# "Brothers and sisters I have none, but that mans father is my fathers son'

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brothers-and-sisters-i-have-none-but-that-mans-father-is-my-fathers-son/510044>\
**Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\
**Created:** [September 14, 2009, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brothers-and-sisters-i-have-none-but-that-mans-father-is-my-fathers-son/510044 "2009-09-14T16:10:37Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![ammozon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e47774/32.png) [@ammozon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ammozon)\
**Post date:** [September 14, 2009, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brothers-and-sisters-i-have-none-but-that-mans-father-is-my-fathers-son/510044/1 "2009-09-14T16:10:37Z")

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The way I heard the story is: Two men were hunting in the woods, when they spotted a man hanging dead up in a tree. The 1st man says “Brothers and sisters I have none, but that mans father, is my fathers son”; what is the relationship between the 1st man and the dead man?

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**Author:** ![Malacandra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Malacandra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malacandra)\
**Post date:** [September 14, 2009, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brothers-and-sisters-i-have-none-but-that-mans-father-is-my-fathers-son/510044/2 "2009-09-14T16:26:05Z")

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The speaker has no brothers (or sisters) so he is the only son of his father. Therefore “my father’s son” is “me”. Therefore “that man’s father is me”. Therefore the hanging man is his son.

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**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\
**Post date:** [September 14, 2009, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brothers-and-sisters-i-have-none-but-that-mans-father-is-my-fathers-son/510044/3 "2009-09-14T16:43:51Z")

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[http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/451/whats-the-answer-to-the-riddle-that-mans-father-is-my-fathers-son](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/451/whats-the-answer-to-the-riddle-that-mans-father-is-my-fathers-son)

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