Source identified
Read & copy the quotation
“Must get the scraper removed, or else I shall get into a scrape. I don’t often make jokes.”
- Source
- The Diary of a Nobody
- Date
- 1892
- Local voice
- Fictional narrator · Charles Pooter
Meaning of “Must get the scraper removed, or else I…”
The deliberately weak pun is followed by Pooter’s proud announcement that he rarely jokes, making his satisfaction with the line more comic than the wordplay itself.
Where does it come from?
The Diary of a Nobody, Chapter I, April 4 entry; Project Gutenberg #1026. After Cummings trips over the scraper while leaving, Charles Pooter writes “Must get the scraper removed, or else I shall get into a scrape. I don’t often make jokes.” The deliberately weak pun and Pooter’s pride in it are part of the novel’s characterization and comic timing.
Why the local voice matters
Pooter records and admires his own weak pun.
