, but continues walking all the same. A moment later she feels that whing! her underpants have returned: "Strange!" She also soon feels something uncomfortable in her underpants, so she has a look and finds a little note, which she opens: "I washed your panties. Timur." (KP 12, 594 (24) < Tallinn.) (7 copies.)

There are many popular conundrums in this field which are well-known across Estonia and also well represented in the school traditions collection:

What is the difference between a pioneer and a cutlet (or perogie)? - A pioneer is always prepared, but one must fry a cutlet (45 copies).

Why are the streets of Tallinn being excavated? - Kalevipoeg's communist party membership card is being searched for (45 copies).

Can bedbugs start a revolution? Yes, since in them flows the blood of the working people (48 copies).

What is a Chinaman? - A Russian who has gone yellow waiting for the arrival of communism (29 copies).

What is a lizard? - A crocodile which has survived communism (22 copies).

What is a crocodile? - A lizard who has joined the communist party (15 copies).

There are 26 anecdotes and 15 conundrums about the security organs (i.e. the KGB), the police and the army in the school traditions material.

The content of anecdotes about the army have mainly to do with the topic of avoidance of military service. One can include in this group the joke in which a rabbit is excused from military service due to shortsightedness (35 copies). One of the more popular conundrums of this sort is that which poses the question what clanks, rattles, limps and bellows. The correct answer is: a war veteran (30 copies).

Police (the short form being `militia') stories are clearly disdainful stories of buffoonery. The low education of the police is criticized (they work in twos, since that way they can claim to have one highschool diploma between the two of them; they drag a corpse found in front of the theater to the front of the moviehouse, because they don't know whether theater is written with two a-s or one), as well as their slow-wittedness (one must tell subversive anecdotes to the police slowly and many times; there apparently isn't a difference between a donkey and a policeman). There are also puns in which the name of a workplace is made fun of, e.g. internal organs (of the state/person) - a pile of shit and a policeman are colleagues, since both are from the internal organs.

Among anecdotes about the security organs one can find jokes dealing with the outsmarting of the KGB. A Jew helps his friend out with his housework by phoning the KGB and telling them that his friend has gold hidden in his wood pile and guns buried in his garden (3 copies). One can also phone the KGB repeatedly to hear the pleasant news that the KGB building is burning down (2 copies). There is also a modified proverb on the topic of the KGB: One must be wary of the person who remembers past events.

Anecdotes about the politics and economics of the Soviet Union tell of the state's aggressive foreign policy (the "assistance" given to, and the domination of, other socialist countries), innovations in economics (nourishment programs, cooperatives) and elections Soviet-style. The best-known joke of this subgroup is a relatively recent story about lay-offs.

Snow White meets three little men in the forest, and asks them, "Who are you?" - "The seven little dwarves," they reply. "What do you mean, seven? There are only three of you?!" - "Lay-offs!" explain the little men. (KP 8, 306 (2) < Tallinn.) (18 copies.)

In one popular conundrum it is asked: Why do Russians wear felt footwear? - To sneak quietly past Americans (21 copies). Or: Why are skis available in Tallinn? - There is very little snow in Cuba (8 copies).

The following conundrums, which are represented in only one variation, also fall under this title:

What is democracy? - That's when somebody tells you to go to hell, but you go where you like.

A radio announcement on May 1st, 2017: All's quiet on the Sino-Finnish border.

What countries border on the Soviet Union? - Those which want to.

From what was the Estonian Republic born? - (Remember the August 1991 coup!) From a Russian cunt (in Estonian puts, which sounds like putsch (= coup)) and an Estonian cock (in Estonian asi, which also means cause).

III. Anecdotes about Living Conditions

Anecdotes in this group lack a clearer categorization - they describe the tragi-comic situation created by the crumbling Soviet system. There are 33 anecdotes and 28 conundrums about living conditions.

