Lajfstajl / Lifestyle
Generation Z and road signs Slang as a sign of the times The most commonly used social media phrases reveal the essence of the world we inhabit
other children with famous parents. Among those to find themselves under Twitterati scrutiny were Ben Platt, Lily Collins, Louisa Jacobson and many others, with it seeming as though users of this social media platform make weekly updates to their list of “nepo- tism babies”, whose (un)established success requires debate. The phenomenon quickly expanded to influ- ential media outlets, with New York Magazine even publishing a cover story dedicated to the topic. Slang has become a norm of Hollywood reporting and a cul- tural hyphen that one must know. Similarly, in this era of unverified news, clickbait headlines and seismic social changes, the word “gas- lighting” – in reference to the psychological manip- ulation of individuals over a long period that leads to the victim questioning the veracity of their own thoughts -- has emerged as a generally accepted and widely used term that’s prominent in our everyday vocabulary, despite having begun its life as the leit- motif of a dramatic work. “Gaslighting” is a term derived from the play Gas- light, in which a man constantly dims the gaslight in the house, and when his wife asks him why he’s doing it, he tries to convince her that the light hasn’t been dimmed. The wife gradually starts to believe that she’s losing her mind, and unfolding in front of our eyes is a form of emotional abuse in which another person’s experience or perception of reality is refuted. In the general confusion of our exciting present period, we use “gaslighting” equally to describe a toxic emotional relationship, mobbing at work and blatant untruths that fill tabloid media columns. But it is what it is. The third term to have become a social media lin- guistic standard is “gatekeeping”. Though no one ex- pects there to be a direct equivalent in the Serbian language, it is very easy to compare it with an iron- ic use of the term “guardian of the monastery”. The term “gatekeeping” owes its popularity largely to Tik- Tok, whose users raise virtual torches and pitchforks to anyone who denies the general public certain in- formation or access to privileges from a position of social influence. What started out as uproar in re- sponse to institutional injustice is now, in the Tech- nicolor TikTok universe, used to attack, for instance, some influencer who won’t divulge where she bought that pretty jumper. There is a degree of poetic jus- tice in the fact that “gatekeeping” has emerged on a platform that popularises the democratic evaluating of neighbourhoods, trendy venues and restaurants – sometimes to the point of lynching. Want to find out how to push your way to the front row of a show at New York Fashion Week without an invitation? Follow the instructions of TikTokers who are no strangers to jumping the catwalk or falsely presenting themselves. As such, all this hubbub about “gatekeeping” comes across as absurd at a time when the same source is sending you messages about where to find the “back- door” entrance.
Nepo
baby gaslighting gatekeeping goblin mode
Mod Apatou, Lili Kolins i Luiza Džejkobson su na spisku „beba nepotizma“ / Maude Apatow, Lily Collins and Louisa Jacobson are on the list of “nepotism babies”
If we view slang as the language of change , one that evokes everyday terms through brilliantly simple metaphors and deliberately devi- ates from the linguistic standard – then, in this digi- tal age of ours, slang is a map of sociological changes to which we mustn’t remain illiterate. That’s particularly so because Generation Z’s favour- ite phrases over the past twelve months have served as “road signs” for understanding just what has shaped the picture of the world from social media scrolls – nepo babies, gaslighting, gatekeeper – these adoptees from the English language weren’t merely inventive synonyms, but rather also terms with multiple us- es for sharply criticising accepted systems of power. “Nepo baby” was, all things considered, the hit term of the year (though the editors of the Oxford Diction- ary chose to crown “goblin mode” instead). It all start- ed last spring, during the airing of the exciting (and decidedly viral) second season of the show Euphoria. The Twitterati had just found out that Maude Apatow, who portrays Lexi in the series, is actually the daugh- ter of comedy genius Judd Apatow and actress Leslie Mann, and had opened a heated debate in this online space over whether Maude’s talent was worthy of such a role or whether it had “fallen into her lap” thanks to her celebrity roots. The topic quickly spread to all
„Gaslajtovanje“ je pojam koji potiče iz predstave „Gas Light“ “Gaslighting” is a term derived from the play Gaslight
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