We've all heard of "Keeping up with the Joneses," the idiom that describes trying to keep up with the standard of living of other people. It's a pretty commonplace expression, but do you know where it comes from?
The phrase was coined in none other than a comic strip, the classic, charming hotbed of social commentary. Comic artist Arthur R. Momand created the "Keeping Up With the Joneses" comic strip in 1913, and it went on to span 26 years in print and syndication in newspapers across the country. Apparently Momand originally chose the title "Keeping Up With The Smiths," but changed it because Joneses sounded better. ("Keeping Up With The Kardashians" is the catchy modern-day equivalent.) This strip shows the fuzzy, lemon-colored lengths a couple goes to in order to one-up their neighbors.
Momand was definitely onto something. Humans are competitive about all kinds of stuff (from sports to spelling bees), and money is often no different. A 2010 study even found that having more money made people happy only if they perceived that they had more than their peers or colleagues.
The phrase and comic both draw from a lesser-known related term: Conspicuous consumption. This refers to buying things for the purpose of displaying wealth to increase social status. Though it originated in the 1899 book The History of the Leisure Class to describe spending habits of the wealthy, today conspicuous consumption has led to consumer debt problems across all income levels.
--Jane
Photo taken from this photostream and used with permission of a Creative Commons license.
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