The Kids are alright. And just like you were
Young people today, we are told, feel they can make the world a better place, through inclusion and diversity and environmentally sound decisions, but this is little different to my own experience as a Gen X youngster, for whom changing the world seemed genuinely possible, writes Tyler Greer.
“We defy anyone who goes about with his eyes open to deny that there is, as never before, an attitude on the part of young folk, which is best described as grossly thoughtless, rude, and utterly selfish.”
Other than what might seems a slightly outdated turn of phrase, this quote might appear completely contemporary. So too, in its description of young people, this one: “They think they know everything, and are always quite sure about it.”
In fact, the first one comes from the esteemed Hull Daily Mail in 1925, and the second from a little earlier – 4th Century BC, to be semi-precise, from that toga-clad Aristotle bloke. In fact, when it comes to older generations belittling, fuming over, and generally misunderstanding “young folk”, there is no shortage of quotes. The above, or some variation of them, are frequently applied to Millennials, whose phone-attached, born-to-earn-high-salary, avocado-smashing lifestyle infuriates those a generation above them. But as they mature into something we recognise as easier to understand citizens (mortgages, careers, kids, etc), attention turns to the next target: Gen Z.
Brands, and their constituent advertising and media agencies, are forever fixating on youth, and for several important reasons. They offer new markets to sell stuff to; markets that, should we be able to secure their dollars, will offer a shot at the mythical ‘lifetime loyalty’. They are, generally, easier to persuade. Or at least we think they are. And they carry financial resources which, whilst often not vast, are unencumbered by the vampire squids of mortgage, kids, insurance, and so on.
