Poppies: correction--ignore previous version

Posted by R. Berg on August 09, 2001

In Reply to: Tall poppy syndrome posted by R. Berg on August 09, 2001

: : Tall poppy syndrome

: : If you tend to your garden and are successful in growing some flowers you will take the tallest, strongest specimen, cut it down and bring it indoors to be displayed.
: : It is also a tendency in some cultures to attack and "cut down" visibly successful people.
: : As long as diversity of values exists, there will always be people criticizing those icons that are held up as the "model" that we should inspire to be like.

"Tall poppies" comes from an anecdote about an ancient monarch who sent a message by doing something rather than saying something. One version is in Rabelais, "Gargantua and Pantagruel".