Teenage angst: a defining feature of the coming-of-age process

“Teenage angst has paid off well, Now im bored and old” Kurt Cobain. 

“I didn't even know what I was running for — I guess I just felt like it” (Catcher in the Rye. p.5). Evidently, I could quote Salinger’s “Catcher In The Rye” all day...Holden Caulfield is disputably one of the most infamous icons for teenage angst. Rather than go on about a book that was written over 50 years ago, I prefer to tell my own story about my own coming of age; my own teenage rebellion.

Growing up isn’t easy. I’ll be the first to admit that I wasn’t a very pleasant child. I couldn’t even tell you how many times I fought with my parents for useless things. Things that seemed like a big deal back then but obviously weren’t since I can’t name one of those things at this very moment. I remember thinking that everyone was against me and no one was there to help me and that I had no idea who I was and who I wanted to be. I was stressed as soon as I woke up and went to bed stressed. Let’s just say, I was a typical teenager. We all thought we were the only ones who felt that way but guess what, we weren’t. It is completely normal to be anxious growing up and in my opinion, everyone goes through it. There are so many things that happen when you become a teenager and when you’re trying to figure out who you are it’s only normal to be anxious. We all go through a certain periods in our lives where we think “who am I and what am I doing with my life?” and yeah, not being able to answer those questions is really nerve-racking.

We go through fazes and none of them are easy. It's a time where we desperately want to stay young because growing up seems terrifying and making our own decisions sounds hard but at the same time we don’t want to be considered a child anymore. We want to be different but we also want to be like our friends. We want to be left alone but we also desperately want to be around people. We don't but at the same time we do know what we want... We're afraid, anxious, unsure and scared. One day were happy the next we’re sad. We realize that life isn’t just fun and games and that if you want something you need to work for it. We grow up having our parents do everything for us and then one day, out of nowhere, we need to take care of ourselves and we need to think about our future. We realize things are a lot more complicated than they seem and that it’s impossible to be happy 24/7. Things are gonna piss us off and people are gonna piss us off. It’s something that’s uncontrollable but it's an important process that we go through because it helps us figure out who we are and who we want to be. 

Finding yourself is hard but once you have it’s amazing (so I’ve heard). 

Angst necessary or not?

The coming of age process in western civilizations is one of the most important steps in a kid’s or teenager’s life and is a step that we have all gone through to found out who we are and what were doing. Angst can be very important for aiding in this process as it helps us to push us forward and carry on. As you can see it in two ways. One of which you are helpless and all alone and you succomb to it and become depressed or you can take it as a challenge in life to keep on going and fighting it until you come out successful and better then ever.

Angst can be a very complicated thing to deal with as you feel alone as none of the adults or others will understand you. On the contrary they can help you more than you think because they have all gone through it. If you are an adult and know someone that is going through this all you have to do is tell them that you have gone through it and tell them that you are there for them but don't force anything upon them as is is a learning experience and they have to figure it out on their own.

Personally I still haven’t finished getting through my coming of age process as I’m not to sure yet what is my passion so that I may choose a career path after college. It can be a very lengthy process as even into the early to late 20 people haven't still figured out exactly what they are doing. There is lots of time and there is absolutely no rush in the matter. I took angst as a challenge to overcome when going through this. I looked at it as a sport because I’m a sporty and competitive guy it helps to look at it as something that you can easily refer to.

There are many ways of getting help when going through this sometimes lengthy process like talking to friends or others that you have confidence in. Sometimes its scary to go out and ask what others have done in your position but they will be glad to share their stories with you if it means easing your own way into the world. Although it can be very hard for some people to deal with angst I think it can help a lot with looking for your path.

Angst: Not A Positive Feeling But a Good Thing

Is the feeling of angst in teenagers necessary?
                 The coming of age process will cause most youths to have the feeling of angst. Angst is a deep feeling of anxiety, malaise and fear. I believe the feeling of angst is obliged in youth, because it will help them discover who they are. In general I think angst starts in the begging of high school. Depending on how you adjust from elementary school to high school. The feeling of angst can eat you alive. Leaving from elementary to begin high school you never know what to expect. Most kids before that start high school think its as stereo typical as in movies. Most of us all know the movie; high school musical, where they are all divided into clicks on their lunch hour. Teenager might believe that high school is like that. All kids have there own reason on why feel anxious or scared. I know that my reason when I stared high school was because I didn't like girls in general. I grew up play fighting with my dad and playing soccer. I remember my first day in high school, girls were already trash talking one another and I thought to myself “these girls are nuts”. Later on that year I made plenty of friends but I soon realized that I was becoming like those girls that would trash talk. 

