Smells like teen spirit
Published: 30 May. 2008, 21:42
According to Aries, the birth of the concept of childhood led to the birth of the modern family. Centered around the aristocracy and bourgeoisie, the modern family emerged in the 18th century.
His conclusion is that “the winner in the modern age is not the individual, but the family.” He also made people aware of the life cycle in which a baby becomes a child, then a youth, then an adult and finally a senior. A historical construct in those times, this concept is now considered psychological and pedagogical fact.
Recently in our society, teens are the subject of our attention. They have poured into the streets for candlelight vigils. They speak out against the government, afraid that their stars will get sick from mad cow disease.
We are amazed at their sudden transformation into political agents. These are the new teens, who have surpassed the existing life demarcations imposed by adults.
In reality, teens are already a significant cultural and economic force in our society. In the mass culture market that rapidly arose in 1990s Korea, they quickly drove the adults to the periphery. In the case of pop music, teens are not only major consumers but also producers. Adults are avid fans of teen stars such as Dongbangshingi and Wonder Girls.
Now, teens have emerged in the political arena. Of course, their politics are different from those of adults.
Theirs is a politics concerned with the food in school cafeterias. It is sensitive to personal gain, and cannot stand personal disadvantages. It is Web 2.0 politics, made possible by the internet. It is emotional politics more concerned more with image than issues, and cultural politics that enjoys political demonstrations as a day out. It is politics that surpasses ideology and cannot be measured as either progressive or conservative.
There is debate over whether these teen politics should inspire hope or not. But what is important is that teens have already evolved into political beings. Just as Aries saw our life cycle as a historical construct, each generation’s role is also changing quickly with each era.
The writer is a deputy culture and sports editor of the JoongAng Ilbo.
By Yang Sung-hee [[email protected]]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
To write comments, please log in to one of the accounts.
Standards Board Policy (0/250자)