Have you ever been in a situation where you’re going to confront someone about a mistake you’re sure they’ve made, but instead of them acknowledging their mistake and genuinely apologizing, the situation goes haywire and they lash out at you with defenses? meaningless and emotionally draining sentences to make? Do you feel guilty and blame yourself for all the pain and harm you have suffered because of them?
You must have noticed how every time you confront them, they never take responsibility for their actions, but rather manipulatively make you apologize for misunderstanding them. This distortion of the truth is called gaslighting.
Relatable? Learn more about Merriam-Webster’s word of the year gaslighting here.
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What is gaslighting?
According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, gaslighting is the “psychological manipulation of a person, usually over an extended period of time, that causes the victim to question the validity of his or her own thoughts, perception of reality, or memories and, usually , leads to confusion, loss of confidence and self-esteem, uncertainty of one’s own emotional or mental stability, and dependence on the perpetrator.”
Gaslighting is a tactic to emotionally abuse someone, making them doubt their thoughts and perception of reality. The gaslighter may convince your target that the memories he has are invalid because, according to him, they never really happened and you are the one who is exaggerating, claiming that everything you are being told is the “real truth.”
It doesn’t make sense, right? But they try hard to convince you that they do, just because they say so.
They start by challenging your reality through small details, making you admit that you were wrong, you admit it because it didn’t bother you that much and you move on.
The abuser uses this past “victory” to discredit you in the future for his or her selfish benefit, leaving you questioning your own memory, thereby imposing on your mind the idea that he has always been right, still is, and probably will be. be, until you realize that you are being manipulated.
The reason this word was chosen as the word for 2022 is because there was a 1,740% increase in searches for the word gaslighting.
Where does the word Gaslighting come from?
- The term has its origins in the 1938 play “Gaslight,” where a woman’s husband tries to convince her that she is mentally unstable. He makes minor changes to his environment, for example dimming the gas lights. He manages to convince her that he is imagining these things to fulfill her goal of placing her in an asylum so that he can obtain her inheritance from her.
- The word gaslighting was first used in the mid-20th century and referred to a deception similar to the one in the film.
- In recent years, the meaning of the word has changed to “the act or practice of seriously deceiving someone, especially for personal advantage.”
In what contexts is it used?
Anyone can gaslight you.
- a romantic couple
- a toxic friend
- a controlling father
- a boss
- a doctor
- It can also be illuminated by an entire entity, and not just by an individual.
As Merriam-Webster says: “In this age of misinformation—of “fake news,” conspiracy theories, Twitter trolls, and deepfakes—gaslighting has become a word for our times.”
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Categories: Optical Illusion
Source: ptivs2.edu.vn