By Chung Ah-young
Staff Reporter
What do 20-somethings look like today? Maybe, they are often called the ``blessed'' generation living in the materially affluent society created by older generations who had to experience the social upheavals such as Japanese colonial rule (1910-1945) and the Korean War (1950-1953) and the extreme poverty in the pre-industrial era.
They are even not welcomed by the so-called 386 generation, the age group who were born in the '60s, attended university in the '80s, and played a pivotal role in fighting for democracy against the dictatorial military regimes in the past.
Are they truly the happy generation? The answer is no, says author Kim Hyun-jin in her autobiographical essay, ``Sister Still Goes.''
The essayist and scriptwriter, who has a solid fan base from Internet users for her poignant and witty columns in newspapers and magazines, portrays herself as a ``loser'' who is struggling to survive in Korean society.
The writer said that the 20-somethings are the unfortunate generation who cannot have pride for overcoming such hardships.
She uses the term ``880,000-won Generation,'' a popular coinage that refers to low-paid non-regular workers who earn about 880,000 won (net pay) a month, a new lost generation in Korea as it were. What it means for a lot of young people is the complete failure of an educational system in which graduating from a good university was as good as getting a blank check for a well-paid career in a big corporation.
``Many of the older generation often blame youngsters as `weak, lazy, spoiled and cosseted children indifferent to the social community and only interested in luxurious items.' Are they really bad or particularly stupid? No way. They are the generation who endured the harsh education from dawn to midnight and sacrificed their youth by shuttling from private study rooms and institutes to school. They are not that stupid at all. All generations have their own adversity and hardship. How about the older generation who experienced the Japanese colonial era, the Korean War and the military regimes? Were they truly happy in their 20s?'' she said.
The author said that the biggest misfortune for those presently in their 20s is that they have nothing to brag about ― unlike previous generations in this era ― with nothing particular to fight against except a materialistic and cutthroat competitive society.
``We don't have any great cause like the 386-generation once had. We are just crying out against high tuition fees and employment examinations,'' she said.