WR101.15
Mike Ostrov
September 7, 2014
The “Apathetic” Generation
Every generation experiences a moment where who they are and what they will do in the world is put into question. Sometimes the answer comes from a major event happening in the world, the Vietnam War for example, and sometimes it doesn’t come at all. Those generations that appear in the lull of history often struggle to come together, living more as a cohort then a generation. Because of this older generations may categorize them as slackers, narcissistic or apathetic. However the current generation is not as apathetic as they seem. Here is why.
The current generation is struggling to secure themselves. With a low economy and high expectations, competition to do well in school as well as secure a job is incredibly fierce. Not only are opportunities meager but are often given only to the smartest players. Hard work and dedication mean almost nothing today. Because of this, it is very hard for the current generation to think outside of their means of survival. Prices are increasing but that doesn’t mean pay is. In simple terms the current generation, even when they want to, don’t have the time and energy to pay attention to politics. This however, doesn’t mean they are apathetic, but rather stressed. With unemployment so high, losing a job can mean not being able to get another one for quite a long time.
Another issue is what should this cohort of people become a generation for? Thanks to the Internet there are too many options. Whether its to fight cancer, support Malala, or save the environment, the list goes on and on. There is no World War going on, no Great Depression, no out rightly unjust government, at least not in America. We have a million and one problems but they aren’t connected in a way that can make the current generation connected. With this increase of information and choices, it makes it harder for the current generation to become involved politically or otherwise. The current generation knows more about disasters going on around the world then any previous one. This makes it harder to join together for one cause. With so many choices and information, our generation is divided trying to help everyone, which causes us to appear apathetic by older generation because so few seem to support one cause alone. But if the older generation were to look at the big picture, they would see a great number of young working hard to fix our million and one problems.
You May Also Find These Documents Helpful
-
Summary- The millennial generation has a strong right consciousness and always has high expectations and demands. Higher expectations are born primarily from superiority, and as a result they do not work accustomed to their work, but work to adapt to their lives. The millennial generation wants to get praised from parents, teachers, and their coaches.…
- 266 Words
- 2 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
Millennials have come into a negative light in the eyes of many being blamed for problems in the world today. In Joel Stein’s article entitled The New Greatest Generation he believes they will instead of causing problems bring solutions to them and I agree with him. The millennials are a generation possessing much more resources and technology than any other generation before them by a long shot. The technological advances made from the 1980s to the early 2000 have opened a world of possibilities that millennials will and are taking advantage of to get further in life.…
- 1107 Words
- 5 Pages
Good Essays -
Thus, the true problem in society is that the older generation is immensely underappreciated. Although they may have outdated ideals, or different values than today’s younger generation, their sacrifices and great contributions to the world should not pass by, unnoticed. This young generation tends to be very egocentric, and therefore, a majority of respect towards authority has diminished. A prime example of this behavior are the numerous riots taking place across America. If young and old generations can never see eye to eye, disrespect will only become stronger with each new…
- 1603 Words
- 7 Pages
Better Essays -
Unlike some of us millennials who enjoy being antisocial, Johanna enjoys others company and conversing with people, and she breaks most of the stereotypes millennials are known for. Johanna Tavarez is driven because she pushes herself greatly through obstacles in her life and goes against the stereotypes. Johanna’s quote explains the millennial generation works hard when moved by a cause, unlike the media and older generations like to show. In “deep and personal with Hanna, “Johanna Tavarez states, “I love that we get what we fight for. I love the effort that is put in when we feel strongly about anything. We send clear, vibrant, creative messages to the world.” During our interview Johanna shows deep concern for how the millennials are viewed. She believes it is important to show not all millennials are lazy and negative people. There are plenty of hard working individuals, like herself in this generation. The quote stated above has a connection with the thesis of our article, because it explains why Johanna does not feel as a part of the millennial generation because she is hard working. Many like to perceive the millennials generation as the worst people to have walked the earth,…
- 1537 Words
- 7 Pages
Good Essays -
Just as every person differs from one another, undoubtedly each generation also differs from the next. Every generation has its unique attitudes, and lifestyle choices. Whereas earlier generations experienced various historical events, e.g. the baby boomers and the Vietnam War, that considerably impacted their viewpoints, so is the case for each generation. Whereas generation X is often associated with being the latch-key kids, having considerable access to education, and witnessing various historical events such as the Cold War, the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Millennials are often labelled as the me-generation, having equal access to education regardless of socio-economic barriers, experiencing historical events such as 9/11, the war in…
- 759 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
For the first time ever multiple generations are working hand in hand. Of these, two generations are traditionalist and baby boomers. Each generation has its own ideals, conflicting ideals. These differing ideals in turn create a generation gap, causing conflict in families, schools, and in the workplace.…
- 590 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
I was nourished with love from my umbilical cord in my mother’s warm womb, spoon fed when I was able to feed and hand held when I could walk; I was akin to my parents from my conception, as I was their child. But, soon I was riding a bicycle by myself while my father stood and watch, I was placed on the school bus by myself while my mother waved me goodbye, in less than a year, my parents together will send me off to school by myself. From a tender age, still being a mere child, my parents have engraved the nature of independence in me, a key quality of maturity. An essential proponent of the transition to adulthood is obtaining true independence.…
