2012-10-20
Explanation
This comic depicts a conversation between a man and his own brain, exploring the evolutionary psychology behind social comparison and envy. The brain announces that it wants to remind the man about "that one guy you know from a while back who'''s doing better than you." The man rationally pushes back, noting that lots of people are doing well and that he himself has it pretty good overall, so the brain should move on to another thought.
The brain refuses, explaining its evolutionary rationale: it evolved in a society where tribes never exceeded a hundred members, so it instinctively treats everyone the man knows as a local competitor. Because of this ancient wiring, the brain cannot help but frame other people'''s success as a direct threat, even in a modern world where such comparisons are largely meaningless.
In the final panel, the man wonders whether the successful guy'''s brain torments him in the same way. His own brain sarcastically replies, "With his superior genetics? I doubt it" -- demonstrating that the brain'''s jealousy is so deeply ingrained that it cannot even entertain the idea that the rival might share the same insecurities.
The votey panel extends the joke with the brain swooning, "Other people are soooooooo amazing!" -- reinforcing the comic'''s theme that our brains are hardwired to idealize others while undermining our own self-worth, a feature of evolved psychology that is more bug than feature in the modern world.