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What separates human and animals?
The Liffey
What do you call a northsider in a suit?
The defendant
What is the most confusing day for a northsider?
Father's day
How do you know you're at a northsider's wedding?
Everyone's on one side of the church
Marie Gillespie
Marie says
These are boundary jokes that play on class and territorial differences, in this case in Dublin, where the River Liffey divides the north side from the south side of the city. This is a typical joke told by southsiders about northsiders involving crime, illegitimacy, drugs, drunks, and so on.
But the same and similar jokes are very commonly told across the UK and elsewhere where boundaries and belonging are contested. The joke survey tells us very little about regional identities and differences in the UK, but this may have more to do with the joke booth context.
But other research indicates that jokes and humour flourish at boundary points, especially among groups of people who live quite close,sharing many similarities but having crucial differences. Such jokes are used to mark class and terrtorial boundaries.
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