every man for himself

• (UK, US) IPA^(key): /ˈɛv.(ə.)ɹi mæn fɔː(ɹ) hɪm.ˈsɛlf/

every man for himself

1. An expression of indifference, that a person should forget about comradeship and save her/himself.
   • 1955, Walter Lord, quoting RMS Titanic Captain Edward Smith, A Night to Remember, page 86:

     Men, you have done your full duty. You can do no more. Abandon your cabin. Now it's every man for himself.

• every woman for herself
• look out for number one

every-man-for-himself (not comparable)

1. selfish

   I quit show business because there was too much of an every-man-for-himself attitude going on.

   There was an every-man-for-himself attitude during the time of the Great Depression in 1930s America.