In today’s culture, the number of issues that the average person has to face on a daily basis, are astronomical. Millennials, in particular, have been greatly affected by this, so much so that a new phase in the human lifespan has been created just for them! Dubbed “emerging adulthood” by psychologist Jeffrey Arnett, plopped smack dab in the middle of adolescence, and adulthood, this phase captures any, and all doubts that 20-29 year olds are plagued with. From their economic standing, to racial, ethnic, and identity issues, and to disabilities ranging from both mental, and physical, this phase captures every single uncertainty, fear, and qualm that one person can possibly have in a neat little package. Some may argue that feminism, and everything …show more content…
The story follows Railsbacks professional life as he performs a variety of surgeries, his personal life of getting intimate with a married woman, and his hobby of arm wrestling. It is after one of these arm wrestling matches when the story reaches a pivotal scene, one which many readers will criticize, and shame. After his arm wrestling match, Railsback goes home with a prostitute, whom readers soon find out is sharing her motel room with her young, and very ill son. Many readers will overlook everything about this scene, and only absorb the fact that this mother has the audacity to get paid to have sex with men, while her child sleeps in the next room. Many readers will go so far as calling the mother insulting names and slurs, before stopping to actually think about this woman’s situation. Although the prostitute’s scene is only a small portion in the entire story, let’s take a moment to explore her situation. She is a single mother, probably lacking an education and any type of skills which would provide her with the means to care for her ill son. She is doing everything she can to care for her child, so why than, do most people read this scene and think to themselves what a horrible, disgusting and awful mother this woman must be, why not read this scene and think instead how hard this must be for her, how much she is sacrificing just so she can pay for her sons medication, how loving and caring she is to her child, which is shown multiple times in the short scene. Many people think of sex-workers as less than human, as “sluts” and “whores” and nothing more; this scene breaks the mold, and shows the humanity in an unethical
In the article, “Facing Challenges Is Part of Growing Up,” Taylor Tepper, a reporter at Money, discusses the reasons for why delaying adulthood is not smart. In response, Jessica Grose, a journalist and novelist, explains her reasons for why it is smart to delay adulthood in her article, “For Many Millennials, Children Are Out of Reach”. Both Grose and Tepper wrote their articles for the opinions page in the New York Times. The use of ethos, pathos, and logos in Tepper’s article appeals more to the audience than Grose’s article, which focuses mainly on ethos and logos, because he is more likely to be trusted due to his use of personal experiences relevant to the topic of adulthood.
...In closing, adulthood, the longest period in the life cycle spanning the years from adolescence to old age and involves decisions about many aspects of earlier goals, family value and identify the individual 's life (Austrian, 2008). Currently, the largest cohort in the United States, the best educated and most affluent, many find themselves in the sandwich generation, caring for children and parents, while reaching a peak in their careers (Austrian, 2008). Between the years of 1960 to 1985 the baby boomer population increased by 24 percent, with an expectation to increase by 47 percent between 1990 and 2050 (Austrian, 2008). Every transition involves the termination of an existing life structure and the initiation of new ones with sociocultural life evolving around class, religion, ethnicity, family, politics and work (Austrian, 2008; Levinson, et al. 1978:420).
J. J. Arnett argues his theory about a developmental stage individuals go through of 18-25 year olds as a new concept, (Arnett, 2000, pp. 469). He describes emerging adulthood as being a sustained period of time where this age group, as mentioned previously, explores their roles preceding being an adult. These movements can include events similarly by taking longer than previous years to get married and have children, moving back in with their parents at a point during this age span, exploring self-identities, not feeling like an adult and feelings of self-failure. James E. Cote, who is a previous colleague of Arnett argues the opposite about this concept being an unexperienced developmental stage Arnett calls, “Emerging Adulthood”. Cote states
Jeffrey Arnott’s theory of “emerging adulthood” provides a context in which I can evaluate my life in terms of my remerging development into adulthood. I am in my early twenties. Physically, I am a fully developed female that understands my own biological functions with great awareness. Cognitively, I am in the process of developing critical thinking skills by attending college, which has allowed me to develop my own ways of processing thoughts and ideas outside of my family and high school. This cognitive development is a very difficult process, which continually engages me to open my mind and learn new ways of thinking about life, society, and mental development. Socially, I am also developing a broader sense of cultural, racial, and think
Emerging Adulthood represents the period of development from late teens through their twenties, mainly focusing on the ages 18-25. This is the period which people start exploring and realizing the capabilities of their lives, which then helps them characterize as adults and no longer teenagers. This topic of psychology is compelling to me because it’s a stage that every adult has lived through, it’s interesting that we have all experienced it differently based on our life circumstances and demographics. It’s interesting to see the changes throughout the years and eventually it will be easier for young people to explore these years as more young adults are going to school nowadays. It teaches me to further understand why emerging adults go through
