What is the same between a raven and a writing desk?

Question

An old riddle.

Answer 1

they both are annoying

Answer 2

"I think you might do something better with the time," she said, "than wasting it in asking riddles that have no answers."

Lewis Carroll himself got bugged about this so much that he was moved to write the following in the preface to the 1896 edition of his book:

Enquiries have been so often addressed to me, as to whether any answer to the Hatter's Riddle can be imagined, that I may as well put on record here what seems to me to be a fairly appropriate answer, viz: `Because it can produce a few notes, tho they are very flat; and it is never put with the wrong end in front!' This, however, is merely an afterthought; the Riddle, as originally invented, had no answer at all.

Did this discourage people? No. They figured, that dope Carroll, he's too dumb to figure out his own riddle, setting aside the halfhearted attempt just quoted. So they ventured answers of their own, some of the more notable of which are recorded in Martin Gardner's The Annotated Alice and More Annotated Alice:

Because the notes for which they are noted are not noted for being musical notes. (Puzzle maven Sam Loyd, 1914)
Because Poe wrote on both. (Loyd again)
Because there is a B in both and an N in neither. (Get it? Aldous Huxley, 1928)
Because it slopes with a flap. (Cyril Pearson, undated)

Answer 3

Why is a raven like a writing desk?" The answer Lewis Carroll gives is that "They both produce a few notes, all very flat, and are almost never turned the wrong way front."

I think what he means is that:

"they both produce a few notes" - ravens don't have much variety in their songs and people use desks to write (paper) notes as well.

"all very flat" - what could be flatter than a piece of paper? And ravens' songs are apparently rather flat-sounding.

"and are almost never turned the wrong way front" - a desk is useless if it's faced the wrong way, because you can't sit there. "raven" spelt backwards is "nevar", and thus "raven" is almost "never"

Answer 4

Translation: What does a raven and a writing desk, have in common?

Answer 5

raven make very good writing desks

Answer 6

I hate this riddle alot.

Answer 7

Grammar dear boy then we get the gag. keep going though, humour has to be learnt and you could be a good student :-)

Answer 8

I don't even know what the difference is and it has been driving me insane!!! Don't they both have quills or something?

Answer 9

i dont care wat u say cuz this
a bad ridle and ur a lvl 1

Answer 10

I don't know ????