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What Does 'Trad' Mean, And Are You Trad? The Meaning Behind The Memetic Slang Term
Many people wish we lived in simpler and more traditional times, when the rules we followed and the roles we played were clearly defined. If this seems to describe you, then you may be a trad.
The increasingly popular slang term describes a personal and political orientation towards more old-school ways of doing things, and is implied to mean a liking of more regressive gender norms. It's represented by one particular Wojak.
Where Does 'Trad' Come From?
'Trad' is a shortening of the word 'traditional,' and arguably the traditional ways have been here forever (according to some).
But the 'Trad' idea and character found their fullest expression on 4chan's /pol/ board on July 19th, 2019, when Trad Girl was first posted. Through the fall of 2019, as Wojak Comics became increasingly popular, she became a standard member of the Wojak Comics ensemble.
How Is Trad Girl Used In Wojak Comics?
Blonde, Nordic, and dressed in a modest manner, she is usually pictured as the romantic partner of Yes Chad, who she precedes by a few months (he came about in August of 2019). Her face is an expressionless Wojak face, indicating that she belongs to the larger Wojak family. In a sense, Wojak is her father.
Usually, Trad Girl and Yes Chad seem to have a relationship defined by traditional values.
The meme often carries a kind of right-wing vibe, but not always. Originating on 4chan's /pol/ board, Trad Girl is often used as an idealized counterpart to what /pol/ posters see as less-traditional women who seek a career and less-traditional lifestyle.
In a less politically-charged kind of posting, many use Trad Wife and Yes Chad in the My Parents At Age 29 format to represent generational change, and how their parents' more-traditional lives were very different from their own.
How Does Trad Girl Relate To Other Wojaks?
Trad Girl seems married to Yes Chad, but many memers also focus on her relationship with Doomer Girl. Often, those wishing to subvert the more right-leaning vibe of tradposting will pair Trad Girl with Doomer Girl
Some Wojak Comics center the female voices and perspectives of Trad Girl and Doomer Girl, mocking Yes Chad and the other male Wojaks.
Why Do People Post Trad Girl?
Trad Girl is an archetype, and she exists with the other main characters of Wojak comics in an ensemble cast. Like how a sitcom will often have the same "types" of characters as other sitcoms (a womanizing male character, an intellectual character, a nagging female character, for example), Wojak comics use these same "types."
Ultimately, these "types" talk about changes in society: the Trad Girl represents old-fashioned white femininity, and the social place of women prior to the 1900s. She exists in tension with Yes Chad (who represents old-fashioned masculinity) and archetypes like Doomer Girl and Doomer, who represent more modern ways of living.
Trad Girl is a tool used by memes to talk about the past and compare it to the present.
For the full details on Trad Girl be sure to check out our entry on the meme here.
