Jante Law

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The Jante Law (Danish and Norwegian: Janteloven; Swedish: Jantelagen; Finnish: Janten laki; Faroese: Jantulógin) is the Nordic version of the tall poppy syndrome. It was named and described by the Norwegian/Danish author Aksel Sandemose in his novel A Fugitive Crosses his Tracks (En flygtning krydser sit spor, 1933), where he portrays the small Danish town Jante, modelled upon his native town Nykøbing Mors as it was in the beginning of the 20th century, but typical of all very small towns, where nobody is anonymous.[1]

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[edit] Definition

There are ten different rules in the law, but they are all variations on a single theme and are usually referred to as a homogeneous unit: Don't think you're anyone special or that you're better than us.

The ten rules are:[2]

  1. Thou shalt not believe thou art something.
  2. Thou shalt not believe thou art as good as we.
  3. Thou shalt not believe thou art more wise as we.
  4. Thou shalt not fancy thyself better than we.
  5. Thou shalt not believe thou knowest more than we.
  6. Thou shalt not believe thou art greater than we.
  7. Thou shalt not believe thou amountest to anything.
  8. Thou shalt not laugh at us.
  9. Thou shalt not believe that anyone is concerned with thee.
  10. Thou shalt not believe thou canst teach us anything.

In the book, those Janters who transgress this unwritten "law" are regarded with suspicion and some hostility, as it goes against communal desire in the town, which is to preserve social stability and uniformity.[3]

Later in his book, Sandemose adds an 11th rule, formulated as a question:

11. Don't you think we know something about you?[4]

This is the threat of punishment—that other Janters will know something about those who transgress, which can be used to punish them. Emphasis can be either on know or on you, or both.

It has to be said that the general understanding of the law was an essential and fully integrated part of the Danish and Norwegian societies long before it was ever written down.[5]

The rules are not only applied outwards; Danes apply the rules equally towards themselves. This means that the rules of the Jante Law become a sort of social stabilizer where one does not wish to be either too high above or too far below others socially and economically.[6]

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ note by Sigrid Undset in the book: A fugitive crosses his tracks
  2. ^ A fugitive crosses his tracks, pp. 77-8
  3. ^ A fugitive crosses his tracks
  4. ^ A fugitive crosses his tracks
  5. ^ This is a common negative idea in Denmark.
  6. ^ This is a common negative idea in Denmark, see also Gini coefficient and http://abcnews.go.com/2020/story?id=4086092&page=1 and Scandinavian model.
  • Sandemose, Aksel (1936). A fugitive crosses his tracks, with a note by Sigrid Undset, transl. from the Norwegian by Eugene Gay-Tifft, New York: Alfred A. Knopf. 

[edit] External links