I have always thought that universal humor is the best, and this postcard of couples parting at a railway station would seem to meet that rigorous standard; along with, say, The Three Stooges.
But perhaps I'm wrong? Perhaps there is a legitimate culture (eg, aside from communities of goose-stepping ideologues, fundamentalists & fanatics) who really would not get a chuckle from this card? Memo to self: Don't live there. Don't even visit.
The image caption (FR nos reservistes les douloureux adieux) (EN our reservists painful goodbye) makes the card less universal than the joke.
(My mother, ~60 years after the event, still marvels about the first time my father invited her along for his 2 weeks of 'active' reserve duty, which is when she discovered that
all of the other wives in that unit had been accompanying
their husbands
every year, year after year,
for more than ten years. Says she: 'I thought "How come the other wives all know each other so well?", and then I figured it out'.)
Notable (if less accessible) features of this card include the publisher's logo (a joke about sentry duty?) and the publisher's imprint (which google seems to bring across into English as "always insist on the genuine article, even though imitations will abound".)
A more-nuanced translation of the imprint, and any insight into the logo, would be very much appreciated.
The cds, which I read as 1912.09.12, adds a poignant note; turns-out that this joke had a shelf life.
Cheers,
/s/ ikeyPikey
Posted 01/01/2015 12:47 am
