Every time period in history is paused and read by certain markers. Every era has its own character. A silhouette derived from an amalgamation of all its quirks and queries.
So, what represents us? What will history say about the famed techno babies? Genocides. Female violation heightened due to rape culture and unregulated porn. Distortions due to unrestricted social media usage. Pandemics. The rise of technology andthe decline of humanity. Coming here and proclaiming this generation to be a second Renaissance, or a much awaited Revival would be like slathering mud and laughing in my own face.I mean, why would it be any of those things?
Maybe because of the millions of voices worldwide that resonated across the strings of patriarchy and political polarization that holds the community in its poisoned hold. Be it uproars against systemic violence, or screams from wounds resultant of ambushed autonomy, to realizations learned at the risk of life and truths that seek to reclaim identity.
What makes it different from the countless wars fought over skies and seas and across seasons since the dawn of time?Awareness. We are a society shaped and driven by heightened awareness as compared to any previous generation. Gen Z functions as a double edged sword; a blade that seeks to radically dismantle the prevalent injustice, sometimes drawing its own blood to cleanse the space to breathe anew.
Daughters wearing the fabric of their mothers' youth. Some might call it vintage aesthetic -for the stories smudged in dust and silk. They listen to voices woven in the strands; lullabies,laughter, a faint ring of anklets. Dreams caged in the golden embroidery. Faint screams still echoing through the ripped edges. Clinging scents of childhood summer winds and monsoon skies. They wear this, spinning tales of newfound purpose and liberation.
Sons shedding the sins of their forefathers. Boys learning to hold hands and trace lines upon skin, born of wonder and affection, as opposed to the violent bruises of standard norms.Boys learning to taste the salt of their tears and read reflections in the bathroom mirror. Boys growing up to sever the narrative of female counterparts being simply an extension.
While the mount of technology threatens human morality, it also paves the way for digital art,communication and varied self expression. With the right guidance, A.I. can become a most useful tool to visualise and manifest newfound imagination. Technology has enabled humans to test the bounds of what is considered impossible, from simulating consciousness in machines to touching the cosmos and glimpsing history.
Contemporary literature was ushered in, the young generation being the eye of the storm,with nothing escaping it's transparent gaze. Every phenomena and emotion and catastrophe found their mark within quill and parchment- or rather, laptops and ipads. Historians of another period would revive and recount this transformation: a transparency that arose to challege systems running throughout centuries. Be it the meme culture or tumbler posts or instagram posts, the youth uses humour both to heal and to expose.
And so, Gen Z came forward. A generation that was cut and stabbed by the jarred ends of unspoken hurt. A broken generation that refused to shatter, refused to hurt or be hurt further and instead solidified its own sharp edges as protective wards.
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