China slang term ‘rat people’ for those who shun success, attracts 2 billion views
New low-energy lifestyle choice sees young people slouch in bed, live on takeaway food, avoid socialising, embrace being a recluse
Young people in China who shy away from success and embrace low-energy lifestyles are calling themselves “rat people”, a slang term that has gained widespread attention online.
Unlike the hyper-disciplined crowd that usually gets up at 5am, goes to the gym, and powers through packed schedules, so-called rat people live in the slow lane.
They spend their days in bed, live on takeaway food, avoid socialising, and have no clear goals in life.
The term took off after a video appeared online in late February, in which a young woman from Zhejiang province in eastern China, known as @jiawensishi, shared her day of extreme lethargy.
She stayed in bed for three hours after waking, washing up, then sleeping for another five hours.
The woman did not have her first meal until her parents woke her up in the evening. At midnight, she finally started unpacking a week’s worth of parcels and did not shower until 2am.