2015-02-03
Explanation
The Joke
A ghost appears to a woman named Barbara, calling her name dramatically. The ghost explains that before he died, they had agreed that if there was something beyond death, he should try to contact her. Barbara is thrilled: "Yes! Yes!" But the ghost delivers disappointing news: "Well... there'''s nothing. Sorry." Barbara is confused -- "But you'''re talking to me" -- which would seem to contradict his claim that there is nothing after death. She then asks what he plans to do with his other haunting (he apparently gets two free hauntings before being cast into oblivion). The ghost refuses to answer: "You need to respect my boundaries, Barbara."
The Humor
The comedy works on multiple levels. First, there is the logical paradox of a ghost appearing to tell someone there is nothing after death -- his very existence as a ghost contradicts his message. Second, the afterlife is given absurdly bureaucratic rules: you get exactly two free hauntings before oblivion, like some kind of cosmic free trial. Third, the punchline pivots to modern relationship language -- "You need to respect my boundaries" -- which is hilariously incongruous coming from a ghost using one of his two precious hauntings. The implication is that even in death, people maintain the same petty interpersonal dynamics they had in life, with the ghost seemingly wasting his limited afterlife interactions on being evasive and withholding.