This week is another piece on the the culture war(s). The us versus them. The young and old. Connah Roberts wades in by trying to form a constellation between schools, fear, Kes, and assets.
It’s often said that the young have it easy these days or that they are too susceptible to criticism in which they cannot face up to a world that once was. You see it mainly from writers in The Telegraph, The Times, Daily Mail, Andrew Neil, so on and so forth. There is a general feeling from those institutions and ‘renowned media figures and commentators’ that the young are obtuse. ‘Young woke lefties’ was part of one recent headline. There has been a lot of talk around the topic of late, it’s an easy go to for the likes of Piers Morgan and Suzanne Moore. Let’s blame the young for asking questions. To think about what exactly it is that creates animosity towards those of a younger age, I want to discuss the role of fear through the generations. This is purely empirical and sort of inspired by this Owen Hatherley article on The Smiths.
What has lately been published on the difference between generations is the emergence of the asset-economy. Recently this has been spoken about in both The Guardian and Financial Times. Essentially, access to assets is becoming increasingly limited to those who have to rely on wages to buy them. With the retraction of the state, individuals without ownership of assets, or future prospects of inheritance, are increasingly being shut out of a lifestyle that is all but a fantasy without any form of help from their parents. I must caveat here that this is not always limited to the young. There are, too, some older generations who rely on the state for welfare which has been the focus of this recent academic work. Within the study there is a new framework for measuring class based on those who own assets and those who do not, while taking into account future intergenerational wealth transfers. For the most part, however, with stagnant wages, if you are looking for a more secure future and our political trajectory continues, you will need assets in order to provide funds for a liveable retirement or to pay for care.
Why is there some form of resentment against all the general tropes of youth: metropolitan, educated elites not understanding how bad it was in the 70s when your wages could actually afford to buy a home with a 100% mortgage. A pipe dream today. Where does this affront come from then if it is not financial as the numbers don’t lie? I echo Hatherley’s piece in its regard of how Morrissey has sadly turned into what has happened to the once anti-Thatcher, now Conservative voting, favours of a “little England.” Hatherley nicely points out how Morrissey represents the feelings of those from the same generation. If we were to continue in this vain there is more to tease out on why there might be such discontent.
A major difference from growing up in the 70s, and much of the 80s, compared to growing up in the 90s, was the fear of physical violence being used against you by an adult. The Headmaster Ritual was released on the album, Meat is Murder, in 1985. A year later School Corporal Punishment was banned in schools who received any sort of funding from the government. Once the ban came in for the working classes, it meant that approval was needed from parents before any form of physical punishment was administered. Ironically, the ban came in after a report from the EU in 1982 which deemed forms of punishments that would usually involve a cane, strap or simply punch irresponsible.
It was even later for full paying private schools. 1998 to be precise. Something George Monbiot has well documented. How the brutality of boarding schools has created individuals, many of which now run the country, who have, like him, suffered from the fear of bullies and teachers. Earlier, Paul Foot called out the beatings that one would receive from the ex-Eton headmaster, Anthony Chenevix-Trench. Going into detail on the difference in pain threshold for two types of punishment. You had to choose. Either the cane with your pants up, which hurt more, or the strap with your pants down, which hurt less. When the ex-public schoolboys, Radiohead, covered the song, Thom Yorke opens it saying “it is about when we were younger but we didn’t write it.” Confirming the fear of teachers, and school itself, crossed the social classes.
I remember the first time hearing The Headmaster Ritual. It was walking to school. This would have been around 2005/2006. Throughout that day in lessons the image of the song played out in my mind like a scene from Kes. (Someone actually put the two together in 2018.) I thought about which of the teachers in my school would want to give you “bruises bigger than dinner plates.” It was a complete unknown, the idea that a teacher could, or used to, do that. We didn’t live in fear of the teachers and nor should those trying to teach put fear in the young. Stories from others have also mentioned it wouldn’t necessarily stop at the school. The pain would be brought back home as an embarrassment on the family resulting in another clip around the ear.
What I am trying to say here is maybe those who are saying the young have it easy mean physically easy, particularly in schools and at home. Maybe the resentment is that kids no longer live in fear to challenge their elders in argument. With the police it is a different story given what is happening with the recent bills that have been passed. Powers to determine and shut down protests, and allowing those undercover to do what they want in the name of duty. It’s a cobbled road to be travelling down, allowing the use of violence in order to suppress. Universities are also on the back foot. As of May 2021, they could face sanctions if they don’t allow ‘freedom of speech’ on campus. The Russell Group have commented back stating this only creates more layers of bureaucracy. With schools, however, there has fortunately been a change in the fear of teachers and it has created a generation who challenge and question. But with the Conservatives in power for the next 10/15 years, maybe schools are next in their sights to catch the ‘woke’ early.
Each week we will share some tracks that the contributers to Laughing Stock currently have on heavy rotation. You can follow the rolling playlist on Apple or Spotify.
ICYMI: More from Laughing Stock
Edition 9 - Rich Walker on trains, music, music on trains, and HS2
Edition 8 - Connah Roberts channeling Adiran Chiles on Karaoke
Edition 7 - Rich Walker on nihilism in music
Edition 6 - Connah Roberts on producers of imagination
Edition 5 - Sam Hartford on Spotify’s all seeing eye
Edition 4 - Rich Walker on how amazing organ music is
Edtion 3 - Will Palmer on Music as Muscle Memory
Edition 2 - Connah Roberts on Arctic Monkeys and Quantitative Easing
Edition 1 - Rich Walker on Dua Lipa and the new pop vanguard
If you are interested in contributing to future editions of Laughing Stock, please DM either @dickiewalker or @connahr