Products

About

©2018 StudyMode.com

Generation X

Topics: Time, Future, Present Pages: 4 (1505 words) Published: January 9, 2014
Esmat El-Bacha
Mr. Mascarenhas
ENG4UI
9 January 2014
Ideal in the Eyes of Society
Humans have constructed a society where perfection is idolized. Individuals attempt to reach this farfetched ideality yet they fail to acknowledge that it is not within arm’s reach. People, as civilized as they are, crave aspects of structure. The absence of set rules and guidelines leave the citizens of this world clueless. Expectations differ from culture to culture and that is what results in a diversity of norms, morals and desires. Cultural expectations influence the way the citizens of that society think, talk and act. In Douglas Coupland’s novel, Generation X, he uses a variety of diverse characters to represent different groups of people born in the time frame of the late 1950’s to the early 1960’s. The novel follows three main characters Andy, Dag and Claire who are experiencing hardship at this time in their lives. They all struggle to find themselves in a society that is constantly trying to mold them into a set perception of the “ideal” individual. To be yourself in a world is constantly trying to change you is the greatest accomplishment. Society places these unrealistic expectations on its citizens resulting in a loss of identity, fear towards the future and a string of obsessive actions.

Humans are unique because they acquire this unique ability to distinguish themselves from everybody else. Individuals use personal taste and creativity to form themselves. Since the beginning of time, society has managed to paint a picture of what the perfect individual is like in regards to beauty and success. As a result, people are motivated to strive for a lifestyle that fits society’s definition of beautiful or successful. However, as people are trying to be the ideal individual, they lose a sense of who they really are. In Coupland’s novel, Claire and Dag experience this for themselves. Dag is the ideal man who attends a post-secondary institute and receives a degree...
Continue Reading

Please join StudyMode to read the full document

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Millennials: Generation Y and Way Americas Economy Essay

    ...millennial generation and their futures. Millennials also know as generation Y, are people born from 1980s to the 2000s. They’re the first generation to be raised using digital technology, social media, and mass media. People born in this generation are now college students, and college graduates that are struggling in this tough economy. The millennial generation has limitless information at the tip of there fingers. Millennial are “always connected” with social networks like facebook and twitter they always know what friends are doing. People have said millennials are parent dependent and don’t know what reasonability is, which I think could go either way. Some millennials are very parent dependent but I see others very independent going to school and working without the guidance of parents. Its unfair to generalize millenials as slackers that don’t know how to work for something, it all depend on the person. Previous generations were able to go colleges get a degree and start working and living on their own immediately after graduation. “Not so long ago, the average American man in his 20s had achieved most of the milestones of adulthood: a high-school diploma, financial independent, marriage and children.” (Hymowitz 477). “In 1970, just 16 percent of Americans ages 25 to 29 had never been married: today that’s true of an astonishing 55 percent of the age group.” (Hymowitz 477)....

    Read More
    821 Words 4 Pages
  • Generation Y in the Work Place: Tips on Engaging and Motivating Them to Perform Essay

    ...Generation Y refers to individuals in the work place who were born between 1981 and 2000. These individuals currently occupy the mid- management level to the entry level position levels in the work place. In an earlier article we stated the strengths of these individuals as being technologically savvy, family centric, having strong views, optimistic, achievement oriented, egalitarian, multitasking and their weaknesses as impatient, and often described as “lazy”. The focus on this article will be on how to engage such individuals in the work workforce and motivate them to perform. Theory states that as one goes down the ladder in an organisation the degree of engagement also decreases as those lower in the ranks have less to lose because their span of control is not as large organisation wide. This has lead to a series of questions in management as to how to get Y’s to perform without the take home pay being the major focus of attention as they believe that Y’s have a reputation as people who are more interested in making money quick. Captured below are a few tips on how we can motivate and thereby engage the Ys in the workplace.. Bring them on board: the on boarding process in the organisation is as important as recruiting this high potential Gen Y. The manager is not to take for granted that Ys know what exactly is expected from them. This is a stage where they should be enlightened about the goals of the company, where the company currently stands...

    Read More
    1133 Words 3 Pages
  • To What Extent Is It Possible to Say That Members of Generation Y in Different Countries Are Alike? Essay

    ... Some people classified other people into different groups. There are baby boomers, Generation X and Generation Y. The term "Generation Y" refers to a group of people who born within 1976 to 2000. Moreover, generation Y grow up with electronic devices. Generally, They always use computers to get access to the internet or play games. They will still use their smart phones whenever they are queuing up for the bus. It also makes them to become self-centered, less interpersonal skills to make friends but with a high technology using skills .It seems that Generation Y are the same all over the world. However, Generation Y in different countries may have different habit due to they grow up in different environment. Therefore, comparison will be seen in this report to find the similarity of Generation Y in different countries. I will compare them in work, leisure activities , politics. And after this project, I think to a great extent the members of Generation Y in different countries are alike. Work In the work area , Generation Y in Hong Kong are more likely to be an entrepreneur than South Africa . A recently survey indicated that South Africa has the fifth-lowest entrepreneurial intent amongst all efficiency-driven economies in the world. (" South Africa; South...

