A scene from the late '80s: One of my advanced English classes was about to take an essay exam. After the teacher passed out the exams, she said, as an afterthought, "Oh, and as usual, no cheating..."
A student sitting across from me, finding this remark as superfluous as I did, said to the rest of the class in a loud stage whisper, "Psst! What's the role of chance in Othello?"
I responded, in an equally loud whisper, "The role of chance in Othello is exemplified by the following characters in these situations, which I will whisper inconspicuously!"
To her credit, the teacher accepted our ribbing with good humor.
