Members of a group pull down any one of them who tries to rise.
Attested in Filipino, Australian and many other idioms. It is the social enforcement mechanism behind tall poppy syndrome, and it operates most strongly on those closest to the person rising.
In practice
- A promoted colleague finds their old team suddenly formal with them.
- A village shop that expands is boycotted more by its neighbours than by anyone in the next town.
- Further reading
- Wikipedia
- Subject
- Sociology & Culture
- Essay
- Proverbs that recur across cultures