Folk Wisdom That Isn't True
Okay, I'm a mooch. A literary mooch.
I need bits of folk wisdom...or, basically sayings you hear, that really aren't true or aren't always true. Stuff people believe and pass around.
A relationship version of what I'm looking for is, "If she cheated with you, she'll cheat on you."
Perhaps some of you believe that, but it's actually not necessarily true.
Here's another example:
Nietzsche's "That which doesn't kill us makes us stronger" is another example, you could respond "Drink poison and your liver is fucked for life."
I'm looking for Snopes/Urban myth type beliefs/quotes as well.
Any help you can give me in this matter would be much appreciated.
"You should invest in the stock market instead of paying off your house, because the stock market will always return more than the interest rate you are paying on your mortgage, and the value of your home will always go up."
Pirate Jo at February 16, 2010 11:47 AM
Spitting in drain cleaner will tell you if you're having a boy or girl.
Once a cheater, always a cheater.
You shouldn't have sex while pregnant because the penis will hit the baby.
Castor oil will start labor
You get what you pay for.
What goes around comes around.
Gum takes 7 years to digest.
You can't swim for an hour after eating.
feed a cold, starve a fever.
You only absorb 1/3 of the calories you drink (popular with coed boozers)
momof4 at February 16, 2010 12:02 PM
dunno Amy... folk wisdom isn't truth or fact, maybe likelyhood? sure cheaters don't always cheat... but they may be more likely to. How often does the person who cheated with you, cheat on you? It may or may not be a trivial number, but it is something to watch out for. There is a subset who will ALWAYS cheat. Have a tooth-ache? Chew on a willow switch. There is folk wisdom that was turned into something we call aspirin.
Are you looking for untrue folk wisdom? Or morals that are intended to make you do a certain thing, but aren't actually true, like "cheaters never prosper"... your grandma said it to convince you not to cheat... not because you would never see someone get away with it.
I mean, "redheads never let you sleep" has proven mostly true for me, but I'm not sure if I'd call that true or just happy circumstance.
Murphy's law is certainly folk wisdom, but you don't want to almost die in a rocket sled to find out... and his name was Ed.
Murphy and his law
How bout this one: herding cats is hard... unless you have a can of cat food.
or:
life is hard. life is harder if you're stupid.
SwissArmyD at February 16, 2010 12:47 PM
Hm. What's wrong with "You get what you pay for"? If you know how to get more, let me know. You must be an excellent haggler, momof4...
Rainer at February 16, 2010 12:58 PM
How about the one that 50% of all married couples get divorced each year? I've seen this one in several places recently. But clearly, if it were true, we'd be down to about a dozen married couples left in the country.
Cousin Dave at February 16, 2010 1:12 PM
An easier assignment would be sayings that are generally true. One I always have found true is how a person treats their waiter\waitress\other service provider is a really good indicator of what they will be like in a close relationship, either business or personal.
Eric at February 16, 2010 1:23 PM
Yeah, I'm quite fond of "you can tell how a man will treat a woman by how he treats his mother". It's been incredibly true for me so far.
Ann at February 16, 2010 1:32 PM
Yeah, I'm quite fond of "you can tell how a man will treat a woman by how he treats his mother". It's been incredibly true for me so far.
That assumes that his mother isn't nutier than a fruitcake.
-Julie
JulieW at February 16, 2010 1:56 PM
Thanks - these are super-helpful. Please feel free to post more. Especially the stuff that ISN'T true, but people believe.
Amy Alkon at February 16, 2010 1:59 PM
One that I laughed about (as someone who survived an abusive childhood)
"Show me a child who has issues with his/her father and I will show you an employee who will have trouble with his/her boss."
First, my boss shouldn't have any knowledge of my relationship with my father...it isn't appropriate business conversation, second, is that person saying that every abused or neglected child will be a bad employee?
-Julie
JulieW at February 16, 2010 2:08 PM
Here's one: "95% of accidents happen within 25 miles of home."
Intended as a goad to drive carefully every day, this mis-states the risk in many ways, not the least of which is the a fender-bender in the parking lot of WalMart isn't the same as throwing the family down the road on the Interstate - two hours from help.
