Underdog (sociology)

Underdog ( English for "inferior dog ") describes a disadvantaged or weaker person or someone who is inferior to another.

The expression was first mentioned in writing at the end of the 19th century. It can be traced back to dog fights that were widespread at the time , in which inferior dogs were referred to as "underdogs", as opposed to superior "top dogs".

The carpenter (from What do you want to become?, Around 1880, in the background: cutting the logs in the dock)

A popular theory as to the origin of the term is that it came from logging . In the past, long wooden planks were needed, especially for shipbuilding, for which tree trunks had to be cut lengthways. This required so-called trump saws, long saws that are held by two men. To make the work easier, saw pits or saw pits were dug that were deep enough for a man to stand upright in them. The log was placed over the pit so that one had to saw from above and the other from below. The latter, who was in the more uncomfortable position, was allegedly referred to as an underdog . However, in reality the people involved were usually called top sawyer and bottom sawyer .

See also

• Social inequality
• Topdog

Web links

• Keyword: Topdog (Lexicon of Gestalt Therapy)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Duden: Underdog. Retrieved July 1, 2016 . 
2. ↑ Podcast on "Tiemanns Wortgeflecht: Underdog". (No longer available online.) Archived from the original on July 1, 2016 ; accessed on July 1, 2016 .