Journal #31- Gossip

Gossip is a major problem in today's society.  We have become so accustomed to this habit, that it does not even feel or sound wrong to us any more.  Spoon River Anthology by Edgar Lee Masters is a great example of gossip and its affects.  In school I hear gossip everyday.  Sadly, I take part in it many times.  Sometimes gossip is not always bad, but most of the time it is.  If the gossip is a complement to a person, than it might not be bad.  Most of the time gossip turns out to be false information.  People can get their feelings hurt and be offended by even small comments.  A few words can do more damage than physical blows.  Most people accept gossip as a part of life in today's society.  Most people do not think about the consequences of spreading a rumor.  A person's life can be ruined by the spreading of gossip.  Like is someone started saying that a girl was pregnant and she really was not, her life for the next few months would probably be miserable.  In our culture, gossip is promoted everywhere.  It is in movies, tv shows, commercials, video games, and pretty much every form of communication.  There are entire television shows dedicated to spreading true and false rumors  about celebrities and well known people.  Movies are also full of gossip.  Entire story lines are based on the idea of one little rumor spreading, leading to a whole trail of events that seems to never end.  For some reason, it is in human nature to be eager to hear anything bad about someone else.  People like to find the junk that others are hiding and expose it to the public.  I think our society should try to start caring for other people rather than tearing them down with spreading rumors and gossip.