Radwaste at February 16, 2010 2:58 PM
How about, "The definition of insanity is doing the same thing
over and over and expecting different results." Anyone using
that is simply showing their ignorance of random chance or other
factors. For instance, I can stand at the roulette table and bet
on 12 over and over again. I may not come out a net winner, but
at some point, if I keep doing it, I'll match the little ball and
win.
Also, those people who did sit-ins at lunch counters kept getting
arrested, but segregation eventually fell.
Ron at February 16, 2010 4:43 PM
How about: "women marry their fathers and men marry their mothers"
"The size of a man's fingers (or nose or feet) can tell you how big he is down there."
"It takes being with a bad man to recognize a good one."
"Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day. Teach a man to fish and he will he sit on his boat and drink beer all day." (ok, I got that one from a t-shirt. lol)
lovelysoul at February 16, 2010 5:31 PM
The emptiest can makes the loudest noise.
--Chinese Proverb
Opposites attract
Third time is a charm
Something about the size of a man's feet.....(or any number of size related aphorisms)
eldest child/middle child/youngest child/only child folklore
I like pigs. Dogs look up to us. Cats look down on us. Pigs treat us as equals.
-Winston Churchill
Monday's child is fair of face,
Tuesday's child is full of grace,
Wednesday's child is full of woe,
.........
alkkemist at February 16, 2010 5:47 PM
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_misconceptions
alkkemist at February 16, 2010 5:51 PM
You should always buy a house because everyone knows that houses will always always always go up in price and never never never go down!
David J at February 16, 2010 6:14 PM
"Every woman ends up turning into her mother"
Pretty wobbly in my experience. Ask Gregg what he thinks.
"Redheads always have tempers to match their hair" You could ask Gregg about this too.
"Blondes have more fun" Ask your fellow redheads.
"The apple never falls far from the tree"
My favorite urban legend is the guy who sold his house & car & cleaned out his bank account to buy thousands & thousands of lottery tickets, then won $ 10. Never did find out if this happened in real life.
Martin at February 16, 2010 6:29 PM
Ranier-I was thinking the other way. Paying out the wazoo doesn't necessarily guarantee a good outcome. And yes, I am a tightwad, ad money-saver extraordinaire. That's how I stay home with 4 kids on one mid-level income!
momof4 at February 16, 2010 7:42 PM
Especially the stuff that ISN'T true, but people believe.
Posted by: Amy Alkon
I tell my familly members they are smart, they seem to belive me.
Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day. Teach a man to fish and he has to pay the government $20 bucks for the priviliage.
lujlp at February 16, 2010 9:00 PM
PCs crash. MACs don't crash.
The Former Banker at February 16, 2010 9:39 PM
Amy Alkon
http://www.advicegoddess.com/archives/2010/02/16/folk_wisdom_tha.html#comment-1695899">comment from The Former BankerAnd chocolate milk is made from chocolate cows.
I love Macs, had 'em since 85, but I have had more Mac crashes in the past couple of days than a McDonald's worker with dropsy.
Amy Alkon at February 16, 2010 10:29 PM
No one will buy the cow if your giving out the milk for free.
Feebie at February 16, 2010 10:32 PM
A way to a mans heart is through his stomach.
You've got to kiss a lot of frogs to find your prince (er, something like that).
A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.
You can't make a silk purse of a sow's ear,
Crabs crawl backwards, people don't... (this one was used by my grandmother to my sister when she got back with her ex).
Feebie at February 16, 2010 10:42 PM
Amy Alkon
http://www.advicegoddess.com/archives/2010/02/16/folk_wisdom_tha.html#comment-1695903">comment from FeebieA way to a mans heart is through his stomach.
The way to a man's heart is a surgical saw on his sternum.
Couldn't resist.
Thanks - these are super helpful. Keep 'em coming!
Amy Alkon at February 16, 2010 10:49 PM
"The way to a man's heart is a surgical saw on his sternum."
Now that's funny (and true)!
Feebie at February 16, 2010 10:55 PM
A penny saved is a penny earned (this is true unless you saved with Madoff)
An apple a day keeps the doctor away.
Nice guys finish last.
You have to spend money to make money.
No risk, no reward.
Never put off for tomorrow what you can do today (this is not always true for impulsive people who make poor decisions)
Feebie at February 16, 2010 11:04 PM
The customer is always right.
