Cat and mouse
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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Cat and mouse, often expressed as cat-and-mouse game, is an English-language idiom dating back to 1675 that means "a contrived action involving constant pursuit, near captures, and repeated escapes." (Merriam-Webster's) The "cat" is unable to secure a definitive victory over the "mouse", who despite not being able to defeat the cat, is able to avoid capture. In extreme cases, the idiom may imply that the contest is never-ending. The term is derived from the hunting behavior of domestic cats, which often appear to "play" with prey by releasing it after capture. This behavior is due to an instinctive imperative to ensure that the prey is weak enough to be killed without endangering the cat.
In colloquial usage it has often been generalized to mean simply that the advantage constantly shifts between the contestants, leading to an impasse or de facto stalemate.
Wiktionary
- Two individuals and/or groups repeatedly keeping check on each other in a suspicious or self-protective way, often with the goal of one or both parties trying to gain a malicious advantage over the other.
- The Allied and the enemy submarine played a cat and mouse game on checking up on each other's whereabouts and supposed strategic plans.
- The hackers played a cat and mouse game with the computer's system administrators: The hackers kept trying new tricks, and the system administrators kept mounting electronic defenses to prevent damage and catch the hackers.
See also
- Brothers Grimm Fairytale "Cat and Mouse in Partnership"
- Tom and Jerry cartoons
- Red Queen's Race
- Arms race
