At Carnival every joke is permitted — during the festival period of Carnival, the normal social rules are suspended. What would be rude or impermissible at other times is accepted as part of the temporary inversion of order. Every extravagance, satire, or trick is within the spirit of the feast.
Sicily's Carnival tradition was one of the most exuberant in the Mediterranean, particularly in Acireale (the most famous Sicilian Carnival), Sciacca, and Palermo. The 'carnevale' — from the Latin 'carne levare' (farewell to meat, before Lent) — was the moment when hierarchy and decorum were ceremonially suspended. Peasants wore nobles' clothes; men dressed as women; priests were satirised in street theatre; the lords were mocked openly in songs. The proverb that 'every joke is permitted' was both a liberation and a safety valve: for a few days, the accumulated resentments and frustrations of the year could be expressed theatrically and with impunity. After Carnival, everything returned to normal — but something had been released. Acireale's Carnival floats, still among Italy's finest, continue this tradition of elaborate satire directed at the powerful.
Pan-Italian Carnival proverb with particular force in Sicily, where the Carnival of Acireale is one of Italy's most celebrated. Reflects the ancient tradition of temporary social inversion during the Carnival period before Lent.
After a friend played an elaborate Carnival prank
— È stato crudele! — A Carnevale ogni scherzo vale — sapevi che era il giorno del travestimento.
— That was cruel! — At Carnival every joke is permitted — you knew it was the day of disguises.
Explaining the tradition to a foreigner visiting Acireale's Carnival
Quei carri prendono in giro i politici in modo brutale. È normale qui. A Carnevale ogni scherzo vale.
Those floats mock politicians in a brutal way. It is normal here. At Carnival every joke is permitted.
After an employee satirised the boss at the Carnival party
Ho fatto il travestimento del direttore con la valigetta piena di carta straccia. A Carnevale ogni scherzo vale — ha riso anche lui.
I dressed as the director with the briefcase full of waste paper. At Carnival every joke is permitted — he laughed too.
Children using the proverb to justify a prank
— Avete buttato l'acqua sulla maestra! — A Carnevale ogni scherzo vale! — Non per i bambini di dieci anni, no.
— You threw water on the teacher! — At Carnival every joke is permitted! — Not for ten-year-olds, no.