Aspects of Youth, Transitions, and the End of Certainties
Author(s)
Soares, Camilo
Abstract
It has often been said over the last few years that we are living through a period of transition. The old ‘status quo’ appears to have given way to an ‘age of transition’. Transition is often used as an excuse to justify states of chaos and inequality which only favour a minority, stave off the criticisms and expectations of youth and demand sacrifices in pursuit of an age in which transition will end and peace will again reign over the face of the earth. Such a linear view of development is incapable of understanding process, differences, and particularities, and rejects any difference which might prevent it from ‘reaching its goal’ of globalisation and homogenisation. This view denies youth its own moment in time and sees it as a ‘transitional’ period between childhood and adulthood. In this article, we shall look at youth as a global transitional process in the context of the political, economic, and cultural juncture of the present day and as a ‘time of transition’. Through this discussion we shall attempt to portray the place, prospects, and challenges of youth movements today.
