I agree, Jamie--and I would never oppose the time-honored conflict between parents and children. That's necessary and healthy. As you say, kids need to set themselves apart. What concerns me is the dividing of the entire society into multiple generations which are then all set against each other. (Well, that and the annoying labels...)
Brilliant piece, Mallory. Chef's kiss to this: I think the dismissive tone might be a lot less likely to appear acceptable—even to the writers themselves—if they referred instead to “people over 65” or “people of retirement age” or “our grandparents’ generation.” After all, though they might feel superior knowing they’ll never be “Boomers,” they will most likely end up in much the same place, and sooner than they expect.
One can't scroll through TikTok without encountering content related to the "generation wars." A friend of mine wrote an article condemning the older generations for a lack of skills in newer technologies and an unwillingness to learn. However, in my day-to-day work experience it isn't nearly so simple. I know some young people that are set in their ways and some older ones that evince an unrestricted curiosity. Since we all know that is an apt description of individuals, it does make me wonder about the war. It seems to me we've often noticed a desire among a young group to differentiate themselves from their parents. They change the meaning of certain words, the slang of the 60s or 80s, more recently the meaning of emojis. I think these wars are really only two things: a form of reminiscing for older people, and the striving of the younger to set themselves apart. I'm on the back porch as I write this so please excuse me as I take a drink from the water hose...
I rarely use the terms because, frankly, I don't know which groups they apply to (apart from the Boomers). I can hear Bill Maher whining about the kids these days which routinely infuriates me (as does his uninformed bashing of higher education). I'm with you: enough with the labelling, generational or otherwise.
I agree, Jamie--and I would never oppose the time-honored conflict between parents and children. That's necessary and healthy. As you say, kids need to set themselves apart. What concerns me is the dividing of the entire society into multiple generations which are then all set against each other. (Well, that and the annoying labels...)
I think social media elevated that old tradition into a war and wars need opposing sides, hence the names.
Brilliant piece, Mallory. Chef's kiss to this: I think the dismissive tone might be a lot less likely to appear acceptable—even to the writers themselves—if they referred instead to “people over 65” or “people of retirement age” or “our grandparents’ generation.” After all, though they might feel superior knowing they’ll never be “Boomers,” they will most likely end up in much the same place, and sooner than they expect.
One can't scroll through TikTok without encountering content related to the "generation wars." A friend of mine wrote an article condemning the older generations for a lack of skills in newer technologies and an unwillingness to learn. However, in my day-to-day work experience it isn't nearly so simple. I know some young people that are set in their ways and some older ones that evince an unrestricted curiosity. Since we all know that is an apt description of individuals, it does make me wonder about the war. It seems to me we've often noticed a desire among a young group to differentiate themselves from their parents. They change the meaning of certain words, the slang of the 60s or 80s, more recently the meaning of emojis. I think these wars are really only two things: a form of reminiscing for older people, and the striving of the younger to set themselves apart. I'm on the back porch as I write this so please excuse me as I take a drink from the water hose...
I rarely use the terms because, frankly, I don't know which groups they apply to (apart from the Boomers). I can hear Bill Maher whining about the kids these days which routinely infuriates me (as does his uninformed bashing of higher education). I'm with you: enough with the labelling, generational or otherwise.