THAT tough times produce tough people is an urban myth that has long peppered working-class life — as if having to be tough to survive is something to be proud of rather than something to lament.

And what is toughness anyway? Is it a form of courage, a willingness to harness violence in pursuit of self-interest — material and status — or is it the ability to suffer and endure privation without being broken by it?

Those very questions have tantalised and occupied the minds of philosophers stretching all the way back to Aristotle, who once opined: I count him braver who overcomes his desires than him who conquers his enemies; for the hardest victory is over self.”