lisa jeffs, a life and career coach in toronto , has seen her share of people who are fed up with societal pressures to be perfect and painting themselves to fit these expectations on social platforms, and she’s not surprised by the popularity of the term “goblin mode” because it reflects the times.
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goblin mode is the newly-voted oxford term of the year for 2022, beating out the other two top choices, “metaverse” which came second, followed by “#istandwith,” the guardian reports . oxford defines the term as “a type of behaviour which is unapologetically self-indulgent, lazy, slovenly, or greedy, typically in a way that rejects social norms or expectations.”
“given the year we’ve just experienced, goblin mode resonates with all of us who are feeling a little overwhelmed at this point,” casper grathwohl, president of oxford languages , told the guardian. “it’s a relief to acknowledge that we’re not always the idealized, curated selves that we’re encouraged to present on our instagram and tiktok feeds. this has been demonstrated by the dramatic rise of platforms like bereal where users share images of their unedited selves, often capturing self-indulgent moments in goblin mode.”
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