to dest roy Mrs. Waldorf‘s reputation. They talk each other as everyone will have
in a party to start a conversation among friends to compete who gets better who does not.
The second gossip is about Cyrus Rose‘s ugliness. The following gossips among Mrs. Bass, Mrs. Coates, and Mrs. Archibald are not the continuity of the
previous one. This time, they gossip about Eleanor Waldorf‘s new boyfriend, Cyrus Rose. The same as the previous one, this gossip is not destructive for the
gossipee, Cyrus Rose. Both contents do not show any falsehood about the gossipees. This is an avoidance and competition gossip. Since the party is
intentionally held by Waldorf to introduce Rose, it is psychologically acceptable to talk about the upcoming guest. Mrs. Bass, Mrs. Coates, and Mrs. Archibald
gossip each other about the ugliness of Mrs. Waldorf‘s new boyfriend. ―I smell Old Spice,‖ Mrs. Coates whispered to Mrs. Archibald. ―Do you
think he‘s actually wearing Old Spice?‖ That would be the male equivalent of wearing Impulse body spray, which
everyone knows is the female equivalent of nasty.
―I‘m not sure,‖ Mrs. Archibald whispered back. ―But I think he might be.‖ She snatched a cod-and-
caper spring roll off Esther‘s platter, popped it into her mouth, and chewed it vigorously, refusing to say anything more.
She couldn‘t bear for Eleanor Waldorf to overhear them. Gossip and idle chat were amusing, but not at the expense of an old friend‘s feelings. p.
12,
Based on Foster‘s classification 2004: 85, this gossip is more suitable to function as friendship
if it is looked from the gossipers‘ point of view. Mrs. Bass, Mrs. Coates, Mrs. Archibald, and Mrs. Waldorf are friends. Psychologically, as
friends, the three of them do not have intention to harm Mrs. Waldorf; on the contrary, this gossip brings them together through the sharing norms, establishing
boundaries to distinguish insiders from outsiders. Cyrus Rose, a new comer, can
be considered an outsider among them. The party is a time for Eleanor Waldorf to bring Rose to the insiders, the Upper East Siders.
2. Gossips among Chuck Bass, Kati Farkas and Isabel Coates
The unexpected coming of Serena van der Woodsen at Eleanor Waldorf‘s
party contrives another gossip. Nobody knows why she is back. Chuck, Kati, and Isabel gossip to guess the fact instead. What the exact reason why Serena is back
is still a question. Without Serena knows, they gossip each other about what Serena has done at her former boarding school:
―A thousand bucks says she got kicked out,‖ Chuck told them. ―And doesn‘t she look fucked? I think she‘s been thoroughly fucked. Maybe she
had some sort of prostitution ring going up there. The Merry Madam of Hanover Academy,‖ he added, laughing at his own stupid joke.
―I think she looks kind of spaced out, too,‖ Kati said. ―Maybe she‘s on heroin.‖
―Or some prescription drug,‖ Isabel said. ―You know like, Valium or Prozac. Maybe she‗s gone totally nuts.‖
―She could‘ve been making her own E,‖ Kati agreed. ―She was always good at science.‖
―I heard she joined some kind of cult,‖ Chuck offered. ―Like, she‘s been brainwashed and now all she thinks about is sex and she like, has to do it
all the time.‖ p. 21, What Chuck, Kati, and Isabel have said is apparently rude. The way they
speculate the reason why Serena is back is a falsehood. It both denigrates and harms Serena. This gossip is manipulated to resist Serena. Gluckman, 1963: 308
According to Spacks 1985: 4, the writer in this research counts this is as a destructive gossip. It endangers Serena‘s reputation. While from the gossipee‘s
point of view, their gossip is destructive, from the gossipers‘ point of view, theirs has function as friendship Foster, 2004: 82. It brings them together through the
sharing norms, establishing boundaries to distinguish insiders from outsiders.
Although Serena also lives in Upper East Side, she is a new comer for them who keep being friends for years when Serena has left. Considering Serena as the
outsider is basically because Serena has gone several years ago and she is out of Chuck‘s, Kati‘s, and Isabel‘s circumstances.
3. Gossips among Rain Hoffstetter, Kati Farkas, and Isabel Coates
Rain Hoffstetter, Kati Farkas and Isabel Coates are in the same school as Blair Waldorf and Serena van der Woodsen go, Constance. They, except Serena,
gather in their firs t day school to have a welcoming ceremonial. Serena‘s return
has become the most updated news in school. It is human‘s nature that people will
not stop talking about newest news; it makes them look well-associated with others. The girls also do not have anything to talk about, except the gossip about
Serena. Almost the same as in gossips among Chuck, Kati, and Isabel, Blair is also presence there within Rain, Kati, and Isabel‘s gossips. Nevertheless, again,
Blair prefers not to say a word. She lets her friends gossiping about her rival, Serena:
―I heard she‘s selling these pills with the letter S stamped on them. She‘s completely addicted to them,‖ Kati told Rain.
―Wait till you see her,‖ Isabel said. ―She‘s a total mess.‖ ―Yeah,‖ Rain whispered back. ―I heard she‘d started some kind of voodoo
cult up in New Hampshire.‖ Kati giggled. ―I wonder if she‘ll ask us to join.‖ p. 40,
From the previous gossip that has been mentioned, the two gossips
presented above are alike. The point is that they still guess the reason why Serena is back and what Serena has done before. Without considering the truth, they keep
spreading the gossip which is quite attractive to discuss about, for teenagers apparently. From the gossipee‘s point of view, it is clear that their gossip