Extensive demographic and cultural shifts have taken place over the past few decades that have made late adolescence and early twenties into a new transitional developmental period known as emerging adulthood for young individuals across industrialized societies. Arnett (2000) argues that emerging adulthood is a “distinct period of the life course” that is “characterized by change and exploration of possible life directions” (469). Additionally, a critical area of identity exploration during emerging adulthood is love and romantic relationships. Arnett contends that “demographic changes in the timing of marriage and parenthood in recent decades has led to prolonged periods of adolescence and delayed adulthood transitions” (470). By postponing
When Dr. Arnett suggested a new period of life-span has occurred he dubbed it “Emerging Adulthood”. Fascinating enough was the fact that although social backgrounds changed, and economic prospects
Nearly 3.7 million American babies born in 1982 were the first members of the new Generation Y, or more affectionately known as millenials (Thompson, par. 1). Many things play into whether a generation is considered to be faring ‘better’ than another one; job opportunities, the state of the environment, whether the U.S. is at peace or at war, income vs. living expenses, the general happiness of the people, and the list goes on. Millenials are part of a special generation because for decades, “The American Dream” has included the belief that the future generation will fare better than the present one; however, millenials are not projected to fare better than the present generation X for many reasons.
Winograd, Morley, and Michael D. Hais. Millennial Momentum: How a New Generation Is Remaking America. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers UP, 2011. Print.
“Coming of age during the Great Recession has undoubtedly strengthened millennials’ appetite for a benefit safety net” (Howe, 2014, P. 8). The millennial generation is referred to as the working generation of today; the age group of sixteen to thirty-one. All age groups have similarities and differences in how they perceive working benefits, but recent studies have shown that the younger generations think and care more about benefits that will better their future and protect them from certain risks. This younger generation referred to as millennials, began showing plans for the future much earlier in life than the older generations, early as young children. From K-12 to the workplace, millennials yearn for the “American Dream” and have more
Emerging adults are always in the search of their own identity while experimenting with their life, love life and career path. Constant changes in emerging adult’s life are common. From changing residential place to love life, work and education, instability often presents during emerging adulthood (Santrock, 2013). In addition, emerging adults tend to place focus on themselves where they have no commitment and responsibilities toward others. This provides them a great chance to exercise their own will and to execute their plans for the future. During emerging adulthood, many feel like as if they do not belong to either adolescents or adult. The transition ends only when they have distinct marks of an adult. According to Arnett (as cited in Santrock, 2014), “emerging adulthood is the age of possibilities” (p. 296). The age of possibilities is when an individual has the opportunity to turn things around in life, especially when they are from a poor family
Blaising, Craig A., Kenneth L. Gentry, and Robert B. Strimple. Three Views On the Millennial and Beyond. Counterpoints. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1999.
Due to the demand to completely re-center his or her life and choose a new life path, emerging adulthood is described as one of the most difficult time in an individual’s life (Belsky, 2013). In order to better understand the complex milestones met during this period, I interviewed twenty-two-year-old Aly. Aly graduated from East Tennessee State University in 2015 and has recently relocated to Nashville in order to start her career with the state government. Additionally, only a month after turning 19, Aly married her husband and has currently been married for three and a half years. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her family and friends, watching television with her husband, and going out or shopping. I met Aly through our
Society has vastly changed just over the course of the last decade. While becoming financially independent, getting married, and buying a house and settling down are all still goals pursued by young adults, they are no longer always at the forefront of people’s minds as many young adults now set out for more ambitious goals as they aim to truly challenge themselves in changing the world rather than being content with what is considered to be normal by today’s standards. Furthermore, young adults are starting to plan things around their own life rather than the typical American life. The traditional milestones still remain, but are often put in different orders as people prioritize what is most important to them at that point in time. With knowledge
They struggle with low self-esteem. They struggle with making independent decisions. They struggle with succeeding in the workforce. However, none of these struggles are their fault. They are the millennials. According to Simon Sinek, millennials are a group of young, ambitious and hardworking individuals currently entering the workforce. Nonetheless, they are encountering hurdles that have been unheard of until now due to several external factors. As there are constant changes in societal expectations as well as personal expectations, millennials often have difficulty finding where they truly belong. Over the course of his discussion, Sinek targets several different factors and how they contribute to the downfall and characteristics of millennials. Therefore, I believe that there is no doubt that Sinek’s depiction of millennials as low self-esteemed and narcissistic