Is The 'Age Of Entitlement' A Real Thing?

The 'Selfie Generation', 'Generation I', 'Generation Me' - all labels that have been pasted across my generation in the media.

They are cruel indictments of a generation that has, against all odds, learnt to love themselves.

Being a young woman has never been quite so difficult. There has never been such a pervasive sense of the media telling us that we’re doing “it” wrong - whatever “it” actually is.

In a world where I physically cannot avoid being told that I am not thin enough, or attractive enough, or 'whatever' enough, it is truly a triumph, not a downfall, that I am able to take a photo of myself and put it forth to the internet and say “this is who I am.”

A selfie, to me is a rebellion. It's claiming my representation of myself back from the media who will pick and prod at me. No generation has had such control over how the world perceives them, and while that may make us seem 'entitled and narcissistic' from the outside, it only makes me stronger.

Some may argue that it's not only selfie culture that marks this as 'The Age of Entitlement' - that it's our unfair expectations of society which demonstrate that we are the most self-obsessed generation yet.

These 'unfair' expectations, however, are simply the result of the natural progression of society. It's okay for us to want more than our great-grandparents did, because thanks to them, it is possible for us to achieve more. This generation has access to more knowledge and more possibilities than ever before, just as the generation before us had access to more than the world had ever seen before then.

It is not only our right to strive for more, it's our duty to society. We are at a stage in the progression of humanity where our generation can step back and ask 'Why?' We're asking questions like, “Why should someone's level of education reflect their socioeconomic status?”, and “Why should we accept that some people are born into lives where they will always be at a disadvantage to others?”

Our demands for more are not the demands of a whiny, entitled bunch of teenagers. They're the demands of a group of people who are realising that it is in their power to change society. I think it is okay for the future of this world to be a little bit obsessed with themselves, to love themselves and want others to do the same - it's far better than hating themselves. It is in introspection that people can better themselves, and in the end that is what we want for society - for it to be better.

Congratulations to Bethany for winning this writing challenge, answering: Is The 'Age Of Entitlement' A Real Thing? Bethany wins a $50 Westfield gift card for her submission. For your chance to win, check out our latest writing challenges in our Comps section. Also, be sure to follow this guide on how to win the writing challenge!