We’re All Capable of Going ‘Goblin Mode’
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
The people have spoken about what the people have spoken: The 2022 Oxford Word of the Year , chosen for the first time ever by public vote, went to goblin mode by a 93 percent majority. Oxford defines goblin mode as “a type of behavior which is unapologetically self-indulgent, lazy, slovenly, or greedy, typically in a way that rejects social norms or expectations.” It’s a gloriously evocative phrase—and it tells a concise story about how many of us are doing these days.
The first record of goblin mode occurred in 2009, when someone tweeted : “m was in full hyperactive goblin mode last night. it was as if she ate a bag of sugar-coated candy, then washed it down with a few red bulls.” Not much is known about m or the specifics of her behavior on that fateful night, but the description is vivid: Her primal side had been unleashed. Although the post received a lukewarm 22 likes, going goblin mode described a condition that, more than a decade later, has become all too familiar.
People have gone other modes before: We started to go beast mode, for example, in 2007, with savage mode and sicko mode following later. The metaphor originates in video games, where navigating a hidden challenge might activate another “mode”: a special style of gameplay where you might move 10 times faster or appear as a zombie. To “go X mode” is to summon the spirit of X for a stretch—going Caleb mode, for example, might mean overanalyzing internet slang.
Goblin mode returned with a vengeance in February 2022, in a tweet expressing mock disbelief at a Photoshopped headline: “Julia Fox opened up about her ‘difficult’ relationship with Kanye West,” it read. “‘He didn’t like when I went goblin mode.’” Fox, the actor/model who had just ended a high-profile fling with the artist now known as Ye, never actually used the phrase—but something about it resonated with the discourse of the moment. Fox’s eccentric style might seem goblinesque compared with the pristine InstaBeauty of the Kardashian empire from which Ye had been so recently banished. Goblin mode represented a full aesthetic rebound from immaculate self-presentation—perfect for a time when people were returning chaotically to public life from the madding bowels of pandemic isolation. “The term then rose in popularity over the months following,” Oxford University Press said, “as Covid lockdown restrictions eased in many countries and people ventured out of their homes more regularly.”
Western mythology is littered with all sorts of goblins: shape-shifting animals; demonic, fairylike creatures; rude and hairy humanoids. What typically separates them from other supernatural forces is not their physical appearance but their passion for shelter. Goblins tend to lurk in cozy spaces. Most early accounts place goblins in caves; eventually, during the ascent of urban European life in the 15th and 16th centuries, stories described them as dwelling in houses.
Goblins represent the impish un-self-consciousness of our private lives. They’re ugly little monsters who love making mischief around the home. They have more fun than trolls because, instead of waiting under a bridge to hurt someone, they’re just chilling at the crib, looking nasty and getting up to no good. Maybe they haven’t showered in a few days, but they’re not evil. They just want to stay in and play. Sound like anyone you know?
In the early days of the pandemic, many of us unlocked a new mode in the video game of life: demonically uninhibited domesticity. Through countless quarantines, we all became “m”: pent-up balls of energy bouncing off the same four walls, maniacally scrounging up fun in confinement. Unable to party elsewhere, we transformed our home by necessity into a stage for chaos and revelry. I myself would not be writing complete sentences today had my housemates and I not developed a weekly ritual of getting blisteringly wine-drunk and screaming obscenities at the movie Cats .
The ability to go goblin mode was a necessary evolution, forged in trauma. But it now remains with us as a superpower. As we emerge from our caves after that long hibernation, our goblin-selves lurk somewhere deep inside us, beckoning us back home to vibe out. I don’t see going goblin mode as “self-indulgent, lazy, slovenly, or greedy” at all. It’s refreshingly authentic and deeply cathartic. In goblin mode, we can become our true wild selves, unkempt and offstage, triumphantly invisible to the public eye.
I might define goblin mode as “unbridled domestic liberation” or “a complete shedding of the mask of public life” or, my personal favorite, “staying home and getting weird.” Whatever you call it, I’m grateful for my newfound ability to go goblin mode. Now get out of my house so I can act unhinged.
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Move over LGBTQQIP2SAA, I'm a GM-er and my pronoun is mode-me-we.
I am sure the Alphabet Crowd will welcome you with open arms.
Oh, is 'you' still an acceptable word?
Should I use 'IT' instead? That seems to be the acceptable word/pronoun in certain conservative conclaves.
Don't know, don't care.
Hilarious! You make an inquiry and you lame up what I guess you perceive a clever retort. Teehee.
Well, one could always choose to READ what I asked when one seems confused about what was written.
That way, one would be able to surmise that the question was not answered, but you go on pretending it was if that makes you feel better.
Remember, it was one of your liberal brethren that brought "IT" into the conversation, but you go right on pretending it was me!
You: Oh, is 'you' still an acceptable word?
