Result of  Two Problems from Charles...Challenge #38

Here is the original challenge, and an excellent reply by Will, in Manchester, UK. Good work, Will, and tell that to the office puzzle-meister!!!!! Nice use of imagination, too!!

Poor Charles!! Seems that two patrons (who couldn't figure out the last rope problem) posed two challenges to our man Charles, who needs your help! Here they are:

1. If the puzzle you solved before you solved the puzzle you solved after you solved the puzzle you solved before you solved this one, was harder than the puzzle you solved after you solved the puzzle you solved before you solved this one, was the puzzle you solved before you solved this one harder than this one? Explain your reasoning.

2. If you look, you can't see me.
If you see me, you cannot see anything else.
I can make you walk if you can't.
Sometimes I speak the truth.
And sometimes I lie.

What am I?

1. Puzzle 1(before) and puzzle 2 (this one)

"the puzzle you solved after you solved the puzzle you solved before you solved this one," (FIRST LINE) - is this puzzle, first half of the sentence says "If the puzzle you solved before...etc" so puzzle 1

---"was harder than the puzzle you solved" and lets analyse this next bit "after you solved the puzzle you solved before you solved this one," --the second half of this part-sentence ends with 'before you solved this one' so it's ending talking about puzzle 2 - and is saying the puzzle that was solved after the one that came before - so it's talking about itself again....so we're left on puzzle 2.

Let's put those first two parts together more simply:

So "If puzzle 1 (from the first part-sentence) was harder than puzzle 2 (from the second part sentence)".......

So onto the last part after the final comma:
"was the puzzle you solved before you solved this one harder than this one?" translates as "was puzzle 1 harder than puzzle 2"

So the whole question becomes:
"If puzzle 1 was harder than puzzle 2, was puzzle 1 harder than puzzle 2"

Yes it was.

Good stuff love the site

2. comments: Forgot to add that the riddle, in my humble opinion, is alluding to being a 'dream' (I like this answer, it caused a bit of controversy with the office puzzle-meister though who merely hmm'd at me - - he's still working on the rope :0))
'If you look ...' your eyes are open therefore not asleep
'If you see me, you cannot see anything else' ie you have your eyes closed
'I can make you walk....' fantasy of dreams
'Sometimes I speak the truth' memory replaying
'sometimes I lie' again dream fantasy

Keep up the Zeno's patronage! Cheers