The Joke

How does Kundera use nonlinear narrative structure and the juxtaposition of the present against the past to shape the characters’ and reader’s understanding of what is true and what is false in the story?

Identity in The Joke is often centered around public performance. Is it possible to have an identity divorced from performance? When do characters access a more authentic self, and what might those moments suggest about the nature of identity?

What is the central “joke” of The Joke? What similarities underlie the ironies and absurdities the novel illustrates, and how might you synthesize them into a unifying statement about the society it depicts?