Hey guys, one last thought about the American Dream. One thing I mentioned in our essay is the the American Dream is the opportunity for Americans to pursue and possibly achieve that which matters most to them through hard work and perseverance. But our generation is less focused on the hard work, and more focused on the achievement. We want to get what we want (almost invariably fame or money) now. Kids don't recognize that if they want something they have to put the time and effort in to earn it.
My uncle was telling me about a new guy he hired a few months ago. This kid just got out of college and has talent, but completely lacks experience. Despite this, he feels strongly that he deserves a promotion, a raise, that corner office. This kid has been sending his bosses emails trying to supervise them and make sure their doing their jobs. He hasn't been there 3 months and he thinks he should be running things. If he doesn't change course he will not be there for another month. I would never say that this is inherent in all of us, and this guy may be on the extreme end, but it is a trend which is gaining strength every ear.
For many decades parents have wanted their children to achieve a better lifestyle than they did. Our generation may be the first in a long time not to do that because we don't want to work for it. This sense of entitlement is becoming more and more evident in our generation and warping our perception of the American Dream. Do you agree? If so, what do you think is causing this?
(Connor Tweardy)
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
4 comments:
I don't think that this is just our generation. I think that kids in general don't understand how important hard work is in order to succeed. How quickly the child learns of its importance depends on their semantic environment. My guess is that the kid that thinks he should run everything came from a semantic environment that didn't emphasize the importance of experience (although, from the look of things, he will learn that soon enough).
This really ties in with the essay featured on the November SATs! "Which is more important to success? Persistence or ability?"
I find it hard to come up with, at the top of my head, men and women who have succeeded soleley due to ability. In my essay I mentioned Winston from Orwell's 1984. Despite his average characteristics, he rebelled against the party to a certain extent mainly because he was set on doing so. George Washington was a fresh, new general with limited training, yet his persistence and drive led him to cross the Delaware on the Christmas of 1776. The Battle of Trenton was a well-earned victory against Hessian soldiers.
What about Bill Gates? The man strayed away from expanding his ability when he withdrew from Harvard. He still worked and belabored over his tasks until he because one of the richest men in the world.
What about school? We know tons of kids with potential that just don't care enough to apply themselves. We must work hard, rather than hardly working, and then comes the reward of self-satisfaction which is more valuable than one can imagine.
(Sam Maliha)
I agree, to a certain extent, with what Connor is saying, but it is certainly a generalization. There are people out there who have grown up having things handed to them on a silver platter, and they don't understand that, in the "real world", that's not how things actually work.
On the other hand, there plenty of kids in our generation who understand that it takes hard work and perseverence to be successful, whether that means having a good job, getting a good salary, working a job you enjoy, getting good at a hobby, etc. Look at us... we probably wouldn't be in AP English 3 this year if we hadn't demonstrated a certain level of ability and a good work ethic.
Looking from yet another angle, if success is considered to be a good job or going to a good college, there are at least a few ways to get into a good college without having a good work ethic (i.e., "friends in high places"). So, as our society (not just our generation) learns more ways of acheiving without working hard, the younger generations are taught to mimmick, and to keep looking for ways to not have to work hard (there are so many things that technology does for us that people either couldn't do, or took a long time to do, decades ago).
So, is it just our generation, or is it a tendency of humans in general to try to find ways around working hard? (The irony is that we usually work just as hard in the process of trying to get around hard work...)
Emily T.
Perhaps every generation interprets the American Dream differently, continually reinventing. At one point in time, the American Dream meant a chicken in every pot and bread on every table. By the time the Roaring Twenties came along, a new generation interpreted the dream to mean a car in every garage and a fridge in every kitchen. Perhaps our generation, called by some to be the "Me" Generation, has reinterpreted the American Dream once again: some people nowadays, as Connor pointed out, expect to be handed power without responsibility, reward without hard work, and constant coddling along the way.
Well, after all, this is the generation of "helicopter parents" and a growing sense of entitlement. But things can change.
Although our generation might not have valued hard work as much as we should have, the recent recession could be causing some people to rethink their interpretation of the American Dream. For a long time, Generation Y employees were considered the toughest to handle because they did not want to work hard and wanted constant help. But nowadays, because unemployment is a looming specter, even Generation Y people are working harder than ever before. It seems as though external circumstances play a large part in determining which interpretation of the American Dream you follow. The past few years, before the recession, were relatively affluent, which might have led to a corresponding interpretation of the American Dream.
Post a Comment