Post-1990s generation marches into Chinese society

Graduates celebrate their graduation at the China Academy of Art in Hangzhou, capital of east China's Zhejiang Province, June 21, 2012. More than 1,800 graduates attended the graduation ceremony on Thursday. <File photo=Xinhua/Ren Zhenglai>

BEIJING, July 5 (Xinhua) — Chinese adults have a wide variety of opinions on the “jiulinghou,” or “post-1990s” generation, finding it difficult to understand the unintelligible slang, bizarre hairstyles and erratic behavior of children born after that year.

But with the first group of post-1990s kids graduating from Chinese universities this summer, it is quite likely that adults will find themselves sharing cubicles with the unorthodox generation before long.

Photos showing the graduation celebrations engineered by the students, who are often described as being individualistic and tech-savvy, have triggered some controversy on the web.

Eyebrows were raised when graduates at Jinan University were photographed holding a banner bearing the statement “Jinan University Advertising Department, you f***ed my youth!” Some graduates also held printouts expressing their personal “wishes” to “become a mistress.”

Cultural critic Liu Yang said the acts were display of vulgarity, while others cheered the students’ boldness.

In another set of controversial photos, a group of graduates from the Dalian University of Technology cheerfully posed in front of a dormitory building that appeared to be on fire, triggering comments questioning on their apathy to a likely deadly accident.

Observers said the debate on the graduation pictures was just a prelude to the generation’s inevitable clash with conventional society. It is not yet known whether their strong personalities will help shape China into a more open country or simply result in painful scrapes with society.

PRIDE AND PREJUDICE

The post-1990s generation first entered the public spotlight with their use of bizarre slang. Many have complained of being unable to decode the medley of symbolic language, foreign words and rare Chinese characters used by the youths.

The generation began to receive more attention after flooding online forums with photos of their unconventional hairstyles and make-up, as well as their passionate defense of their conception of fashion.

“Everyone wants to be unique,” said Chen Yaru, a graduate from the Huazhong University of Science and Technology, when asked to identify the general characteristics of her generation.

“Some call us weirdos, but what’s wrong with being a weirdo? Everyone has a unique existence and society should be inclusive,” said Li Xuejiao, a recent university graduate and employee of a bank in the city of Wuhan.

Liu Xiaoying, who studies youth culture at the Communication University of China, said the post-1990s generation was raised in an environment different from that of their elders due to rapid social changes in China.

Many Chinese people refer to different generations by the decade they originated in, with some believing that each decade nurtures different temperaments. The post-1980s generation, for instance, is often described as being “self-centered,” as the generation is made up of a large number of only children following the implementation of the one-child policy in 1978.

Compared with their elders, children born after 1990 grew up in the “golden era” and “cyber epoch” of China, a period marked by an economic boom, material prosperity and the popularization of the Internet.

According to a report issued by the China Internet Network Information Center in 2011, about 60 percent of Chinese under the age 25 had access to the Internet as of the end of 2010.

“Unlike the older Chinese, the new generation enjoys wider access to information, so their culture is marked by pluralism, strong personalities and less belief in authority,” Liu said.

Liu said some of the post-1990s generation share the traits of the post-1980s, such as independence, aversion to hardship and a lack of social responsibility.

Wang Chong, who teaches journalism at a Beijing-based university, said he supports this argument. Wang recently conducted an experiment on the role of media in the life of his post-1990s students.

“Their expectation of the media is mainly for entertainment purposes, rather than something to inform them about the issues of the day,” Wang said.

“When they write news reports for class, they focus on issues that directly affect their lives, such as housing prices and employment, while few care about other things that are important to the country,” Wang said.

REALITY COMES KNOCKING

Experts said that as the post-1990s generation integrates into mainstream society, their qualities, such as pragmatism, individualism and pluralism, will likely influence China’s future trajectory.

“China is still in an explorative phase of its development. Therefore, the pluralist values and critical thinking of the post-1990s generation may help them take up an active role in the country’s future reforms,” Liu said.

But experts said the adaptation of a jilted generation to mainstream society could be a painful experience, with the lackluster job market acting as the first test.

Although research has yet to detect a noticeable downward trend in employment for Chinese college grads, newcomers in the job market have said that competition has increased significantly, with better-paying jobs growing more scarce.

According to a survey by educational research company MyCOS Institute, the monthly income for college graduates after working for half a year was 2,766 yuan (426 U.S. dollars), a relatively low amount for a generation that has been raised with greater affluence than any generation before.

“When I started looking for jobs, I didn’t realize that the pay would matter so much. The living costs are high in Wuhan, but my salary is low. I feel a lot of pressure,” Li said.

Liu Yunpeng, a junior student at a college in Hebei, said he was upset about the practice of recruiting or promoting those with privileged backgrounds.

“It’s becoming harder for people from poorer families to get a good job. It frightens me to think that I will soon enter such a society,” Liu said.

“I hope China will become a fairer country, a country where people rely on their capabilities instead of their lineage,” Liu said.  <Xinhua writers: Yao Yuan, Ni Yuanjin and Ren Liying>

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