Painterly vintage penny-farthing bicycle with flowers in its wheel leaning against a stone wall.

Original artwork, not a still

Taming the Bicycle

Mark Twain

Get a bicycle. You will not regret it, if you live.

Behind the line

What it means

Our interpretation.

The enthusiastic recommendation suddenly acquires a survival clause. That last qualification makes cycling sound both irresistible and hazardous, puncturing the confidence of the opening. The joke depends on how casually a potentially fatal drawback is attached to otherwise cheerful advice.

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