Hallux: Should I use 'IT' instead?
You: Don't know, don't care.
Lame.
Speaking of liberal brethren, can you tell me when the libs are going to get owned? I've asked around here and no one has the answer. Gimme a clue. I've got a hair appointment, I have Christmas shopping to do, I want to do some baking. I'm tired of waiting around to get owned.
Sorry the GOP has eaten itself and close to puking. You must be sad.
Yes, I know what I wrote. Congrats on actually quoting me accurately, it is a nice change.
Now, I am prepared for your spin on it, but that answer really doesn't address my question no matter HOW hard you spin it.
I realize a DIRECT answer is sometime befuddling to those unaccustomed to them.
As I have oft repeated here:
Who the fuck cares about owning a lib? WTF would we DO with one? I have pets already.
Sounds like a personal problem to me, you will have to deal with it on your own. Good luck with it.
Thanks, I was missing a little inanity in my day.
Okay, your first mistake was enrolling in the Tonya Harding School of Spin. Get your money back. (Whatever happened to her?)
Still lame.
I was only missing a little inanity in my day, thanks for providing me with a whole week's worth.
Are you confusin' the boy by trollin' his goblin' or by goblin' his trollin'? All you will get out of it is a trailer trash troglodyte.
Now you're just comin' on to me. Cut that shit out. I like men.
Please leave me out of your fantasies.
Thanks!
You don't qualify for that status either
Shades of AOC fantasies!
why do you comment on things you have no knowledge of?
Sorry. Someone bragging about the cadavers that he has "relations" with and how it was the best the cadaver ever had is not my cup o' tea. Ew.
I reiterate. I like men. In particular, smart men. I don't consider having Magic as your wingman a testament to your intelligence. You're an admitted troll, and Magic has a troll for an avatar who drags around a sack of "Lonesome Loser" LPs tossing them out like it means something to someone. I don't expect either one of you to be receiving an email from MENSA regarding your admittance.
Quit the ridiculous cotton-ball insult lobbing. You're a disruption to a perfectly good article.
I know this is not directed at me, but I have ask the others. Does this ass make my comment look big?
Back atcha.
You don't have the capabilities to hurt anyone's feelings. One would have to have a modicum of respect for someone in order to care. Let's see if I can explain it to you. Would you care if Nick Fuentes thought he could hurt your feelings? Of course not. He's ridiculously ignorant. He's an incel that's pissed AND stupid.
And that, you little pink troll, is why you don't have the aptitude to hurt anyone's feelings. Now go listen to your favorite song ... lonesome loser.
I've made my point.
Exactly, and with points of your own, sittin' way up high.
Way up firm and high.
I love autumn. It's chilly out and that's when the girls don their party hats to celebrate the season.
“It's chilly out and that's when the girls don their party hats…”
oh my…if one gets the point(s), undoubtedly the best time of the year…
I remember one particularly beautiful fall day circa 2015 when I went to the Jackson Pollock exhibit at the Dallas Museum of Art. I think your avatar was a painting he created during his "sober and most creative years" (according to the curator), 1948 through 1951.
Gee, get a sense of humor. Learn to recognize sarcasm. MUST I identify EVERY sarcastic statement FOR you??
There you go again, making shit up.
If you don't like what I post, put me on ignore. I think the 'proper' protocol for that is to make a big announcement how you have me on ignore and then still post to me. That is how others do it, so live it up!
LOL!
You might need to explain that.
Maybe you should join magic in the cone of silence.
Why would I put you on ignore? That's the most absurd thing ever. I've NEVER put anyone on ignore. I have never flagged anyone. I don't give a shit what you post. My, aren't you self-absorbed. Yikes dude. Get a grip.
Who would that leave to explain to you?
Ever? A tad melodramatic and just a little over exaggeration!
You seem upset. Did I do that?
Aw. You sound so desperate. No dear. Not the least bit upset. Although it sounds like you want that desperately. Have you tried the warmth of a live woman? I think Craig's List may be of help. Maybe you won't be so needy afterwards.
Real lame.
I call bullshit. You admitted you just liked to piss off the libs; you admitted you knew how to 'work the system.' You got a couple of days off for it if I remember correctly. But we both established at the time you admittedly were here to troll. You owned it at the time.
That and $3 and some change will get you a gallon of gas.
I am not here to make you happy nor piss you off. I can not control your emotions.
You'll have to refresh my memory on that. What system?
Quite possible. It is also possible it was for a multitude of things and you really probably weren't much of a contributor to my ticket count. If I did the 'crime' then I did the 'time'.
Okay, now is the time I ask for proof via a quote of me doing either.
Sorry. I don't keep track of your statements. Not interested enough. If you choose to deny it happened, it's typical. It's what you do.
Have a great day!
Have I told you lately that I
YOU?
