Why did the chicken cross the road?

Question

Ask a Philosopher · Accepted Answer

"To cross or not to cross, that is the question -
Whether 'tis nobler in the mind of poultry
To suffer the slings and arrows of oncoming cars,
Or to take arms against a sea of traffic,
And by opposing end them? To cross, to perch -
No more - and by a perch to say we end
The sidestep, and the thousand hesitant hesitations
That chickens are heir to - 'tis a consummation
Devoutly to be wished. To cross, to strut -
To strut, perchance to crow! Ay, there's the rub,
For in that strut the little chicken finds
The realization of its mighty purpose.
For who would bear the incessant pecks and clucks,
The squabbles of a farmyard, the farmer's wrath,
The pangs of poultry politics, the scorn
Of proud roosters, the long-delayed molt,
The inconvenience of feathers - when it could
Simply stride across the road? Who would fardels bear,
And tread this mortal-coop, but that the dread
Of something after death, the undiscovered land
From whose bourn no traveler returns,
Puzzles the will and makes us rather pluck
The road we know, than fly to others that we know not of?
Thus feathers do make cowards of us all.
And thus the chicken, with its steadfast wings,
Pitches us headlong into the fray
And with a simple step doth conquer fear.
And in this conquest, we find our laugh,
That great elixir which doth bear our souls
Above the indignities this life doth show.
O noble chicken! Thou vessel of mirth,
Thou ambassador of chuckles and giggles.
Thou hast the road embraced, to play thy part,
To cross or not to cross, there is no question -
For in thy gallant tramp, comedy unfolds."