Kyaw Win - Those Who Challenge

Write your own letter, sing your own song.

“Man” and History” - There is a question that is still difficult to answer definitively. “Does man write history, or does history write man?” The question has now emerged as the ones who will provide the definitive answer. It is the youth of the 21st century. “It is not man who writes history, but man who writes history,” they boldly proclaimed.

There is a lot of new buzzwords floating around about this topic, but it is important to understand one important term: TailorMade Biography. It is not just a “tailored” biography written by others. Today’s youth believe that they don’t want others to write about them, they have to write it themselves. However, it is not an “autobiography” either.

"Personally written" is not enough. It's too light. It doesn't convey the full meaning.

“It means that it should be a self-written biography that is purposefully crafted to suit one's own desires. TailorMade refers to all of these concepts.

The beginning of the story can be said to be the youth conferences held at the end of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st century. At these conferences, scholars gathered and surveyed the nature of the youth of the new century, and two ideas clearly diverged. The first group did not follow the youth movement. It pointed out three main points: “No Model, Lost Mission and Egocentric.”

The second group does not accept this criticism. They respond by criticizing it as unnatural, as they view young people through the eyes of adults. At the same time, they also assess that “the standards of today’s young people have reached such a high level that adults cannot keep up.”

"Idols and Idees" and "There are no models" may have something to say about the first criticism from young people. (Here we do not want to confuse them with the trendy model girls. I mean a role model who can be imitated.) Although it is easy to say "model", it is necessary to examine "what kind of model" is meant.

There are two types of models, “Idol” and “Ideal,” which are different from each other.

The meaning of "idol" is more related to emotion. It is similar to the word "heart-throb". In adolescence, it is often a boy friend, a girl friend.

When you get a little older, you may become a famous singer, movie star, athlete, etc. According to psychologists, this is called “celebrity admiration,” which arises from a desire to escape from your ordinary, ordinary life for a while. This is a natural state of mind for every young person, and it is still the same today. Nothing strange, back then “Presley” (now “Eminem”), before “Monroe”, today “Britney Spears”. That's all.

“Idea is not like this. It is more profound. It is about a sense of awe. In adolescence, parents are often the ones who become parents, and as they grow older, they can expand to national leaders, political leaders, religious leaders, etc. They are the “heroes” who elevate their worldview, who they think they can emulate. Psychologists call them “personalized beacons of change.” Today’s youth seem to lack “idea,” and that “beacon” is disappearing.

It would be unfair to blame young people for these changes. They argue that the adults themselves are more responsible.

The second criticism, “Ideology” and “Idea” and “Mission Lost,” is also interesting to discuss. Indeed, the “Apolitic Trend” of young people moving away from politics seems to indicate that the mission has been lost. A report by the German-based “Reel” research center published in 2000 assessed that “the political interest of young people has declined significantly.” This conclusion is based on two findings: the decreasing number of young voters in elections and the decreasing proportion of young people in political parties.

Critics do not deny that young people are moving away from politics. However, they are no longer disappointed in politics that seeks the welfare of humanity. They are no longer distrustful. They are suspicious of politicians and political organizations that are actually working. They are no longer enthusiastic about the procedures that are actually working. In their view, politics today is a mass of people, a lot of words, and a mess. They are no longer able to adapt to the dynamic changes of the information age. Young Americans criticize that Silicon Valley's speech cannot be caught up with the Capitol Hill. Based on these points, they may be Apolitic. They are not at all Anti-Politic.

Politics is also associated with ideology. In an era where major ideologies are collapsing, it is only natural for people who have grown up to be skeptical of any ideology. Even liberal democracy, which is the last remaining remnant, cannot be trusted with complete confidence. Even if they believe in “values”, they want to watch the hidden “interests” with suspicion. However, they are not just sitting on the sidelines, but they seem to be determined to use “ideas” to prop up the collapsed “ideology”.

The origin of this idea is their “mission.” There is one. It is not the same as the previous “can’t lift a dog with an elephant’s head.” It can be said to be a mission that is all about one’s own. It is often referred to as a “personal mission.” This mission does not focus on “what is happening in the world.” It focuses on “what can I do?” It does not blame the unreal world. It builds its own strength to the highest level. It is not that the mission has disappeared. It is that the attitudes about the mission are no longer different. The approaches have changed.