In high school the feeling of belonging and not being an outsider is what every teenager wants. This feeling can be so strong that it can make teenagers change. It can change there attitude, there way of thinking even to go as far as changing there own principals. For example: when kids are younger and were never introduced to smoking as a positive action, most of them will think that smoking is disgusting and they will swear to themselves they would never do such thing. Although most teenagers know that smoking isn't good for their health, they will still try it because they want to be “cool” like the other kids who smoke. 

Another thing that kids can have anxiety over is not knowing who to turn to. Has it ever happen to you that you are in a embarrassing situation and you do not know who to talk to ? Obviously most kids will not go to their parents because they are scared of their judgement, they wont turn to a teacher because that would be tattle-tailing. Most of them think that they do not have an adult who will understand them and help them. Usually teenagers will turn to their friends for advice, but lets be honest right now, teenagers don't always give the best advice and sometimes they are missing a lack of judgement. All this to say that angst most of the time isn't a positive feeling but its an necessity in the coming of age process between teenage years and adulthood.

https://www.google.ca/webhp?source=search_app&gws_rd=cr&ei=5XIrVPP1DO7O8QG-2ICoDw#q=definition+of+angst

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0475293/plotsummary

Keep calm and carry on

Let’s get this straight!!! Teenagers are the most misunderstood people on earth. For as long as I can remember adolescents have always been considered to be dramatic, rude and unpredictable, but has anyone really wondered why we act in such a way? The answer to this question is very simple: Teenagers are treated like children but expected to act like adults. Coming-of-age is definitely a process in which we not only have to deal with the pressure of discovering who we are and who we want to become but also we are dealing with the criticism and disapproval of adults and other teenagers. Trying understand our own thoughts and feelings is probably one of the hardest things when being an adolescent and as if this wasn’t complicated enough for us to process, society expect us to be mature and independent enough to make intelligent and wise decisions yet obedient and submissive enough to do what they think it’s ‘better for us’. Is it as if one day you are playing outside with your friends having the time of your life and the very next day you need to go to work in order to pay and afford all the things you need.  With this in mind it is not hard to understand why the coming-of-age process if full with negative feelings such as fear, anger, confusion, hopelessness, between many others.

On the other hand, one cannot ignore the fact that many of these changes are caused by biological reasons.  As Kartip Kalyamram explains in his article adolescent angst, In the course of early adolescence, the grey matter thickens, peaking at 11 years for girls and 12.5 years for boys. Many new neuronal pathways open up, in a sense reflecting the influence of multiple environmental cues and also the choices that adolescents face. However, more pathways need not necessarily be more efficient, in fact they actually slow brain functioning. As the adolescent grows, these pathways prune down and the grey matter approaches adult size by about age 20 years

But hey… not everything its lost!!! At the end of the day angst play an important and indispensable role on the process of getting to know ourselves and those around us. Truth is every single person has gone through this process .Nobody said this it was going to be easy in fact we live in a pretty strange, fake and unpredictable world  but as everything else in life you need to have ups and downs in order to feel alive. 

Teenagers in the World of Angst.

"Since I was born I started to decay, now nothing ever ever goes my way” is the chorus of the song “Teenage Angst” by Placebo, a rock band of the 90’s. This phenomenon is clearly a defining feature of the coming of age process. Teenagers’ normally experiment various concerns that are known as “teenage angst”. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines it as "a feeling of anxiety, apprehension and insecurity". 

