Generation gaps and differences naturally exist because no two generations can ever really be the same. Whether we like it or not – time brings with it new people, new social and cultural practices and changing ideas.
However, one thing that really grates on me is phrases such as “well, it wasn’t like that in our day” or “things were better back then.” In my opinion, this mindset does nothing to bring different generations closer together and just creates an environment of apathy. Perhaps, if people focused less on what separates old from young and more on what everyone can learn from each other there would be less talk of increasing generation divides.
I often remind my parents that I hate it when they slip into using such phrases. Understandably, there are things that young people do that shock and disgust older age groups and they feel inclined to comment. Similarly, young people often dismiss older people’s attitudes and beliefs because they can’t comprehend them. Both these tendencies leave us narrow-minded and unwilling to accept that we could have more in common than we think. The real problem is that certain rhetoric exaggerates generation gaps and leaves us more out of touch with each other than the real differences do.
Recently, I’ve started to think more about why certain changes trigger people to talk about generations becoming more divided. One change I think contributes to this is the increase in people going to university and the impact this has on people in towns and cities where universities are based.
I was born and brought up in Lancaster – a small town with an ever-expanding university campus and a rapidly growing student population. For most of the time I’ve lived here our street of terraced houses, near the town centre, has been mostly full of families. However, since leaving home two years ago to go to university and having returned home during holidays, I have noticed the increasing presence of students in the area. The house next door to us has six students living in it and with nothing separating us but a wall – listening to their music and pre-drinking parties has become a regular occurrence for my parents. The streets surrounding us are also quickly becoming taken over by student houses and “To Let” signs advertised specifically at students.
On this issue I’m torn. On the one hand, I’m a student myself and I know that students have to live somewhere. From my experience I know how hard it is to find a flat close to your university campus. Lancaster poses an even more difficult problem because the campus is a bus ride/drive away from the centre of town and it’s almost impossible to live really close to the campus unless you can afford and find space to live on it. Therefore, many Lancaster students live in the town itself which is no doubt reaching its limits in being able to provide sufficient housing to local residents and students.
Having lived in my area as long as I have I also feel sorry for the people who call this home. I used to deliver newspapers on the streets next to mine and became friendly with some of the local residents. One elderly man used to talk to me about the student problem. He would talk about students “dominating over the locals” and point out how many houses now belonged to students and not couples and families. I got the sense that he was voicing the older generation’s concerns – for many of whom university and student life is something very unfamiliar and alien.
Personally, I think there needs to be a concerted effort on the part of students to respect residents and their community. People in students halls might not have a problem with a 3am party and drinking session but working families and elderly people in a neighbourhood are likely to. It should also be the responsibility of universities to help make sure students integrate into local communities – especially when it is universities that are failing to provide adequate university accommodation for their students.
However, older generations who have never experienced this great influx of students into towns and cities where they live, may also have lessons to learn. Lancaster is undoubtedly a more lively place when the students are around. The difference when they disappear is noticeable and hits Lancaster’s nightlife particularly hard. If older generations recognise the positive impact students can bring to their local economy, businesses and communities then maybe the generation gap would become more of a myth.
This problem is not unique to one town but is mirrored in many towns and cities across the UK. The only way to change things for the better is to get people talking because the longer these tensions persist the less visible the underlying problems will be.
curlywrites 