Difference between revisions of "3098: Trojan Horse"

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(Explanation: Clarified that not everyone buys horses)
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This comic is a parody of the Trojan Horse story. However, instead of an entire army coming out of the horse, it's just a baby horse (called a foal) coming out. The Troys incorrectly assume the foal being hungry is an attack on the food supply because it wants to eat oats, but in reality, babies of any form need nourishment in order to grow.{{citation needed}} This indicates that the foal has been alive for long enough for its teeth to develop, so it will gradually wean itself off of its mother's milk, which is indicated by the fact that the foal has only ''begun'' to ''show an interest'' in Troy's oats. It is unclear why the people in the comic would only be suspicious of ''the foal'''s hunger, considering that its dam (mother) would also need to eat, just not as much, and they do not seem to be concerned with this. Also, it should be noted that some people are willing to spend money to buy horses even though they are aware that the horses need to eat.{{citation needed}}
 
This comic is a parody of the Trojan Horse story. However, instead of an entire army coming out of the horse, it's just a baby horse (called a foal) coming out. The Troys incorrectly assume the foal being hungry is an attack on the food supply because it wants to eat oats, but in reality, babies of any form need nourishment in order to grow.{{citation needed}} This indicates that the foal has been alive for long enough for its teeth to develop, so it will gradually wean itself off of its mother's milk, which is indicated by the fact that the foal has only ''begun'' to ''show an interest'' in Troy's oats. It is unclear why the people in the comic would only be suspicious of ''the foal'''s hunger, considering that its dam (mother) would also need to eat, just not as much, and they do not seem to be concerned with this. Also, it should be noted that some people are willing to spend money to buy horses even though they are aware that the horses need to eat.{{citation needed}}
  
The title text suggests that the "Fall of Troy," i.e. the Greeks defeating the Trojans in the Trojan War, is actually a misunderstanding for the Foal of Troy, perhaps because Fall and Foal are similar. However, this is unlikely because the words are not spelled similarly in Greek. Also, it is unclear how and why a foal that hadn't even been born yet when its dam was given to Troy would have opened the doors of Troy or otherwise accounted for other aspects of the story of the Fall of Troy.
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The title text suggests that the "Fall of Troy," i.e. the Greeks defeating the Trojans in the Trojan War, is actually a misunderstanding for the Foal of Troy, perhaps because Fall and Foal are similar. However, this is unlikely because the words are not spelled similarly in Greek. Also, it is unclear how and why a foal that hadn't even been born yet when its dam was given to Troy would have opened the gates of Troy or otherwise accounted for other aspects of the story of the Fall of Troy.
  
 
==Transcript==
 
==Transcript==

Revision as of 03:44, 5 June 2025

Trojan Horse
Ultimately, history would imperfectly record the story of the Foal of Troy.
Title text: Ultimately, history would imperfectly record the story of the Foal of Troy.

Explanation

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This comic is a parody of the Trojan Horse story. However, instead of an entire army coming out of the horse, it's just a baby horse (called a foal) coming out. The Troys incorrectly assume the foal being hungry is an attack on the food supply because it wants to eat oats, but in reality, babies of any form need nourishment in order to grow.[citation needed] This indicates that the foal has been alive for long enough for its teeth to develop, so it will gradually wean itself off of its mother's milk, which is indicated by the fact that the foal has only begun to show an interest in Troy's oats. It is unclear why the people in the comic would only be suspicious of the foal's hunger, considering that its dam (mother) would also need to eat, just not as much, and they do not seem to be concerned with this. Also, it should be noted that some people are willing to spend money to buy horses even though they are aware that the horses need to eat.[citation needed]

The title text suggests that the "Fall of Troy," i.e. the Greeks defeating the Trojans in the Trojan War, is actually a misunderstanding for the Foal of Troy, perhaps because Fall and Foal are similar. However, this is unlikely because the words are not spelled similarly in Greek. Also, it is unclear how and why a foal that hadn't even been born yet when its dam was given to Troy would have opened the gates of Troy or otherwise accounted for other aspects of the story of the Fall of Troy.

Transcript

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Discussion

i want the second revision of this page to be framed on my wall somewhere 2601:647:8500:1E09:D00F:A8A5:D9DB:2886 03:13, 5 June 2025 (UTC)

This version? :-D --Kynde (talk) 12:38, 5 June 2025 (UTC)

I wonder if it's worth mentioning that days prior, Ukraine pulled off a massive real life Trojan Horse type attack with disguised shipping containers and drones to destroy Russia's bomber fleets. 2A00:23C5:186:6501:C5ED:C715:4B8E:A315 06:11, 5 June 2025 (UTC)

xkcd doesn't really reference current events unless it's science related or a massive deal 2601:647:8500:1E09:EF7:48CC:294B:D785 06:13, 5 June 2025 (UTC)

this page might be too wordy tbh 2601:647:8500:1E09:EF7:48CC:294B:D785 06:13, 5 June 2025 (UTC)

Might!?82.13.184.33 08:59, 5 June 2025 (UTC)
One person's "trim" is another's "missing a lot of vital and interesting subtext". And even if I thought I fully understood the comic on first glance, others may have intuited some meaning that I missed, just as they could seemingly be unaware of what I thought was important to describe.
The fight between loquacious verbosity and laconic simplicity is rarely clear-cut, but I'd err on there being too much ('obvious' bits can be skimmed) rather than too little (unanswered questions, or even unasked questions...). Even that 'sweet spot' of "slightly too much, but at least it isn't less" is arguable, of course. 82.132.234.190 13:59, 5 June 2025 (UTC)
There's verbosity, and then there's an entirely tangential essay on the history of the horse.82.13.184.33 14:10, 5 June 2025 (UTC)
I'm with 82.132.234.190. Better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it. Or more trim: better to be looking at it than looking for it. In other news I'm glad the site is back, I couldn't reach it at all yesterday and I had started mourning. --DW 2607:FB91:1B37:9970:5459:BE42:2A5B:3D54 14:49, 5 June 2025 (UTC)
But they were all of them deceived, for another horse was made … — SapphireHarmony 16:08 5 June 2025 (UTC)
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