The Cassandra metaphor, also labeled the Cassandra syndrome, complex, phenomenon, predicament, dilemma, or curse, describes a person whose valid warnings or concerns are disbelieved by others. It comes from Greek mythology: Apollo gave Cassandra, daughter of the Trojan king Priam, the gift of prophecy in return for her romantic favor, then cursed her so nobody would believe her warnings after she refused him, leaving her able to foresee events but never able to convince others or change what she foresaw. The metaphor has been applied across psychology, environmentalism, politics, science, cinema, business, and philosophy since at least 1914, and in 1949 the French philosopher Gaston Bachelard coined the specific term Cassandra complex for a belief that things can be known in advance.
Facts
Classification
Type of Phenomenon First Described Year Sources
1. Wikipedia: Cassandra (metaphor)
Wikimedia FoundationWikipedia Cassandra (metaphor) lead paragraph (w-bbfill-psymath4-0926)
1949, French philosopher Gaston Bachelard coined
lead section, phenomenon-kind classification
) Later, in 1949, French philosopher Gaston Bachelard coined the term "Cassandra Complex" to refer to a belief that things could be known in advance.
View the Source Reader Challenges (0)
No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.
Sign in to dispute this or suggest a correction.