“The first of April is the day we remember what we are the other 364 days of the year．”
—American humorist1 Mark Twain
“四月的第一天让我们想起自己一年中其它364天里的样子。”
——美国幽默作家马克·吐温
In sixteenth-century France, the start of the new year was observed2 on April first. It was celebrated in much the same way as it is today with parties and dancing into the late hours of the night. Then in 1562, Pope3 Gregory introduced a new calendar4 for the Christian world, and the new year fell on January first. Not everyone in France heard about5 the change, and even some who did know continued to celebrate the New Year on April first. Others played tricks on them and called them “April fools”. The custom6 of playing tricks on this day became popular in France and then spread to many other countries.
In France today, April first is called “Poisson d'Avril (April Fish)”. French children fool their friends by taping7 a paper fish to their friends' backs. When the “young fool” discovers this trick, the others shout “Poisson d'Avril!”
Today Americans play small tricks on friends and strangers alike8 on the first of April. One common9 trick is pointing down to a friend's shoe and saying, “Your shoelace is untied10.” Another trick is to secretly stick a sign on someone's back that says something like “kick me” or “hit me”. Some people may get to the office early and set all the clocks ahead11 by one hour, and then tell everyone who comes in the door that they are late for work. When they begin to apologize, they hear “April Fools”! The teacher may give unexpected12 exam papers to the students. When they see “April Fool!” at the bottom of the paper, they realize it's a joke and begin to laugh. Some jokes are kept up13 the whole day before the “fool” realizes what day it is.
Here are some more jokes:
*telling a classmate that there will be no classes that day
*calling the zoo and asking to speak to Mr. Fox
*putting salt in the sugar bowl (It is not a nice trick to play on a stranger.)
*saying to a friend, “Oh, my. You have four big holes in your coat! ”(buttonholes)
*tying a string to a wallet, leaving the wallet in the middle of the sidewalk14, and then, when someone bends down to pick it up, pulling it out of reach15
*setting the clock an hour behind, so the roommates show up16 to the wrong class—or not at all
*(the whole class) sitting in another teacher's classroom, so the teacher will be puzzled17 that she/he has walked into the wrong classroom when she/he is greeted by unfamiliar18 faces
An April Fool's joke should be in good fun and not meant to19 harm anyone. The most clever April Fool joke is the one where everyone laughs, especially the person upon whom the joke is played. Children enjoy the holiday very much, and it seems that more and more newspapers and TV shows join in. A British short film once shown on April Fool's Day was a very detailed documentary20 about “spaghetti21 farmers” and how they harvest their crop from the spaghetti trees. It is fun that nobody knows exactly22 what is true and what is false23. Maybe you have to wait till the next day or longer to know the truth. So, watch out24!
If you were fooled this April first, try to be smarter next time. Sending your friends April Fool e-cards may be a good idea. Log on line25 right now! Surely26 you will be better at catching one fool or two next year.
十六世纪的法国，过新年是从四月一日开始的。和现在一样，人们聚在一起载歌载舞庆祝到深夜。1562年，罗马教皇格里高利除旧布新，信奉基督教的地方开始使用新的历法，新年改从一月一日开始。这一变化当时在法国并非人尽皆知，甚至一些知道的人仍然一如既往地在四月一日庆祝新年。于是其他人跟他们开玩笑并称他们为“四月愚人”。而在这一天玩恶作剧的习俗在法国流行开来，并流传到其它许多国家。
如今在法国，四月一日又叫“四月鱼”。法国的小孩子们把纸做的鱼贴在伙伴的背上捉弄他们。当“小愚人”觉察到这个把戏时，其他人就高喊：“四月鱼！”
今天的美国人在四月一日也会跟朋友甚至陌生人开一些无伤大雅的玩笑。常用的伎俩之一是指着朋友的鞋说：“你的鞋带松了”。还有一种把戏是将写有“踢我吧”或“揍我吧”的字条偷偷地贴到某人的背上。一些早早赶到办公室的人把时钟拨快一小时，然后告诉每一个进门的人说他们迟到了。当迟到的人道歉时就会听到一句：“四月愚人”！老师会“突然袭击”地把试卷发给学生。当学生们在试卷末端看到“四月愚人”的字样时，才意识到这只是一个恶作剧，于是都笑起来。有的玩笑开了一整天，“愚人们”才反应过来那天是什么日子。
来看看更多的愚人节玩笑：
*告诉某个同学说当天没课
*打电话给动物园要求跟福克斯先生（注：Fox意为“狐狸”）通话
*把盐放进糖罐里（对陌生人不宜）
*对朋友说：“噢！天哪！你的大衣上有四个大洞。”（实指钮扣扣眼）
*钱包上系上绳子，把它扔在人行道中间，有人弯腰想捡的时候，把绳子一拽，让他够不着
*把钟拨慢一个小时，室友就会跑错教室出洋相或者根本不去上课
*整个班级坐到另一个老师的教室。看到这么多陌生的面孔，老师会非常迷惑：自己是不是进错了教室？
愚人节的玩笑应该纯粹是为了好玩而不应伤害任何人。最聪明的愚人节笑话会让每一个人发笑，尤其包括被开玩笑的人。孩子们非常喜爱这个节日，而越来越多的报纸和电视节目也参与了进来。一次，在四月一日放映的一部英国记录短片非常详尽地介绍了“意大利面条农夫们”是如何从意大利面条树上收割面条的。真真假假，没人能分辨清楚，的确很有意思。或许你得等到第二天甚至更久才知道真相。所以，小心点儿！
要是今年四月一日被骗了，下次精明点儿。给你的朋友寄一张愚人节电子贺卡或许是个不错的主意。马上登录吧！明年准保抓它一两个愚人。
1． humorist n．幽默作家
2． observe v．庆祝，过（节）
3． pope n．罗马教皇
4． calendar n．日历
5． hear about 听说
6． custom n．风俗，习俗
7． tap v．贴
8． alike adv．同样地
9． common adj．常见的
10．untie v．松开
11．set．．．ahead 把（钟、表等）往前拨
set．．．behind 把（钟、表等）往后拨
12．unexpected adj．未预料到的，意外的
13．keep up 维持，继续
14．sidewalk n．人行道
15．out of reach 够不着
16．show up 出现，到场
17．puzzle v．困惑
18．unfamiliar adj．不熟悉的
19．mean to 有意要，打算
20．documentary n．记录片
21．spaghetti n．意大利面条
22．exactly adv．确切地
23．false adj．错误的
24．watch out 当心，提防
25．log on line 登录，上网
26．surely adv．的确，肯定地