Gossip

[lillibet]

Now, gossip, by its very definition, is trivial; on the other hand, is there a better way to really understand something than by appreciating all of its various trivialities? We don't cherish our friends simply because they're great thinkers, or saintly, or for any such lofty concerns. Rather it's a combination of all the small, trivial facets that combine to shape the image we carry of them; it's the complex final pattern, with all its daily shifts and adjustments, that we cherish.

Charles de Lint, The Wild Wood

Comments

[miss-chance.livejournal.com]

Nicely said. I'm frequently ambivalent about gossip, and this puts a nice face to the side of me that enjoys it.

In as much, I think there are different kinds of gossip, some intended to share trivialities and some intended to hurt and slander, and perhaps one way we understant someone s not just by what trivialities we share, but *how* we share them.

Good food for thought, thanks.

[r-ness.livejournal.com]

Yah, I tend to agree--although I imagine my agreement is a bit self-serving--much depends on what one is trying to convey by sharing those trivialities.

Friends have tried to draw a distinction between what I (we?) do and that which is meant to hurt, but I sometimes think they're simply trying to put a nice face on it, as you said.

I don't know.