[whiteperil] Sean: The small town writ large

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Posted by Sean:
The small town writ large
http://whiteperil.com/posts/1183090441.shtml


   Bruce Bawer [1]posts (27 June entry) about what looks like the
   Norwegian version of the Japanese proverb åºãéã¯æããã (deru kugi ha
   utareru: "The nail that sticks out gets pounded down"):

     Norwegians are brought up on the so-called [2]"Jante Law" -- the
     belief that there's something morally suspect about excellence,
     achievement, superior knowledge or skills.
     ...
     The response? Sheer outrage. Parents and students walked out in
     protest at this appalling display of forskjellsbehandling
     ("differential treatment"). "It was unfair," one mother thundered.
     Yes, she admitted, the students with good grades had worked hard --
     but many of the others had "also worked hard without achieving such
     good results."

   Of course, it's handled a little differently in Japan. Excellent
   grades in school are generally achieved through rigorous adherence to
   expectations, so being at the top of one's class is itself a badge of
   conformity. Mediocrity in Japan is attained through lots of stressing
   out and exertion.

References

   1. http://www.brucebawer.com/blog.htm
   2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jante_law