In his opinion editorial titled “Aspirational parents condemn their children to a desperate, joyless life,” George Monbiot argues that our culture’s quest for success is actually guaranteeing its opposite. Children are told they can improve their lives, but they are looking at a world that is worse than the one their parents grew up in. Childhood is being stripped from young people as they must begin training for success immediately. Everything from internships in college to getting into the right elementary show how success rather than happiness is culture’s ultimate goal. What makes it worse, Monbiot argues, is that the British government doesn’t seem to care about the mental toll this is taking on the country’s youths. Recent survey results show there is cause for concern. Children are hurting themselves and getting eating disorders more frequently. They feel less secure about their future and have less of a desire to go to school. Monbiot concludes that the very ambition that motivates these children to endure these hardships will rob them of the joy that their material success is supposed to bring.
Monbiot tackles an important topic, but he presents his argument ineffectively. Given the evidence Monbiot presents, his argument should be more about the pass to success. The internship memo from Wall St., facts about the toddler playdate coach, and stats about increasing mental health issues all show that the path to success is taking its toll. But what of the adults who have gone through this process? Would the person who works at Wall Street give up his or her position if they had to do it all over again? What about self-harm and eating disorders among adults who have survived this gauntlet? Monbiot gives us enough evidence to make us think the path is treacherous, but there’s no evidence that the destination is also not worth reaching. His title, that parents are setting their kids up for a joyless “life,” goes unsupported for everything in their life past their college years.
Next, the evidence Monbiot presents tells two different stories about two different cultures. He does include good evidence to show that British education is caught in a vicious cycle. Nursery coaches get paid the equivalent of over $500 an hour. Four year old are given assessments that ask too much from them too soon. Yet, how do the stats from the US apply? Is there a hidden connection between the educational one-upsmanship of toddler coaches in the US and Nursery coaches in the UK? Can a London stock market intern expect the same kind of hazing as an American who goes to Wall Street? The evidence is off and is meant to shock more than cement Monbiot’s point.
Finally, it’s clear that jumping off the ever-faster merry go round of material success is not an option. What then does Monbiot propose? One clear solution seems like developing a spiritual view of success, one that does not equate material wealth with self-worth. Monbiot doesn’t comment on corresponding church attendance numbers or any kind of spiritual education that might combat the corrosive effects of the schooling he’s talking about. Without a clear alternative and convincing evidence to show us that the destination of success, and not just most used path to get there, needs revision, Monbiot’s point rings as alarmist and unfounded.