Is there a name for this specific concept? Where somebody invents something (to do them good) but then that thing turns around and backfires on them?
I think Frankensteinian would work based off second definition of Frankenstein from m-w dot com.
2: a monstrous creation especially : a work or agency that ruins its originator
Frankensteinian is the adjective form.
This.
[joke]
Pulling a Doofenshmirtz?
If the inventor was known to be hubristic and reckless, it could be poetic justice. Otherwise, I think ironic is the best descriptor.
Btw, here’s a historical example of this happening.
Let’s call it “Keuriged”. The Keurig guy had so much regret on his polluting invention. Not sure if there is an actual term for this though.
I think Segwayed is better because James Heseldon, inventor of the Segway, died after riding a Segway off a cliff.
Edit: apologies! Apparently he didn’t invent the Segway, just owned the company
Didn’t own the company just the sole British distribution rights
edit to add: He lived on the south coast, used and enjoyed the product, and was moving out of the way for a pedestrian on a narrow path and went backwards over the cliff edge. A tragedy that doesn’t belong in this thread.
Skill issue
I’ve been saying this one a lot lately 😂
Choking on dog food?
Frankensteining
The Frankenstein Effect I believe, though that can also be used to describe a human extinction event caused by an invention of some kind.
I call it “Pulling a Midgely”
A name for this?
Isn’t it ironic, dontcha think?
Which is, ironically enough, NOT like rain on your wedding day, or a free ride when you’ve already paid.
It would only be ironic if it were a lifesaving device, for instance, if the creator of the defibrillator went into cardiac arrest by an accidental misfiring of the defibrillator on him.
Irony requires a reasonable expectation of an opposite outcome.
A solar eclipse happening on a cloudy day is not ironic, it’s merely unfortunate. A song about things claiming to be ironic actually containing nothing that will qualify as ironic is ironic.
Irony can be used in many situations. I want a German word that specifically refers to this situation. Something like Erfinderhybris; I just slammed Inventor and Hubris together.
Frankensteinian
I don’t know of a single word. How about some phrases?
Choked on your dinner. Shoot yourself in the foot. Cut off your nose to spite your face. Dig your own grave. Sign your own death warrant.
Step on your own dick.
Ha. Lol.
A “Thomas Midgley Jr.”
Alfred Nobel might be considered a runner up, but I feel he recovered his reputation. That and I don’t think anyone but himself really was upset with the path his invention took.
I know you wanted a word, but I nominate “Midgley” to be the new word for that. “To midgley something” is to attempt to create something of value that instead only makes things worse. It’s an improvement in the negative direction.
Devention
