Answering A Question

An Entitled Generation

A child screams in the store, after being denied a toy. A teenager recklessly living in the moment, with no fear of potential consequences. Or the latest coming of age Hollywood scandal. Regardless of the specifics of the situation, the underlying problem can be boiled down to one word: Entitlement. As a society, entitlement is thought of in general as a bad thing, yet where does this sense of personal entitlement come from? Is it the environment and parental guidance that leads to this entitlement or has it been the current media that provokes it?

In their journal, Adolescent Attachment and Entitlement in a World of Wealth, Allison M. Rothman and Janice M. Steil noted that many scholars have suggested that the ideology behind entitlement is much more complex than what was originally thought at one time. Some have gone so far as to propose that there are three different levels of entitlement that an individual can portray: restricted, appropriate, and excessive (Journal of Infant, Child and Adolescent Psychotherapy, 53) Parental influence can have an effect on the level or amount of entitlement that a person portrays. Even Freud stated “that pathological levels of entitlement were related to a sense of being an owed privileges and referred to it as an attitude that is acquired due to painful childhood experiences”(Journal of Infant, Child and Adolescent Psychotherapy, 54). Restricted entitlement for example is correlated in clinical studies to childhood events that caused feelings of “shame or fear”. To be restricted in ones sense of entitlement, one would feel almost a sense of worthlessness, an insecurity that may result in an entitled depravity. A key indicator of a restricted entitlement would be ones level of self esteem. Tendencies to belittle oneself and feel as though one couldn't and or shouldn't work to improve oneself is a way in which restricted entitlement may be made manifest.

Yet on the opposite side of the spectrum, those with parents who tend to be more attached to their children, and who provide attention or who may go above and beyond to provide their children with needs and wants, may be more excessive in their feelings of entitlement. While entitlement is visible in the lives of many middle-class families, it is extremely prominent through the lifestyles that the wealthy and extreme upper class lead, or at least according to Bryan Appleyard from the New Statesman. Many wealthy families look at the world in a way that is quite different from those in perhaps a lower financial bracket than them. Many believe that since they are able to afford something, they must buy it. A quote from John Lancaster that was used in Appleyard’s article The Age of Entitlement sums up this idea; “The whole thing about luxury goods is that they’re an international language. The prices don’t track the middle-class, aspirational market; they’re for the super rich who don’t really care what things cost. In fact, they want them to cost more, because the price signifies only that most people can’t afford them” (New Statesman, 26). This approach of buying items for status rather than need, proves Rothmans statement that those who are wealthy are more inclined to have an increased sense of entitlement. Rothman claims that not only is it the unhealthy and excessive sense of entitlement that is linked to the wealthy, but that narcissism has an effect as well.

Media has recognized the two extremes of entitlement and have tried to bridge the gap. It uses ads to be alluring to the narcissist within an individual claiming ways to make “you into the most beautiful you”, and while this may not be a slogan for any specific brand, it has become the slogan of the current generation. Commercials bombard an individual on a daily basis with products to make them self conscious of their outward appearance. L'Oreal “because you’re worth it” in a way is the very embodiment of this narcissistic entitled generation. A beauty product based solely on the concept that “our products are the best, and that the general population should purchase this product, regardless of the price, because they are worthy of the best.”

Music, on the other hand has taken a different approach when speaking to this current generation. It still latches heavily onto the narcissistic concept, yet it does so through actions described in songs rather than attacking the outward appearance in most song. Current pop culture music, and artists’ lifestyles lead the listeners to believe that any action is alright as long as money there is to be a fail-safe. “There is no incentive in the financial world to be moral,”(New Statesman, 28). As a child star who has grown up in the spotlight, Miley Cyrus, has been very doted upon and because of her social status may feel as though because of her possessions or position, actions have no consequences. This comes through strongly in a recent song claims that:

It's our party we can do what we want to

It's our house we can love who we want to

It's our song we can sing if we want to

It's my mouth I can say what I want to (61-64)

Loving someone or saying something may be in and of itself harmless, but coupled with an entitlement attitude where actions cease to produce negative consequences.

Without a happy medium though there wouldn't be able to be extreme levels, the happy medium in this case is appropriate entitlement. The place where one can have an appropriate and healthy amount of self esteem, while not becoming excessively narcissistic. Spending money on oneself, or providing a lavish gift to a child or loved one when possible is not always but bad thing and doesn't mean that the recipient will feel an air of entitlement but as the old saying goes, "all things in moderation."

Works Cited

Appleyard, Bryan. "The Age of Entitlement." New Statesman. 142.5143 (2013). 26-29. Academic Search Complete. Web. 3 November 2013.

Cyrus, Miley. Bangerz. "We Can't Stop." RCA Records. 2013. Mp3 file

Rothman, Allison M., Janice M. Steil. "Adolescent Attachment and Entitlement in a World of Wealth." Journal of Infant, Child and Adolescent Psychotherapy. 11.1 (2012): 53-65. 3 November 2013.