China despairs as apathy defines its ‘Zen-generation’
Communist Party worried the nation’s millennials are unpatriotic, unambitious and opting out of rat race
CHINA’S ruling Communist Party is concerned that politically apathetic millennials are sauntering through life in a passive and unpatriotic way.
In the past few months, the “Zengeneration”, a nickname based on the Buddhist notion of a relaxed, calm attitude, has gone viral online.
It is used to describe young Chinese who choose easy, low-paid careers ahead of challenging roles and eschew the often-demanding social pressures of Chinese society.
They are generally born after 1990 and are defined by having a blasé attitude to jobs, politics, and much else in life. With the Chinese Communist Party (CPC) currently on a drive to shore up party loyalty, Youth.cn, one of its media outlets, has dubbed the trend a “total tragedy”.
As well as a lack of political loyalty, Global Times, the state-controlled newspaper, added that there was concern that such attitudes could hold back Chinese society in the long term.
Members of Zen-generation, according to the paper, “are seemingly fine with anything that happens to them”. It adds: “They are not inspired by any patriotic drive or the party’s political catchphrases. They are simply indifferent. 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 23-year-old graduate named Xiaoyue, who identified herself as a Zengeneration member, was quoted as saying her attitude to life “is a bit different from pessimism”. She added: “I feel it tiring to compete with others or strive, for whatever it may be in life. We just don’t have big ambitions; we don’t want to be number one. We are happy with an average life, and we are optimistic.” Xiaoyue said she turned down a well-paid position in favour of an easier life in the civil service and stayed single to avoid “troublesome” relationships.
In response to the phrase going viral Youth.cn ran an article with the headline: “So-called Zen-generation are a total tragedy for youth.”
The website said: “Only when the young have ambitions and are responsible can a nation have prospects.”
It added that young people should “pursue their dreams with sweat and to always fight for their family and their country”. But many young people actually embrace the term, buying T-shirts with “Zen-generation” written on them.
Some believe it is a reaction to the salary-obsessed mentality that is instilled in much of Chinese society, and its cut-throat graduate jobs market.
Of equal concern to the CPC is the young not engaging with its advertising of communist ideals despite the party using rap videos, matchmaking events and concerts by hologram-rendered virtual pop stars to promote itself.