Pot calling the kettle black...

How often have we heard the saying, "Well that's the pot calling the kettle black!"?  Apparently we have been saying it since the 17th century to those of us who accuse others of things of which we are actually guilty.  In other words, if someone is lying about something, they accuse another of being a liar.  Originating in Spain it spawns from a translation of the novel "Don Quixote".   It's a perfect example of psychological projection.

Projection is when a person unconsciously takes unwanted traits or emotions that they don't like about themselves and attributes them to someone else.  Projection is something we all may do at one point or another. Sometimes it's the result of a stressor that triggers it.  If however it is a pattern of behaviour it may be a mental health issue that runs much deeper than simply a stressful day at the office.

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​Projection and paranoia are often partners in mental health conditions.  Paranoia is a state of mind where someone has an irrational mistrust of others and innocent people or situations may be seen as threats. 

A person suffering from paranoia and projection can see situations that to others appear quite normal, and connect it to fears they have experienced in the past or in the moment - and create a story in their mind that causes them to feel threatened in some way. Basic instincts of 'fight or flight' then kick in.  Some run - some will choose to fight.

In a 2021 Ontario Superior Court of Justice decision*  by Justice F.L. Myers - he compared this kind of thinking to that of the protagonist in the novel, Don Quixote.  His opening remarks in his endorsement were:

"Once upon a time, people who believed in fairy tales, and destroyed their lives on quixotic quests, could be dismissed quaintly as tilting at windmills. In 2021 however, modern fairy tales are called conspiracy theories. People who subscribe to them can harness the overwhelming power of the internet and untiringly harass the targets of their quests."

​Justice Myers compared someone who connects dots that seem to exist in their mind  - to Don Quixote and likened them to conspiracy theorists.  They may see a series of events occur that are unrelated and somehow connect them together through common places or people to create a scenario that they view as 'wrong' or threatening.  Team it up with psychological projection and one can successfully create  a scenario that one see as a very real threat.

​The threat does not have to be a physical threat.  For example - someone may be concerned about the amount of money that they pay in taxes and begin examining practices of the politicians and town employees to see if their taxes are being well spent.  If their belief before they begin is that money is being wasted - they will look only for scenarios that they feel support that belief.  Once they go down that rabbit hole - they find dozens more situations that are unrelated in fact - but that they see as bolstering their understanding of what is happening.

God help the person standing in their line of fire once they begin to conjure up the story. 

Did you know....

...according to Wikipedia the earliest appearance of the idiom "the pot calling the kettle black" is in Thomas Shelton's 1620 translation of the Spanish novel Don Quixote. The protagonist is growing increasingly restive under the criticisms of his servant Sancho Panza, one of which is that "You are like what is said that the frying-pan said to the kettle, 'Avant, black-browes'.  Read more here

WHO IS DON QUIXOTE?

The novel Don Quixote, written by Miguel de Cervantes is about a man of low nobility who reads chivalrous novels to the point that he begins imagining himself a knight who must restore chivalry and justice to the kingdom.  It is all of course, in his mind.  Scholars have long argued that he knew of course he was conjuring up scenarios, while others thought him to be truly mad. And although it is a fictitious novel - it's unnerving the parallels between the writing and the real world of someone suffering from paranoia and projection.

The person suffering from mental health issues that include projection and paranoia can create the most outlandish, bizarre and detailed stories - that grow larger and more complex each time they begin to relate it to someone.  The things that they fear or dislike most about themselves - they project onto others.  Dishonesty.  Misfeasance.  Poor money management. Illegal acts.  As their story grows and changes, they amass more 'proof' that their theory is true and they begin condemning innocent people of committing acts of which they are not responsible.  

Left unchecked - these unproven accusations often turn into legal battles.  The accuser - the modern day Don Quixote - sets out to right all the wrongs that he has uncovered and may use the internet and the legal system to bring the 'battle' to light - so that all may see his good deeds in uncovering the wrongs of the world.

Unfortunately - I have watched this happen - in real time.  The irony is that the person complaining of public servants wasting the taxpayers money is unfortunately himself, the guilty party.  The conspiracy theory he has conjured up is simply a fable where he believes he can right the wrongs committed single handedly and this makes him feel important.  In his mind he is the one person who can right the wrongs of the world - or in some cases of the community.  He is the modern day "knight tilting at windmills".

In the end, the projection of this 'knight' - accuses someone else ( or many others ) of lying - and creates a fantastical story to support it.  Untangling the web that has been created of unrelated 'facts' can take years.  And if the accuser, the modern day Don Quixote has managed to get the complaint into the legal system, the perpetrator of the fantasy will have wasted thousands of taxpayer's dollars accusing others' of wasting taxpayer's dollars.

And that my friend, is a perfect example of the "pot calling the kettle black".

* ​CITATION: Duncan v. Buckles, 2021 ONSC 1158
COURT FILE NO.: CV-18-594616
DATE: 20210216

Note to the reader:

This opinion is not written to discourage anyone from applying sound judgement to civic decisions and critiquing events occurring in their communities.  Discourse surrounding any governmental decision is an important part of our society and part of free speech guaranteed under section 2 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.  Grounded in fact, criticism can set into motion changes that benefit us all and keep our politicians and decision makers on track to do the will of the people.