rat race vs tug-ofwar

rat race

noun
  • An activity or situation which is congested with participants and which is hectic or tedious, especially in the context of a busy, modern urban lifestyle. 

  • Inconsiderate or unfair competition, where the competitors are willing to do just about anything to win. 

  • The busy, modern urban lifestyle itself, especially when seen as a competition for wealth or power. 

tug-ofwar

How often have the words rat race and tug-ofwar occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )