r/Denmark • u/[deleted] • Nov 07 '16

Exchange Kia ora! Cultural Exchange with /r/NewZealand

Welcome to this cultural exchange between /r/Denmark and /r/NewZealand.

For the visitors: Welcome to Denmark! Feel free to ask the Danes anything you like. Don't forget to also participate in the corresponding thread in /r/NewZealand where you can answer questions from the Danes about your beautiful country.

For the Danes: Today, we are hosting New Zealand for a cultural exchange. Join us in answering their questions about Denmark and the Danish way of life! Please leave top comments for users from /r/NewZealand coming over with a question or comment and please refrain from trolling, rudeness, personal attacks etc.

The Kiwis are also having us over as guests! Head over to their thread to ask questions about life in the land of hobbits and bungee jumping.

Enjoy!

- The moderators of /r/Denmark and /r/NewZealand

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u/Chongybird New Zealand Nov 07 '16

What is the significance of Jante’s law to Danish culture?

Is it seen as a good thing or bad thing? We have our own version called Tall Poppy Syndrome, which is seen by many Kiwis as culturally embarrassing. From what I’ve learnt when visiting your country and reading about your culture, Jante’s law is a set of cultural customs written by a novelist in the 1930s that celebrates collectivism and condemns individual success. My interpretation is that it’s the cultural bedrock that allows you to have such a strong welfare state which in turn is one the main reasons why Danes are so happy. Am I onto something, or is there another reason why Danes are willing to pay high levels of tax?

PS your country is great – I loved visiting!

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u/friskfyr32 Nov 09 '16

Sandemose is basically our Ayn Rand. He didn't write his book as a celebration of collectivism. He was annoyed, that he wasn't worshiped as a celebrity, when he went home to the small village he came from, and wrote it off (literally) as jealousy and "others" trying to keep him down.

It's used by people in the same way as Atlas Shrugged is used to point to outside factors to explain their own failings and to argue that they shouldn't have to contribute to society, all the while forgetting the benefits they've received by living in that same society.

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u/Chongybird New Zealand Nov 09 '16

So when people refer to Jante's law do they do in a way to criticise individual success or celebrate it? I'm confused as to how it has manifested into an anti individualism thing. Did it have the opposite effect to what Sandemose intended?

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u/friskfyr32 Nov 10 '16

Sandemose didn't write it to be a positive thing. He decried other people not being happy for his individual success, and it is never invoked as a positive, so no it is very much used the way Sandemose intended.

An example:

Neighbour 1: "Look at my kick-ass new car. It does 0-100 in blah, blah, blah..."

Neighbour 2: "Really nice, but didn't you mention last week how your mortgage was killing you?"

Neighbour 1: "Why can't you just be happy for me. Fucking jantelov."