You Best Believe I'M Talkin' 'Bout Love, L-U-ME

A recent university study into narcissim among U.S. college students suggests that American youth are far more self-centred and obsessed than they have been in the past. This comes as no surprise to us at The Daily Wenzel. We believe that individuals construct meaning, expectations for normative behaviour, and personal identity through the experiences that they have in everyday life. As more and more of life becomes mediated, especially for the young, popular culture becomes more and more of a reference point for normative behaviour. Many shows geared towards youth feature a single main character triumphing over various forms of adveristy. While this character may do so with or without the help of a supporting cast, quite often adults or parents are visibly absent. If you think of popular shows such as Buffy the Vampire-Slayer this becomes quite evident. Buffy's parents were divorced, her father absent, and her mother often unaware of her daughter's activities. Teachers were often sources of conflict in disguise, and the school principal an obstacle to overcome. The only adult was the school librarian who offered advice but generally did not intervene in the conflict itself. This basic trend has been repeated in many other shows such as Kim Possible, Dora, Smallville, and to a lesser extent, Veronica Mars, where while the father may be more involved, he is clearly presented as less a parent, and more an equal.

This is juxtaposed with a prevailing middle-class trend towards smaller family sizes and much more active parenting. In an earlier post about childhood activities such as Murderball, we mused about the rapid disappearance of public spaces where children can gather without parental supervision. Increasningly these spaces are becoming virtual, and tied to ego-centric activities like MySpace pages. All of this inevitably reinforces a child's belief that they are uniquely special and destined for greatness.

http://www.davisenterprise.com/articles/2007/02/27/news/307new0.txt