The Only Joke in "Silkwood"

[WOLMAN]

One of the few light moments in "Silkwood," otherwise the
most depressing films I've ever seen, was a story told to her
at work, which I recall as follows:

For as long as anyone could remember, an old man in an
Indian tribe had been responsible for naming the newborn
children. One of the braves began to wonder how the old man
managed to come up with the names he did; and one day the
brave summoned his courage and went to the old man and asked
him how he picked out a child's name.

The old man was silent for a while, then answered:

"I look around me at my surroundings when I learn that a
child has been born, and name that child appropriately. When
I learned of your father's birth, I heard a jackal howling
in the woods, and so named him Howling Jackal. When your
mother was born, I heard of it while standing by a running
brook, so she was named Running Brook. Now, tell me why
you want to know, Two Dogs Fucking. . . ."

Ken Wolman
Bell Communications Research
whuxi!ktw