Anna Quindlen Doing Nothing Is Something Analysis

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The Newsweek article, “Doing Nothing Is Something”, by Anna Quindlen, gives a hands-on look on why the youth today are overrun with scheduled events while their creativity is suffocated. As a mother, Quindlen believes that boredom is “the quiet moving wheels inside that fuel creativity” (Quindlen, Anna “Doing Nothing Is Something”) and without it we are restraining the youth from exploring their passions and expanding their horizons. The average child is overloaded with participating in events such as sports teams, theater classes, musical classes, and school, leaving no room for boredom to roam free. Quindlen states “I don’t believe you can write poetry, or compose music, or become an actor without downtime”, (Quindlen, Anna “Doing Nothing Is Something”) this downtime forces children to entertain themselves with whatever they can, utilizing their creativity. Quindlen reminisces about her mother sending her to park events during her summers as a child filled with events like three-legged races, …show more content…

Quindlen believes adults led this to happen with the fear of their child being bored and getting into trouble. A culture of adults believe that if they let their child get bored they will get into trouble, therefore the child is overworked with responsibilities with minimal free time. Quindlen enforces the type of summer that forces children to play outside, to be bored, and to entertain themselves with their own unique ways. Television, computers, and video games do not bring justice to the busy youth, they simply add to the schedule of overwhelming events. Quindlen begins the article by stating how boring summer is, but she wasn’t referring to it in a negative manner. Being bored is a gift that often goes unappreciated and unrecognized but can pay off in the long run with a life full of creativity and extraordinary

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