I tell dev and Mrs. Giggles all the time but cannot recall if I have let YOU know that CB
Absolutely love Giggles, dev and you. Hell, Giggles was the first we (al, snooky and I [the originators of ButtHeads on NV]) asked to be an admin. Best decision we ever made.
There are many other seeds and sites where you can ask inane questions. Elon is shopping, put yourself up for adoption.
I can only surmise that you don't take walks when our biting six legged friends dain to die ...
how the heart sings
like spring's yearning
and summer's greening.
like fall's ripening
and winter's dreaming
of spring's recurring.
I see you taking a page from other posters' lame tactics--make a claim, be unable to substantiate it, then run when pressed for details and proof.
Good on you!
Thanks for meeting ALL my expectations.
Obviously, the bar is pretty damn low.
Really?
Then you wouldn't have a clue about what you "think" I admitted, now would you?
You probably should have thought that all the way through before posting.
Or just continue imagining things you wanted me to say but never did.
That appears to be your favorite thing to argue--stuff you manage to invent others saying.
That was adopted by the MAGA crowd and they are fully addicted to it.
BTW, bolding and underlining words does the opposite of making you appear smart.
I was using autumn as a metaphor for aging.
[deleted]
removed for context
[deleted]
I LOVE ALL DECENT PEOPLE WITH SENSE AND DECENCY AND COMMON SENSE AND BRAINS AND ALL THAT GOOD STUFF AND BEYOND LIKE CB AND OTHERS
AGAIN
CB, ALWAYS
Taunting [charger 383]
Not really, I was flirting with cobalt so ticket me for that instead. @!@
I know exactly what you said when you said it. You've pulled this countless times before with several members. It's no big whoop. You always demand written proof from conversations years previous. No one gives enough of a shit to "prove" you wrong because your MO is just that ... say "prove it" knowing you're not important enough. Really. Who cares if you deny admitting you're a troll? You often claim you never said shit because you know you're ultimately so inconsequential, mopping floors would be preferable trying to prove you wrong. You know how grifter trump says shit on video then denies he says it? It's what you both do. It's a big meh. You can deny admitting that you are a troll, but it's hardly a big deal. It's. What. You. Do. Do you think I care leaving off "self-admitted troll" when addressing you? Pick bigger fish to fry. Krill sinks to the bottom.
Meh.
See my 1.1.66.
Meh.
That made me literally laugh out loud!! You're often amusing because I sometimes think it's cute how hard you try to be cutting without appearing elementary (the desperation is sometimes sad, but still amusing), but I rarely laugh out loud. This just tickled the shit outta me.
This one's not a meh because it made me laugh.
Oh, so you do read occasionally.
Kudos.
I do demand proof when poster lie about stuff they 'claim' I have written.
To me, it is pretty amusing to watch them scramble, deflect, and come up as empty as I knew they would when asked to support the crazy-ass things they claim.
BTW, you can have one extra cookie for working Trump into yet another conversation that has zero to do with him.
Are you a 'patriotic' Proud Boy?
Why? You didn't provide any more proof in it than you have all along!
Who's gonna go back and look for your ancient comments. It's safe to say you don't matter enough. Deny away. Ultimately it means nothing. Why would people say this to you so often? Why do you have to tell people so damn often to go back and prove it? This is a prime example of self-absorption coupled with insecurity.
Let's go back to the crux of the matter:
Have a good rest of your day.
Presumably the folks making baseless, false claims. Or did even you realize you couldn't back it up because I never said it and just decided that you were going to deflect instead?
I suppose the reason is that so many posters continue to lie about what others write.
If they stop lying, I wouldn't have to demand anything at all.
I guess it is possible some folks get kicks out of lying----right up until they get called out on it.
Sigh. Okay. One more time, Tex, and then you gotta get over yourself. I don't care if you deny saying you posted shit to piss off the libs. You said it; I then said, "so you're a self-admitted troll." You agreed. I thought at the time it was nice you owned it. Not many would have. So I guess you didn't say you were troll, you just said yes when I said you were a self-admitted troll.
So now you, for the umpteenth time, said you didn't say that. Okay. I know I said it, Perrie might remember it (not important), and you are more than welcome to deny it. Good enough. Fine. I'm not going to go back more than five years or so to find that comment. Who would do that, Tex? It doesn't matter. Deny away. I'm not going to try to prove it to you. I've said that already a few times. Then you say "you didn't provide any more proof than you have all along." I said all along I was not, not ever, going to try to prove it to you. You know why? Because it doesn't matter.
Sheesh. It's like talking to Giuliani.
You may want to consider what makes so many people do that to you. I haven't a clue, but I've never seen one person have to say "prove it" so often. But I promise you, Tex, most people roll their eyes when you do that. Denying is part of the MO. Long ago, I would have made jackoff motions when reading stuff like that, but I've matured. [Aaaaannnnnnd ... go!]
