the.com/bootstraps
the physically impossible metaphor we built an entire ideology on.
means to pull yourself up by your bootstraps means improving your situation through your own effort alone, with no outside help.
from born as a 19th-century joke about literal impossibility (you cannot lift yourself off the ground by tugging your own boots), the phrase flipped meaning entirely and became sincere American gospel about self-made success.
original meaningdescribed an absurd, physically impossible act
computing sensebootstrapping a computer means it starts itself
munchausen linkbaron munchausen pulled himself out of a swamp by his hair
irony intactstill used earnestly by people who never notice the joke
for instance
horatio alger novels — 1868-1899 rags-to-riches tales that cemented the myth in american culture
boot sector booting — computers loading their own operating system, term borrowed directly
welfare policy debates — phrase invoked constantly in 20th century us self-reliance arguments