The Former Banker at February 17, 2010 12:40 AM
"You'll find him when you're not looking."
"There are plenty of fish in the sea."
"Men are like streetcars – miss one and there'll be another along in a few minutes."
MJ at February 17, 2010 12:54 AM
The more you buy, the more you save!
If you don't have time to do it right, how will you have time to do it over?
Steve B at February 17, 2010 12:57 AM
Amy writes: A relationship version of what I'm looking for is, "If she cheated with you, she'll cheat on you."
Not necessarily true??? Perhaps not, but it's what you call a "safe bet." If she cheats on you, she's already shown that relationship boundaries are no impediment if she gets bored. To me, I think that's a better assumption than the idea that she was with the wrong guy, but I'm so great and so perfect for her that she'll never cheat on me.
On the other hand, if she's cheating with you, you're not exactly Mr. Monogamy yourself. Perhaps the two of you deserve each other.
Patrick at February 17, 2010 1:49 AM
Amy, if you look at the Nizkor site re fallacies, you can generate all sorts of observations. Most people don't know what they are.
We appear to be most vulnerable to Appeal to Authority and Appeal to Consequences, and apply Two Wrongs constantly to excuse what we do.
Radwaste at February 17, 2010 2:29 AM
Has anyone mentioned "opposites attract" yet?
old rpm daddy at February 17, 2010 12:17 PM
Take a look at this Wiki about misconceptions.
Radwaste at February 17, 2010 5:35 PM
My grandmother used to always say a variation on "a boy will always try to see how far he can go, and a girl will always have to stop him." It took me like 15 years to realize she was talking about sex and not just taking a trip or something.
Also, and this is similar to the phrase about how you treat waitstaff, that if someone drives like an asshole then they really are an asshole.
Another one is that when you see someone drunk, you're seeing the person they really are.
Choika at February 18, 2010 4:38 AM
My biggest pet peeve: "Everything happens for a reason."
Pirate Jo at February 18, 2010 6:23 AM
*************************************
A relationship version of what I'm looking for is, "If she cheated with you, she'll cheat on you."
Perhaps some of you believe that, but it's actually not necessarily true.
*************************************
Almost always TRUE.
Ever listen to the words from the Jimi Hendrix classic, "Hey Joe"?
Ken at February 18, 2010 10:48 AM
* Vaccines cause autism
* Power lines cause cancer
* There was no form of ionizing radiation anywhere on Earth prior to the 20th century
* People and dinosaurs existed on earth simultaneously at one point in the past. (This one is surprisingly common even among people who aren't particularly religious.)
* The Apollo moon landings were faked
* AIDS can be spread by casual contact
* All paper currency contains traces of cocaine
* The GPS system tracks the location of everyone who has a GPS device.
Cousin Dave at February 18, 2010 11:08 AM
Build a man a fire, keep him warm for a day. Set a man on fire, keep him warm for the rest of his life.
In the beginning there was nothing, and God said "Let there be light!" and there was still nothing, but you could see it better!
Patrick at February 18, 2010 1:26 PM
Men can attest, you won't go blind.
Jerry Katz at February 19, 2010 10:10 PM
Once bitten, twice shy.
Lots of people keep going after psychos or lumps or losers or abusers or other seriously defective people after all.
Robert at February 20, 2010 7:31 PM
Cousin Dave, re: cocaine on currency:
http://www.snopes.com/business/money/cocaine.asp
a boy will always try to see how far he can go, and a girl will always have to stop him.
Growing up with Southern Baptist and Church of Christ relatives, I have heard versions of this and that old chestnut, "Why buy the cow..?" all my life. And it has always bugged the living daylights out of me. So women don't, or aren't supposed to, like sex? I actually still occasionally hear women talk about how far they let a man get (or not get). Implies that all men are sex-mad and will jump anything with a pair of X chromosomes, and that women shouldn't like sex but should get off on the power of withholding it. Disgusting.
More on topic: It is more cost effective to buy a house than to rent.
As Pirate Jo said up there, "Everything happens for a reason." Technically true, if you don't mind that the reason was God hates you and gave you inoperable cancer ("It's the tiny clusters...")
NumberSix at February 20, 2010 9:33 PM
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