One of the
premises on which Danish society is based is freedom. It is the grassroots of
the system. Freedom doesn’t mean to do whatever you want, but to be able of
doing whatever you want. In order to fit in it is important to follow this principle.
Recently I
was chatting in the kitchen of my dormitory with some pals, all of them
foreigners as me, about how we perceive Danish people and Denmark in general.
We reached different opinions. And I remember I explained and important concept
in all the Nordic culture to my mates in order to show them my point of view. Janteloven or the Law of Jante, a non-written law very present in the northern countries minds.
In general
terms, it can be said that the Law of Jante is the biggest example of why
Nordic culture is based on community behavior against individualism. Living in
a country does not only mean to reside in a place of earth delimited by
borders, but also to be part of the society. Here are the ten principles of Janteloven.
-
You're
not to think you are anything special.
-
You're
not to think you are as good as us.
-
You're
not to think you are smarter than us.
-
You're
not to convince yourself that you are better than us.
-
You're
not to think you know more than us.
-
You're
not to think you are more important than us.
-
You're
not to think you are good at anything.
-
You're
not to laugh at us.
-
You're
not to think anyone cares about you.
-
You're
not to think you can teach us anything
Basically
it says, move your ass from individualism and rich yourself and do something
for the community. But… Here is the problem. Denmark is a multicultural country
where diversity is one its biggest appeals. So, it is difficult to understand for the most
of us who come here.
One would
be observed as a newbie in the city. Because it’s not about only individualism,
also about being different. It’s not a coincidence the fact that the big
majority of Danish young students look alike. Same haircuts, brands, colors,
expressions. Sometimes being different means being out of the loop.
Be quiet,
dress as they do, behave as they do, drink as they do, say what they say, never
critic their system, don’t do anything that can piss them off and try to learn
Danish. Then, you’ll be, not a Dane, but a foreigner completely integrated.
Otherwise you’ll be the rotten apple which spoils the whole country.
No comments:
Post a Comment