I LOVE THIS !! Gossip has literally saved women's lives. Check out the book "Women Talking," by Miriam Toews! Thank you for this Emily! I often think men's derision of gossip is similar to their derision of the personal essay... shitting on something just because it's an art form women gravitate towards.
I read this while listening to the podcast normal gossip! I love gossip! I love to gab I love to yap and chat and I always have something to say. I loved this piece Emily!
I love gossiping in all its joyful multifaceted dangerous toeing-the-line-ness.....I think it's just so human. Obviously it can be a powerful avenue for bad/anti-social/ego-serving behaviour, but so can basically any interaction.
When I visited The Amber Fort in India, our tour guide eagerly told us how the Palace purposely catered for the Queen’s and Princesses’ gossip sessions, providing an exclusive courtyard (even the King was banned!) with a small curtained pavilion in the centre. If I remember correctly, the Royal women were also provided with small viewing slits to observe the outside perimeter of the Palace without being seen, fuelling their gossip sessions with the day-to-day goings of the kingdom. My travel group was all women, and we thought this was fabulous!
I love how you discerned gossip into two parts!
I agree that gossip is too often made synonymous with bullying, but really I find it has brought me closer to a lot of people in my life. I find gossiping to be one of those rare times when people become entirely transparent. As a fairly reserved person, it’s when I find myself feeling comfortable in a conversation with new people, because not only are the people around you demonstrating that they trust you enough to hear them out, but they’re also leaving the door wide open for you to open yourself up a bit.
While gossiping about people close to us can feel wrong, I think sometimes it can be beneficial. Guessing this still counts as gossip since it’s behind the person’s back, but it's good for mutually identifying when we see a loved one acting differently or struggling. Talking to someone else about it can be the affirmed push into intervening.
P.S. Malicious gossip for the ego has its own term here in Australia, called “Tall Poppy Syndrome”. This is basically where you “cut down” anyone doing well for themselves, often trying to sink them to your own level of self-loathing. It says a lot that we have a term for it, and makes for kind of a shit bit of Australian culture.
That was such an intriguing perspective on! Historically, the suppression of gossip, or more accurately, the exchange of knowledge, has been a deliberate act. Because gossip isn’t just chatter; it’s information. And information, as we know, is power. Well done! :)
I LOVE THIS !! Gossip has literally saved women's lives. Check out the book "Women Talking," by Miriam Toews! Thank you for this Emily! I often think men's derision of gossip is similar to their derision of the personal essay... shitting on something just because it's an art form women gravitate towards.
yes!!!!! i feel like there was so much more i want to cover… maybe a part 2 is needed
i always think about how cavewomen literally used gossip as a way to decide if they could trust someone or not. loveeeed this!<3
YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! we are born to gossip
I read this while listening to the podcast normal gossip! I love gossip! I love to gab I love to yap and chat and I always have something to say. I loved this piece Emily!
i looove that podcast!
me too! and they come back next week I am SO excited
SAME lol
wake up new angel cake
sweet sweet muffin
Let us gossip today!
hell YEAH
long live gossip!!!!
Love this!!!!
I'd hate to have a moody brooding aura... & aunt liz was spitting
you have a bubbly aura trust
need to kick it with aunt liz
ask and you shall receive…
Couldn't have said it any better
sister
yes!! i gossip in honor of the tradition established by all the majestic women before me
gorgeous
I love gossiping in all its joyful multifaceted dangerous toeing-the-line-ness.....I think it's just so human. Obviously it can be a powerful avenue for bad/anti-social/ego-serving behaviour, but so can basically any interaction.
so human and complex yet rarely talked about as such!
Y E S to all of this!!! Long live gossip!
!!!!!
When I visited The Amber Fort in India, our tour guide eagerly told us how the Palace purposely catered for the Queen’s and Princesses’ gossip sessions, providing an exclusive courtyard (even the King was banned!) with a small curtained pavilion in the centre. If I remember correctly, the Royal women were also provided with small viewing slits to observe the outside perimeter of the Palace without being seen, fuelling their gossip sessions with the day-to-day goings of the kingdom. My travel group was all women, and we thought this was fabulous!
I love how you discerned gossip into two parts!
I agree that gossip is too often made synonymous with bullying, but really I find it has brought me closer to a lot of people in my life. I find gossiping to be one of those rare times when people become entirely transparent. As a fairly reserved person, it’s when I find myself feeling comfortable in a conversation with new people, because not only are the people around you demonstrating that they trust you enough to hear them out, but they’re also leaving the door wide open for you to open yourself up a bit.
While gossiping about people close to us can feel wrong, I think sometimes it can be beneficial. Guessing this still counts as gossip since it’s behind the person’s back, but it's good for mutually identifying when we see a loved one acting differently or struggling. Talking to someone else about it can be the affirmed push into intervening.
P.S. Malicious gossip for the ego has its own term here in Australia, called “Tall Poppy Syndrome”. This is basically where you “cut down” anyone doing well for themselves, often trying to sink them to your own level of self-loathing. It says a lot that we have a term for it, and makes for kind of a shit bit of Australian culture.
That was such an intriguing perspective on! Historically, the suppression of gossip, or more accurately, the exchange of knowledge, has been a deliberate act. Because gossip isn’t just chatter; it’s information. And information, as we know, is power. Well done! :)
Indeed, gossip is a sin :/ its sad that you don't have anything else to say apart from talking about other people's lives.