    Read More
    1306 Words 4 Pages
  • Essay about Demographic Change Is Expected to Have a Significant Effect on a) the Age Composition of the Workforce and B) the...

    ...Name '' Souvik Brahma Module '' ODHRM 1 Organisational Dynamics and Human Resource Management 1 TASMAC ID '' 8100025 Wales USN: 0811866897310 Topic “Demographic change is expected to have a significant effect on a) the age composition of the workforce and b) the work-attitudes of different generations. “ Give an account of some of the changes that are expected in each of these areas and discuss the implications such change might have for approaches to: i) diversity; and ii) employee and manager’s behaviour. Introduction Demographic refers to characteristics of a portion of population. Demographic in workforce includes age, race, income, education. By 2020, close to half the adult population of the UK will be over 50 years old.[i] In the UK, by 2012 only a third of the workforce will be male and under 45.[ii] 33% of workers aged 50 - 65 in the UK have a disability.[iii] The nature of the illnesses giving rise to early retirement and disability claims is changing: stress-related and mental health problems are now increasingly common.[iv] As follows we will look into the changes in age section and effect it has on implication in organisation. We can generally identify four generational groups that are currently active in workforce for an organisation:   • Traditional workers who value loyalty and discipline, and respect authority and hierarchy. They are directive, command-and-control leadership style and very...

    Read More
    1404 Words 5 Pages
  • Essay on generation x

    ...Douglas Coupland’s: Generation X: Tales for an Accelerated Culture Published in 1991 Douglas Coupland’s first novel Douglas Coupland (born December 30, 1961) is a Canadian novelist an immediate commercial success “Generation X” – the Term: Although the term “generation X” had existed before, it was Coupland who first defined it in his novel. In the book it denotes a generation born in America in the late 1950s and the 1960s. They are overeducated for their monotone jobs and couldn’t really find a place in the modern world. “X”-ers are desperate to find some sort of meaning in life. Summary: “Generation X” describes a few days in the life of Andy (who is the narrator), Dag and Claire who are living in Florida. Andy, Dag and Claire have the desire to be free and to escape out of the restrictive society, all three moved to Palm Springs, to the desert. Here they live in bungalows and work at “McJobs”. __________________________________________________________________________________ Coupland also incorporates into “Generation X” numerous definitions, called neologisms (neologism is a new word or expression, or a new meaning for an existing word), printed along the margin of each page. __________________________________________________________________________________ Andrew,...

    Read More
    450 Words 2 Pages
  • Generation X Essay

    ... Generation X- The Truths and Misconceptions Generation X- The Truths and Misconceptions While generation X encompasses about 50 million Americans born between 1965 and 1980 ( 1965-1976 depending on the information you look at) The term generation X was a term coined long before the generation came into existence. But what does the term mean? Numerous historical events happened during this time; ranging from Neil Armstrong landing on the moon, to U.S troops being sent to Vietnam, but that is not what defines this generation. Some refer to this generation as a group of selfish, lazy, slackers. There are many misconceptions of the motivation and aspirations of the generation that was stereotyped before they were born. While some hold truth, others are as mythical as an urban legend. Studies have shown that this generation in question, is smaller than generations surrounding it. As of 2011, the population of the United Sates is made up of 24.7% Baby Boomers, or those born 1946-1964, 24.9% Millenias- those born between 1977 and 1992. Generation X only covers 16% of the U.S population, but they are the ones who have been given the bad reputation. Although many born in this generation would like to be slackers, they are...

    Read More
    833 Words 3 Pages
  • Blending of Generations in the Workplace Essay

    ...Blending of Generations in the Workplace Human Resources is a unit of a company that must have consistent rules and programs for all employees but this can be a challenge. The challenge is in-large part due to the fact that employees have different needs. For a company to be successful in the arena of Human Resources it must recognize these differences and adjust without discrimination. This paper will examine the concept that different generations will have different needs and concerns in the workplace and that the ability of a company to address/ blend these needs is critical. Competencies and capabilities no longer correlate to age or experience, so respect for others' ideas and input is more critical than ever. Understanding and appreciating one another's perspective has always been the key to good teamwork. But in today's multi-generational workplace, an organization's success could depend on it. To understand fully what generations are currently in play in the workforce let us start by defining the generations. Baby Boomers are defined as the group of people born from approximately 1946 – 1963. They welcome team-based work, especially as an anti-authoritarian declaration to "The Silents" ahead of them, but they can become very political when their turf is threatened. They long to stabilize their careers. Generation X is a defined as the group of people born...

    Read More
    1107 Words 4 Pages
  • Essay on Research Plan for Generation X

    ...exploration and debate—a question you genuinely want to know the answer to. Try to pick a research question that is neither too broad (covering too much) or too narrow (covering too little). It should be broad enough to be discussed in a short research paper. Part 1: Complete the Research Plan |What is your general topic or area of interest? |Generation X | | | | | | | |What is it about your general topic that interests you? |My father who passed away recently was born into Generation X and | | |contributed economically to my entire family from his generation and to | | |mine so I am curious as to how his generation made an impact on the | | |world. | |What questions do you have about the topic that you would like to|How did they contribute economically?...

    Read More
    989 Words 4 Pages

Popular Essays

Become a StudyMode Member

Sign Up - It's Free