... Or "How Danes keep themselves down".
This is a satirical work of a fictional town, Jante, that got really popular. Apparently it's supposed to make fun of how small towns and communities in Denmark behaved, or expected outsiders to behave. While Danes don't really obey the laws, as they are pretty extreme, there is still a hint of truth to them, and I thought I'd share some Danish philosophy with you all! Though some things may be lost in translation haha.
The ten rules state:
1. You're not to think you are anything special.
2. You're not to think you are as good as we are.
3. You're not to think you are smarter than we are.
4. You're not to imagine yourself better than we are.
5. You're not to think you know more than we do.
6. You're not to think you are more important than we are.
7. You're not to think you are good at anything.
8. You're not to laugh at us.
9. You're not to think anyone cares about you.
10. You're not to think you can teach us anything.
I'll just say this again, these laws are pretty extreme and are meant to be a mockery. But in Danish society, standing out, bragging or being too full of yourself is frowned upon. Danes are pretty straight forward and don't muck about. They mean exactly what they say, for example if you're to meet a Dane at 10 o'clock it MEANS 10 o'clock. If you ask them how they are, they WILL tell you (explicitly) if they're having a bad time. They also talk to everyone as equals, and yes that includes teachers, work seniors, police officers or elders. You can take it or leave it, but it does feel very, very different from American society, and that is worth a think or two!