Soon to be a proud MAGAGA
Oxymoron. Emphasis on the moron.
They do the best they can. It must be difficult to make so many comments without ever saying anything interesting.
First it's constant dropping off a "Lonesome Loser" track on members' comments, and now it's mirrors. Your shticks have passed their shelf lives. Your avatar is cute though.
Carry on.
Another (sigh) lie.
I had already figured that out long, long ago. I knew you couldn't; it is hard to prove inventions.
I have. I believe it is a lack of character and brains. Because it is mighty stupid to lie about what someone says and then be unable and incapable of backing the lie up.
You have made that abundantly clear.
Liars sometimes think that is a defense of their lies. It isn't.
I will always deny what are lies about me. I thought maybe, just maybe, some would stop if they got called out enough, but alas, I see that was an exercise in futility.
Carry on, but do expect to get called out if your posts claim any more lies about my comments.
Meh. No one cares.
Says the one making endless comments on it.
Strange behavior for someone who doesn't care.
In response to your endless comments. My endless "I give zero fucks", "I don't care", "no one cares" and "meh" don't seem enough for you. I'm merely letting you know your panties having been bunched was for naught because (surprise!) I don't care, and thus my endless responses are to your endless bunched panties.
There's that amusing desperation again. You're trying to be obtuse enough to try to make me annoyed, but I don't even get close to annoyed. No one cares. But what I do kinda enjoy, just because, is triggering you to make non-sensical knee-jerk reactions in front of everyone here. It's one of my personal faves. Yay!
Hillary would be soo proud of you!
Your comments telling everyone how you don't care and don't give a fuck is only enough to convince me that you do.
Please, seeing how important it is to you, take the last word.
And please do make it the last.
Sure. Whatever floats your toy boat. Have a good evening!
Desperation at its finest! You said that knowing how ridiculous it reads. Aw. You did that for me, didn't you. Aw. That's sweet.
I try not to use the acronym, it sounds as ugly as its followers ... but hey, when the shoe fits make 'em wear them.
We see right through you. It is a very, very short journey
most definitely
Oh I don't know. You constantly remind me of that cartoon character. You know the one ... always waving his gun around, thinking he was smarter than he ever really was, which made him such a joke. Who was that ... let me think. You know, the one who couldn't shoot straight. He jammed his gun constantly and each time he would look down the barrel to find the problem. And BLAM! He'd shoot himself in the face. Over and over again. And watching it would make me laugh so danged hard. It never got old. Oh yeah! It was Yosemite Sam. How could I forget? If anyone knows cartoon characters, it is me.
Aw. Are you attempting a silly slut shaming via track because you're not clever enough to make the statement without it? Word on the street is that someone overheard you asking your boyfriend if you were the only one he had been with, and he said yes ... all his others had been mostly nines and tens, some sixes. That was mean. Break up with him! He's not worthy of your ... your ... hmmm. Maybe you should stick with him.
Flirting with Cobalt is NOT against any rule! So I fixed ticket
So ... how you doin' ...
(blush)...coy smile....
Great, having a drink in your honor and you?
Oh you. You had me with all your correct spelling, proper grammar and your spot-on punctuation n' stuff.
You having a drink and me? Short notice, but let me change into something ... more comfortable!
Let it snow, Let it snow! a few snowflakes starting, so let it snow!
How exciting!! Egg nog and Amaretto weather. I hope you work from home. Hell, if I said a few snowflakes were falling, there'd be fear, dread and trepidation in my voice. Why? I live in Texas. 'Nuff said.
I work part time and don't think I will go in tomorrow Calling for ice too. Staying home and making a nice breakfast
I should hope not...this place would be empty!
A literal lol!!!
“I should hope not...this place would be empty!”
Except for the scrambling.
and for real flirting with Cobalt Blue, Charger's Charger is painted very close to Cobalt Blue
That's a fitting tribute to our Cobalt
What a sad commentary it is on present humanity for such an expression as "goblin mode" to have been chosen as "word of the year".
Isn't this how the self-righteous, religious zealot, forced birthers view women who just want to have sex for fun instead of procreation?
Is this an example of goblin mode?
It's interesting that the 'word of the year', winning with 93% of the vote, is something that I've never used or even ever heard used. I guess I'm just too indifferent and selfish to pay enough attention to what people say. Meh.
While I found this seed interesting (and amusing), I am more in agreement that "gaslighting" is (sadly) more deserving of the "Word of the Year" award.
I didn't know I was living in "goblin mode".
I'm slovenly and lazy but not greedy. That takes too much effort
It's hard to be slovenly and greedy. If you acquire stuff, it just adds to the clutter.
Their new mascot, the Goblin Shark, they are not a myth they are the real thing.
I take comfort knowing that creature is beautiful to its mother.