- 437 Words
- 2 Pages
Good Essays -
Throw out history every American has always tried to gain the say thing the American, but since the Baby Boomers and Millennial generation the way of attaining the American dream has changed a great deal. The American dream is an idea that is important to every American a great paying job, with loving family and friends. Attaining the Baby Boomer generation American dream was a little different then that the Millennia’s.…
- 692 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
Dr. Carol Elam, Dr. Terry Stratton, and Denise Gibson’s, “Welcoming a New Generation to College: The Millennial Students” introduces the generation that will change companies and the workforce lead by the previous generations. Many generations of different time periods have experienced events leading to common values and behaviors within that generation. There are five generations ranging between the years of 1901-2002: The G.I. (1901-1924), Silent (1925-1942), Boom (1943-1960), Generation X (1961-1981), and Millennial Generation (1982-2002). Each generation leaves behind a culture that is accepted, rejected or modified by the next generation. One generation’s culture is the next generation’s common sense.…
- 738 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
The things that I know that prevent first generation students from graduating are not focusing. This lets us know that this is one of the reasons of prevention. The second is not being able to focus and not properly getting the assistant they need in order to graduate on time. Which has been a huge struggle for quite some time. And also not being mentally ready for these challenges is also a big part why.…
- 401 Words
- 2 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
Twenty-four-year-old Anya Kamenetz started out as a journalist asking hard questions about her generation for which no one seemed to have good answers. Why were college students nationwide graduating with an average of more than $20,000 in student loans? Why were her friends thousands of dollars in credit-card debt? Why did so many jobs for people under 35 involve a plastic name badge, last only for the short-term, and not include benefits? With record deficits and threats to Social Security, what kind of future are young people facing?…
- 1706 Words
- 5 Pages
Powerful Essays -
All throughout the world there are many different genres of music being played and listened to at all time of day. Music has a way of distracting people, making them forget about the world and just focus on what makes them happy. Each person has their own taste in music, the music that makes them happy. Therefore, the songs of the world have defiantly shaped our culture. Would our culture be the same without it? Most people would say “no” because music is a huge part of our culture and without it the idea of fun would be totally different. Many people listen to the same music resulting in bringing a community together to raise a better culture. Music has always been a part of mankind because every beat contributes to the tune of the song, doesn’t matter if it came from a stick tapping on the dirt or the notes coming from an instrument. The Beatles, an iconic band in the music world, made it easier for other artists like Michael Jackson and Beyoncé with their experimenting in the mid 1960s. Throughout centuries music has changed drastically to the present day, evolving slowly from the beginning. Whether we look at the past, present or future generation one thing is definite; each generation has something valuable to offer to the music industry.…
- 1032 Words
- 5 Pages
Good Essays -
the previous generation used to be, Fishman’s evidences are more up-to-date. According to a recent Sun editorial, “activism has transformed from sensationalized 1960s tear-gas rallies to online petitions and Internet discussion boards” (Fishman 73). Not only Fishman, but also the reality tells that the time has changed. News can be spread worldwide in seconds through the Internet, and it can easily gather “Generation Q”, written by Thomas L. Friedman, and “The Generation of Generation Q”, written by Rob Fishman, share a common topic about behaviors of the current young generation. Friedman calls the young generation as Generation Q -- the Quiet Americans and criticizes that the generation is being too quiet. Fishman, however, expresses contrary opinion in his article. He explains why the generation has the quiet characteristic and denies Friedman’s idea of being quiet is wrong. Two articles analyze the issue in similar ways, and they both seem to be reasonable with their supporting evidences. Nonetheless, from the perspectives of objectivity, supporting details and conclusion, “Generation of Generation Q” is more persuasive and more effectively characterizes this generation of young people.…
- 965 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
As an American we have taken pride in our steady advancement and progression yet this generation have allowed technology to take the place of our desired expectations in life. In this socialization people tend to slack off into a world of illusion. This era of time from 2001 to the present time we should be named Generation Anti- Social Slacker. This generation is notorious for having no sense of direction we are easily distracted by unnecessary events and issues. Generation Anti- social Slackers lives in a fictitious world where we are allowed to create goals. As a member of the Anti- Social Slacker Generation our goals of achieving the American dream of fame and fortune are to idealistic and since we value superficiality and immediate gratification and tend to be narcissistic, poor communicators and underachievers our goals are often not met.…
- 957 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
The entitlement generation has been described by many as being a generation of narcissist who believe that everything should be handed to them on a silver platter. Their views are a sharp contrast to the baby boomer generation. No longer is hard work esteemed instead it has been replaced with instant gratification and the need to have everything right now at this very moment. Some even describe the entitlement generation, or Gen Y, as the age where parents no longer parent but instead choose a more laid back approach to parenting where time out is the norm. Parents choose to be their child’s friend more so than a disciplinarian figure. The entitlement generation has ushered in a new wave of thinking which has caused some to devalue their contributions to today’s society.…
- 903 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays