According to a report from the Telegraph, China’s Communist Party is concerned over waves of teenagers who are more consumed with their smartphones and leisure time than they are with party loyalty.
In a report published this week, Telegraph reporter Jamie Fullerton explains the rising buzzword “Zen-generation,” which refers to a generation of Chinese teenagers that opt for low-stress careers instead of higher-paid and more challenging jobs.
“In the past few months the buzzphrase ‘Zen-generation’, based on the Buddhist notion of a relaxed, Zen attitude, has gone viral online. It is used to describe young Chinese who choose easy, often low-paid careers ahead of challenging, higher-paid roles and eschew the often demanding social pressures of Chinese society,” Fullerton wrote.
Recent studies of youth attitude towards China’s Communist Party revealed relative indifference. “In other words, there are few things they care about. Be it missing the bus, getting turned down for a promotion or failing to find a spouse, they simply shrug and move on,” a story in the Global Times about the “Zen-generation” read.
China’s Community Party has expressed concerns over such apathy. On a party-run website targeted at China’s youth, one story argued that a nation is doomed unless its young people are ambitious. “Only when the young have ambitions and are responsible can a nation have prospects,” according to the story, and also young Chinese teens should “pursue their dreams with sweat and to always fight for their family and their country.”
Some theorize that the shift in cultural attitude is a result of the changes in Chinese society.
“Some say this new trend is a passive reaction against the rapid reforms, changes, and developments of modern-day Chinese society, which has made many young adults feel ‘helpless’ and ‘left behind’. Rather than fight against it, these Buddha-like youngsters resignedly accept their lot in life,” the Global Times report concludes.
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