Skip to main content

Culture Conflict

Times are changing for families in China - at least that is what The Washington Post suggests in its recently-published series of articles on the subject (link to the articles). From sexuality to literacy, a transformation emerges that divides generations along simple conventional lines. The older generation has lived through the Cultural Revolution of the mid-1960's. The younger generation has grown up in a China where "to get rich is glorious" and to brim with Western sensibilities is the ultimate benefit of a social capitalist society. To say the two are extremes is not particularly groundbreaking, but I find the dichotomy fascinating when compared to the US.

Where the Chinese practice a certain form of Confucianism in terms of collective family mores, the Americans are a bit more individualistic and self-focused. This is particularly insightful when considered against the backdrop of a United States that is growing its Baby Boomer ranks at a healthy clip, those children of the Long, Hot Summer who want many things - including the personal and financial freedoms to do as they wish. Interesting to note that these are exactly the sort of freedoms that are frowned upon with youth, but that is another topic altogether (read this editorial comment in the Financial Times for a thought-provoker on the Baby Boomer-Gen X/Y perspective divide).

Fundamentally, though, the generational divide is the same across countries, with the distinction being parental values orientation. The Baby Boomers are well-understood in their freedoms and entitlement, but those that lived through the Chinese Cultural Revolution have a completely different sensibility. To be different for this generation is to be outright excluded from society. To achieve for the benefit of society is all-encompassing and worthy of all energies. To fall into line is not just expedient but also potentially life-saving. And to promote these messages to the upcoming generations is important and vital.

In either case, the point is that a culture conflict looms beneath the surface. But even more telling is that although the conflict plays out with a different generational context, the younger generations have begun to exhibit similar sensibilities of technology savvy and self-expression. What might be more troubling is that the Baby Boomer/Cultural Revolution generations have less of an understanding of the uniting factors that bring the global Gen X/Y generations together. The culture conflict looming transcends borders in ways we do not yet fully understand.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Remembrance Day, another year on

Although some friends are no longer with us, they linger in unexpected ways.

Party Like It's 1999

A coworker sent me a meeting invitation to the end of the world.  Fitting.  I'm not sure if I should accept or not (suppose it depends on your views of the end of the Mayan calendar ), but somehow it reminded me of the Prince song on a related subject . Fitting as well that this coworker was not born when Prince extolled the virtues of partying like it's 1999 (side note: I did party like it's 1999 while studying abroad in Milan at that time, which was a heady experience with the coming of the Euro and all.  How times have changed, how the mighty have fallen...).  Time change, sometimes faster than we think, and our cultural references become dated.  Perhaps just like the Mayan calendar falling out of fashion over the last few centuries, until its end becomes a modern cultural phenomenon - or not, depending on your view of things. In either case, it's worth partying like it's 1999 regardless because hey, it will be Friday when this all goes down, and Fridays

A Year at IMD: October

October finishes the ICP projects and offers time to further explore career options. The hope is that by the end of October, there are some concrete career options opening up, with all the rest of the major assignments wrapping up before heading down the home stretch of November: 01 Oct - Cycling for Sarajevo: The Traveling Circus 02 Oct - Cycling for Sarajevo: Coming Down the Mountain 03 Oct - Reaching the Finish Line 04 Oct - Another Day in the Dungeon 05 Oct - Logistics and Supply Strategies 06 Oct - Back and Forth of Career Search 07 Oct - Hitting the Trifecta! 08 Oct - With a Little Help From My Friends (in Bergamo) 09 Oct - Happy Birthday Becks! 10 Oct - Light at the End of the Tunnel 11 Oct - Atop Mount Quandt 12 Oct - One Night at the White Horse 13 Oct - Congratulations Barbara! 14 Oct - Outdoor Exercise 15 Oct - Out to Lunch 16 Oct - Welcome to the Luminarium 17 Oct - Happy Birthday Tamer! 18 Oct - Happy Birthday Dan! 19 Oct - Happy Birthday Ravi and Gabriel! 20 Oct - Happy B