The main topics of these anecdotes are empty stores, ration cards and laziness at work - peoples' everyday worries and problems. For example, a pensioner with an empty bag cannot remember, standing outside a store, whether he has been inside or not (2 copies), or a salesperson wonders at the memory of an elderly person, who asks for rolled ham and Krakow sausage (2 copies). This topic is also characterized by a well-known anecdote about perestroika:

Three skeletons meet in the street. The other skeletons ask the first skeleton when he had died. His answers, "I died after perestroika." The others then asked the second skeleton when he had died. He said, "Before perestroika." The same question was asked of the third. He, however, answered that he wasn't dead yet. (KP 15, 16 (5) < Läänemaa.) (8 copies.)

Conundrums extend the scope of the present topic. In these it is suggested that a three-rouble note is small, green, crisp, but not money (7 copies), and that the only thing which is not shit in Russia is piss (6 copies). The answer to the question whether there is life on other planets is that no, there is no life there either (4 copies).

The following was the most popular anecdote among schoolchildren (157 copies), and comes from the three-nationality series of anecdotes.

An Estonian, a Russian and a German are flying in an aeroplane. When they fly over Germany, the German throws a pack of "Marlboro" cigarettes out of the plane, and says, "That is what we have most of." Flying over Russia, the Russian throws a bottle of vodka out of the plane, and says, "That is what we have most of." Over Estonia, the Estonian throws the Russian out of the plane, and says, "They are what we have most of." (KP 9, 231 (4) < Tallinn.)

This is essentially a three-nationality anecdote with a political twist. It is even more powerful in the variation in which the Lithuanian shouts "Long live a free Lithuania!" before throwing the Russian out of the plane. There is a good reason for the combination of nationalities to be found in three-nationality anecdotes: Estonians have traditionally had their closest contacts with Germans and Russians, as the Irish and Scots with the English, and the Finns and Norwegians with the Swedes. In one version, an Estonian school student has a Finn and a Swede throwing a Norwegian out of the plane, with the words, "In the name of Scandinavian unity!" In the index of Finnish school humour I found a version of this story in which a Finn and a Norwegian throw a Swede out of a plane in the name of Scandinavian unity (Kivelä 1982:16). From the historical and political viewpoint, this variation is much more logical. Apparently the Estonian child, not knowing the joke's background, was simply mistaken in the relations between the different nationalities.

It is usually the case in nationality-anecdotes that other peoples are poked fun at or depreciated. These jokes are called ethnic, racist or foreigner anecdotes. In the context of the school traditions material, one may divide ethnic anecdotes into those which are chauvinistic (told about a nationality either smaller than or in subjection to one's own) and those which are political (told about the ruling nationality). Jokes in which an American makes fun of an American Indian or an African American, or in which a Russian makes fun of a Chukchi or Eskimo, can be classified as ethnic anecdotes with a chauvinistic slant.

Once there was a great congress in Moscow and the Chukchi was also present. The Chukchi didn't understand Russian, he only understood when the words "Mir" (`peace') or "Druzhba" (`friendship') were shouted. When the Chukchi returned to his homeland, people asked him what was discussed at the congress. The Chukchi answered, "There was a lot of talk of `Druzhba' (is also a Russian brand of chainsaw), I assume there will be a great deal of logging to come." (KP 22, 93/4 (2) < Suure-Jaani.) (3 copies.)

In ethnic anecdotes of a political ilk, the Estonian pokes fun at the Russian, the Finn at the Swede, and the Irishman at the Englishman.

What is the difference between giving a knife to an Estonian or to a Russian? - One gives the handle end of a knife to an Estonian, but the blade end of a knife to a Russian. (KP 18, 356 (44) < Rapla.)

Abbrevations

The school traditions material contains a large number of common abbreviations which have been unconventionally and humourously modified. There is a clearly visible political bent in these, which is, of course, predominant in the modification of political abbreviations (names of countries and parties). The following are the most widespread modified abbreviations:

ENSV (Estonian abbreviation for Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic): Enne Nälg Siis Viletsus/Viha `First Famine Then Misery/Anger' (23 copies); Eesti NuumSead Venemaale `Estonian Fatted Pigs to Russia' (10 copies.)

