“Crabs In A Bucket" As An Analogy For Modern Human Society

["Dave Farber" <farber () gmail com>]

Begin forwarded message:

> From: Dewayne Hendricks <dewayne () warpspeed com>
> Date: April 29, 2018 at 6:53:59 PM EDT
> To: Multiple recipients of Dewayne-Net <dewayne-net () warpspeed com>
> Subject: [Dewayne-Net] "Crabs In A Bucket" As An Analogy For Modern Human Society
> Reply-To: dewayne-net () warpspeed com
>
> [Note:  This article is from 2015, but since I just heard the term used on a network TV show, I thought it was worth 
> posting.  DLH]
>
> “Crabs In A Bucket” As An Analogy For Modern Human Society
> By John Vibes
> Aug 19 2015
> <http://www.trueactivist.com/crabs-in-a-bucket-as-an-analogy-for-modern-human-society/>
>
> Sometimes it helps to use metaphors to describe the current situations that we are living under to help people see 
> what is right in front of them. The violence and twisted mentality that consumes many cultures around the world is 
> difficult for someone to notice when they have grown up around it, and know nothing else.
>
> Recently I came across an extremely interesting concept that does a really good job at depicting the current 
> mentality that many people have in their personal relationships as well as their business and political ventures.
>
> That is the “crab mentality” which looks at the world as a zero sum game, where there is no such thing as a mutually 
> beneficial exchange. Every situation has winners and losers with this world view, and everyone is out to make someone 
> else a loser. In reality, there are solutions that people can come to without getting hostile with one another, that 
> leads to an outcome where everyone involved is better off than they were before.
>
> According to a Wikipedia entry:
>
> Crab mentality is a phrase popular among Filipinos, and was first coined by writer Ninotchka Rosca, in reference to 
> the phrase crabs in a bucket It describes a way of thinking best described by the phrase “if I can’t have it, neither 
> can you.” The metaphor refers to a pot of crabs. Individually, the crabs could easily escape from the pot, but 
> instead, they grab at each other in a useless “king of the hill” competition which prevents any from escaping and 
> ensures their collective demise. The analogy in human behavior is that members of a group will attempt to “pull down” 
> (negate or diminish the importance of) any member who achieves success beyond the others, out of envy, conspiracy or 
> competitive feelings.
>
> The concept figures prominently in Terry Pratchett‘s novel “Unseen Academicals.” A fish monger does not bother to 
> keep a lid on the crab bucket because “any that tries to get out gets pulled back.” The protagonist comes to realize 
> that his social status results not from external repression, but from his own low expectations of himself: “The worst 
> of it is, the crab that mostly keeps you down is you.”
>
> This term is broadly associated with short-sighted, non-constructive thinking rather than a unified, long-term, 
> constructive mentality. It is also often used colloquially in reference to individuals or communities attempting to 
> improve their socio-economic situations, but kept from doing so by others attempting to ride upon their coat-tails or 
> those who simply resent their success.
>
> The popularity of the phrase has made accusing opponents of crab mentality a common form of defense against 
> criticism, whether the criticism is valid or not. In logic, this tactic is considered a common logical fallacy known 
> as argumentum ad invidiam, or appeal to envy.
>
> This mentality is probably relevant to almost anyone’s life, as we can see it all around us, especially in the social 
> institutions that hold us hostage. Most people look at their everyday encounters as if they were all zero sum games, 
> where they can only get ahead by knocking someone else down.
>
> [snip]
>
> Dewayne-Net RSS Feed: http://dewaynenet.wordpress.com/feed/
> Twitter: https://twitter.com/wa8dzp



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