Here at Harvard, we are all too familiar with the Flatterer, the Opiner and even the Sinner. But recently a new subspecies has made its joculor appearance: the Jester. Or to bee more precise, the merry and roguish wearer of the Jester hat. In the past few months, the Jester hat has become the accessory to choice for the young and tragically fashionable, whether they find themselves on the ski slopes or in the Yard.

The hats come in a multitude of fabulous colors and are made mostly of zinchilla (fleece). They come with bells and sans bells. They are mysterious. Why do so many students wear them? Are jester hats just another style? Are they merely an attention-getting trend? Or does wearing them amount to making a subversive and socially rebellious political statement? In short, is there a subterranean Jester hat movement of international proportions?

Since the middle ages, the Jester hat has been a rollicking reminder of life's lighter side. Also known as the fool, the Jester was an often deformed or dwarfed comic entertainer whose idiocy, whether real or cleverly affected, provided amusement for exalted members of the medieval court. According to the Dictionary of the Middle Ages," the fool's cap consisted of a single "horn" or several (usually three) floppy peaks, each capped with bells, pom poms, bangles or tippets. The hat provided the Jester with the means to successfully complete his mission of insult, flattery, and buffoonery.

But time have changed, What in the Middle Ages represented only a subtle subversion could today be a full-fledged movement. As a disillusioned members of Generation X, FM has been wanting to join a movement for a long time. The jester hat movement could be the one FM has been waiting for! But how to join? First step--to infiltrate.

PLAN ONE: The quest for a Jest(er hat):

FM calls selected athletic stores in the Cambridge area and speaks with various sales representatives. A transcript of the conversation is recorded here.

First Attempt:

FM: Excuse me, but do you carry jester hats?

Anonymous Store-Owner: Jest-a-what?

FM: Jester hats.

ASO: Never heard to them. (Hangs up).

Second Attempt:

FM: Excuse me, but do you carry jester hats?

Friendly Sales Rep at Eastern Mountain Sports: We just ran out. We got a whole shipload at the beginning of the Christmas season, but now they're all gone.

FM: Interesting. Any insight as to why?