ETKVL (Estonian abbreviation for Union of Estonian Republican Consumers' Cooperatives): Elame Teiste Kulul Väga Lahedasti/Laialt/Lõbusalt `We Live at Others' Expense Very Easily/Luxuriously/Merrily' (89 copies); Eestlased Tagusid Kividega/Kirvestega Venelased Lolliks `Estonians Beat Russians Silly With Stones/Axes' (53 copies); Eesti Talupojad/Targad/Tatid Kolgivad Vene Lolle/Venelasi Luuaga `Estonian Farmers/Smarties/Brats Thrash Russians/Stupid Russians with Brooms' (33 copies); Eesti Talupoeg Kinkis Venelasele Leiva/Liha `An Estonian Peasant Gave a Gift of Bread/Meat to a Russian' (23 copies); Eesti Tarkade Klubi Vajab Lolle `The Estonian Smarties' Club Needs Idiots' (18 copies.)

KPSS (Russian abbreviation for Communist Party of the Soviet Union): Korraldame Peo/Kõva Pidu Sauna ja Seksiga `Let's Organize a Party/A Great Party With a Sauna and Sex' (13 copies.)

NLKP (Estonian abbreviation for Communist Party of the Soviet Union): Näljase Lenini Kondine/Kärnane Perse `Starving Lenin's Bony/Scabby Ass' (55 copies.)

NSVL (Estonian abbreviation for USSR): Näljased Silmad/Sead/Sandid Vahivad Läände/Lakke `Starving Eyes/Pigs/Beggars Stare to the West/at the Ceiling' (55 copies.)

SSSR (Russian abbreviation for USSR): Siberi/Suured Sead Situvad/Söövad/Siblivad Reas/Rongis `Big/Siberian Pigs Shit/Eat/Scratch In A Row/In A Train' (219 copies); Stalin/Siga Sõidab/Situb Siberi Rongis `Stalin/A Pig Rides/Shits In A Siberian Train' (38 copies); Stalin Sõitis Seaga Ratsa/Riiga/Rootsi) `Stalin Rode A Pig (also to Riga or Sweden)' (44 copies); Stalin/Siga Situb Saba Rõngas `Curly-tailed Stalin/A Curly-tailed Pig Shits' (16 copies); Suur Sibula Sööjate Riik `The Big Country of Onion-Eaters' (18 copies.)

TASS (The Soviet News Agency): Targad Ajavad Sitta Suhu `Intelligent People Eat Shit' (21 copies.)

USA: Uue Sõja Algus `The Beginning of the Next War' (15 copies.)

In conclusion, the present formative period in the study of political anecdotes is very interesting. Anecdotes about Russian statesmen should begin to disappear, and in their place should appear Estonian-based ones. It seems, however, that Estonians do not have the heart to poke fun at their own politicians (anyway, in 1992), and, on the other hand, there is no longer any reason to poke fun at Russian statesmen. One may also expect a change in the field of political anecdotes due to the transition from a repressive society to a free society, in which political conflicts and differences of opinion can be resolved through a free press. In this context the importance of political anecdotes will decrease. Let us hope that in a couple of years the situation with regard to political anecdotes will have greatly changed.

Estonian Folklore Archives
Tartu, Estonia

* The list of Estonian schoolchildren's anecdotes and conundrums is published in http://haldjas.folklore.ee/

Dundes, Alan 1987 Cracking Jokes. Studies of Sick Humor Cycles and Stereotypes. Berkeley.

Kivelä, Marjut 1982 Koululaishuumorin tyyppiluettelo. Helsinki.

Knuuttila, Seppo 1992 Kansanhuumorin mieli. Helsinki.

Virtanen, Leea 1980 Lastenperinne. Helsinki.