History Main / LifeIsntFair

"Life isn't fair. Deal with it." FictionIsntFair and neither is RealLife. Another one of those StockPhrases, usually particularly irritating to the character it's being told to. Another way of saying "deal with it". Sometimes used to respond to an accusation that the character wasn't fighting fair. Often said by a character guilty of going out of their way to ''make'' things unfair, as their way of EvilGloating and rubbing the victim's nose in their plight.

* In ''Anime/MonsterRancher'', Tiger tells Genki speech during their first meeting, while he and his Wild Pack are robbing the other Searchers;

* A suicidal woman tells this to ''ComicBook/{{Superman}}'' in the Grounded storyline. Much to her surprise, Superman agrees with her, but then adds that it isn't "unfair" either.

* This is [[SadistTeacher Aizawa's]] main rationalization for his cruelty throughout ''Fanfic/MeanRabbit'': life is cruel, especially to the Quirkless, and he's simply [[ToughLove preparing his students]] for the harshness of real life.

** In ''Literature/SoulMusic'', CrustyCaretaker Albert explains that Susan is the only eligible replacement for [[TheGrimReaper Death]], and being a typical teenager at heart Susan eventually resorts to complaining "It's not fair!". Albert retorts, dripping with sarcasm, that she can go explain that to the universe at large and see how far it gets her. This gets referred back to at the end of the book, when she's trying to save Buddy:

* In one episode of ''Series/TheBrittasEmpire'', Tim goes up to Brittas to complain that the game they were playing was unfair (as he was getting worse off despite being sennsible with his money whilst Gavin was spending money like crazy and is still rich). Brittas, who is suffering from some personal issues (he has just been given a SadisticChoice of keeping his job but seeing his wife get put in jail for taking petty money or resigning and taking the blame for something that his wife did) replies with this:

* Creator/GeorgeCarlin had a bit in one his stand up routines where he not only expounded on how unfair life was, but also noted "Everyone who ever told me that life was fair died horribly before age 35."

-->'''Lien:''' When you consider that Yunji and and everyone else in the Sapphire Guard is dead but I'm alive - I think I may be the actual luckiest woman in the world.\\

** Butters bitterly complains about this to himself in the episode "Professor Chaos", after he's been "fired" as the boys fourth friend, thinking about how he did all the humiliating, painful things they asked and they still rejected him. As such, he decides to take on the mantle of TinTyrant supervillain Professor Chaos (and is joined by the equally mistreated Dougie as General Disarray) as a way to take revenge on the world. Unfortunately for Butters, he really IS just as lame and and wimpy as the boys think, and all his evil plans just amount to pathetically minor acts of vandalism like switching around soup orders in a diner or trying to flood the world with a garden hose.

* In ''VisualNovel/ZeroTimeDilemma'', this is [[BigBad Zero II]]’s catchphrase and entire worldview, which he goes to great lengths to enforce on the characters in his Decision Game, by presenting them with one SadisticChoice after another. As it turns out, he has [[ForWantOfANail a really]] [[DisasterDominoes good reason]] for thinking this way.

* ''Literature/{{Twilight}}'':

[[quoteright:350:ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/esdj35qp0x611_png.png]]]]

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/esdj35qp0x611_png.png]]

* ''WesternAnimation/DespicableMe'': Shortly after Gru obtains the shrink ray back from Vector, Margo gets on his case for skipping all the cookie deliveries after Vector's house, to which Gru responds:

* In ''VisualNovel/ZeroTimeDilemma'', this is [[BigBad Zero II]]’s CatchPhrase and entire worldview, which he goes to great lengths to enforce on the characters in his Decision Game, by presenting them with one SadisticChoice after another. As it turns out, he has [[ForWantOfANail a really]] [[DisasterDominoes good reason]] for thinking this way.

* Referenced in a ''ComicStrip/TomTheDancingBug'' strip where Harvey Richards, Lawyer for Children, suggests an effective rebuttal to this argument in an advertisement:
-->'''Harvey Richards:''' Does this exchange sound familiar?\\
'''Kid:''' That's not ''fair!''\\
'''Parent:''' Well, ''life'' isn't fair.\\
'''Harvey Richards:''' Simply answer:\\
'''Kid:''' Well, perhaps not, but if we give up the struggle to make it as fair as we can, then surely we are giving in to the forces of inequity that we profess to abhor.

[[quoteright:350: [[ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/screenshot_2022_10_26_160539.png]]]]

[[folder:Real Life]]
* Used and abused to hell and back, then back to hell and back again. {{Troll}}s, {{Griefer}}s, and '''especially''' TheSocialDarwinist, using either this or [[ParodyRetcon "satire"]]/the JustJokingJustification to excuse {{Jerkass}} behavior.
** Ironic since TheSocialDarwinist oft perpetrates [[LogicalFallacies the "Just World" fallacy]].
* Commonly used by parents and authority figures...usually to excuse {{Jerkass}} behavior.
* On the more positive side of things, ''wanting'' life to be fair and thus striving towards an admittedly impossible ideal is seen as a virtue of our race.
* Often told to those suffering from depression. To those who know someone who is depressed, [[KickTheDog saying this]] is a ''[[DespairEventHorizon very]]'' [[DrivenToSuicide bad idea]].
[[/folder]]