Not So Different From Today

 My short little life has only been going on since 2023; however, there was once a time when everything was different. Modernism was a time following the turn of the 19th century that saw a change in American culture. This time saw the introduction of the flapper, who were women who broke from the more reserved mindset of the previous generations in favor of more personal freedom and expression. They started going to clubs and dancing as well as drinking during prohibition, and wearing different clothes. I believe this had to do with the current state of the world back then. Prior to this time, the world was a smaller place, as many people kept to themselves. However, the First World War changed things and helped lead to the world becoming more globalized. This war was not the first war that had great casualties,  but it was one of the first where people all over the world heard about it and were affected by it. I believe that this was the way that people were able to cope with all the things that were going on. This is no different than what is happening today. With all of the problems in the world, many people, especially young people, choose to spend most of their time on social media and video games. It is Gen Z’s way to cope, the same way being a flapper was their way of coping. This narrative can also be seen in the adoption of Jazz during the modernist era. Jazz is a very different way of playing music that perfectly represents the different way that many people wanted to live life in the 1920s. Similarly, Gen Z has adopted rap, which is our version of the jazz revolution. Rap is fast and talks about difficult topics, which feels like much of the modern world in 2025. This allows the music to connect with the audience the same way that jazz connected with so many people of the 1920s. While the reason for much of the modernist revolution was the First World War, the cause of much of Gen Z’s expression, which will someday have its own name, is COVID. Spending upwards of two years isolated is undoubtedly having great effects on Gen Z that will one day be studied. Sadly, my short dog life will never be able to see that.