Gossip, public, private, social - to fight against it either by word or pen seems, after all, like fighting with shadows. Everybody laughs at it, protests against it, blames and despises it; yet everybody does it, or at least encourages others in it: quite innocently, unconsciously, in such a small, harmless fashion - yet we do it. We must talk about something, and it is not all of us who can find a rational topic of conversation, or discuss it when found. ~ Ch. 8
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Gossip persists because everyone participates or encourages it unconsciously, making it hard to fight.
- In plain terms
- People talk behind others backs even though they claim to hate gossip.
- What can you take from it?
- Gossip is hard to stop because everyone does it.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- Do you engage in gossip?
- How can you choose better topics?
Another view
It offers little guidance on how to actually reduce gossip.
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