The Joke by Milan Kundera. Short summary

5 seconds

Fifteen years later, Ludovic is out to get revenge on Associate Professor Pavel Zemanek, who got him kicked out of the university and sent him to a penal battalion.

1 minute

Ludovic arrives in a small town. The hero intends to settle accounts with his old offender, Associate Professor Pavel Zemanek, for whose fault he was kicked out of the university fifteen years ago. The cause of his misfortune is a postcard with a humorous text, which, thanks to Pavel, ended up in the Party Committee.

Ludwik meets Helena, the wife of his abuser, Pavel Zemanek. Out of revenge he seduces the woman, Gelena falls in love with the hero, but Ludovik is indifferent to her feelings.

Ludovic learns the story of the girl Lucia, with whom he was in love many years ago. Lucia at the time rejected Ludovic. A friend told the hero that even before meeting Ludovic the girl had been raped, after which she was afraid of sexual intimacy. After the rift with Ludovic, the girl’s life did not work out.

Ludovic discovers that by sleeping with Helena he has helped his enemy — Zamenek has had cause to divorce her. Angry Ludovic loses his temper with Guelena, and the woman tries to poison herself. In the finale, Ludovic’s friend Yaroslav has a heart attack and is taken to hospital.