During adolescence, things get harder. Usually, at this stage, teenagers’ start thinking about their future and begin asking themselves questions such as, which career would I like to achieve? what kind of studies it implicates? Thus, they start high school and try to seek for a first job. Moreover, they are curious of experimenting the world of love. Adolescents want to find out how it feels to be in love and be loved. Due to all this tireless pressure on them, it is completely normal to feel some angst. Angst is the result of stress and hormonal changes of the body during the puberty process. During this stage of development, teenagers change constantly their humor. They frequently get mad for any reason and purpose, they moan about life, they are pessimistic and think that anybody (not even their parents) understand their mindset. They consider that the only ones with such a weight on their back are themselves. Angst is part of the daily life of teenagers. It makes them lose control of their actions and feelings. Consequently, it makes them have such a negative image about everything. When they are undergoing it, they can prejudice people without any valid reason and totally ignore what just happened.

Unfortunately, angst can seriously affect teenager’s life. It can take over them and  it could be devastating. Not everyone can get along with it. In some cases, it can evolve into an emotional or mental problem such as depression, social phobia and in extreme cases, it can lead to suicide.  In Canada, youth suicide is the second leading cause of death with more than 280 suicides per year. This includes only the teenagers from ten to twenty four years old. Males are more likely to commit suicide since they are less open-minded when it comes to talk about their feelings and problems than women are.

Being a teenager is not about only doing crazy things and going to high school. It is also a moment of self realization, a process that is full of thoughts, dreams and plenty of feelings. It is a unique period of life that people will never experience again. Once you have passed through, you will never come back. You will be on adulthood. Angst is part of the difficulty of coming of age and it will be present all along the process. They key is to be self-conscious that all constant anxiety and insecurity about life as a whole would slowly disappear as we grow up. Afterwards, maturity comes and we enter into the world of adulthood.

I'm Just Coming of Age and Life is a Nightmare

In 2006, I was eleven years old, had taken my brother's cd-player, and locked myself away in my bedroom, fuming over the injustice of my parent's latest punishment. I hardly remember the pointless argument that led up to it, but I remember how I felt as my thoughts stewed. "This sucks, this isn't fair, what the hell, etc". I lay on my bunk, blasting my brother's track of "I'm Just a Kid" by Simple Plan. Nothing screamed angst back then like ignoring the world and losing yourself in loud music.

angst is one of the most essential parts of coming of age. as we go through that transition, nothing feels more clear than the feeling that no one ever has, does, or will understand you. Those years of angst growing up often feel the longest, and most negative. while I may be making it sound that angst is a bad thing and nobody wants anything to do with it, that's not my point. Angst is essential to the coming of age process. Angst, and the feelings of misunderstanding that come with it, help young adults understand the hard truths of growing up. Part of coming of age is starting to understand the harsh truths of the real world.
We spend our childhood shielded by our parents, thinking that life will always be sunshine and rainbows. As we grow up, we begin to see reality, and begin to resent our parents and other people in our life for hiding the truth. Angst is simply a part of this process. I ended up leaving that room and making peace with my parents, returned the CD and player to my brother, and all was well. It's not normal to spend all of our lives resenting everything, hating the world. Angst is a phase that can come and go, but in the end is simply something that helps us understand more about ourselves.
Essentially, I think everybody needs to feel angst in their lives at some point or another. It's healthy. You need to have some idea of injustice to help you get some idea of what's a part of life. Angst helps us grow.

Is Angst necessary in the coming of age process?

“Angst, often confused with anxiety, is a transcendent emotion in that it combines the unbearable anguish of life with the hopes of overcoming this seemingly impossible situation” http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Angst. Many people have different opinions on what Angst maybe in the coming of age process, but they all come down to the same meaning. Every process requires a shift in change and in order for an individual to change (youth to adulthood) we need to encounter a situation that causes an effect. Today the awareness of Angst amongst youth is more commonly known due to social media and case studies over the years. In my opinion Angst is inevitable in the coming of age process, without the feeling of Angst how we would ever now that we have transition from youth to adulthood and develop our own understanding of the world we live in.

Growing up as a child we have a view of the world in an innocent and imaginary way regardless the situation we are born into, then as we start to develop, we gather our own opinions and views based on our experiences, which leads to confusion and frustration. Heather O’Neill demonstrates a perfect example of angst in the coming of age process in her novel, Lullabies for little criminals. The main character “Baby”, a 12 year old girl born into a situation with no mother and a heroin addict father, still sees the innocents in the world and the beauty. As she undergoes the loss of losing her father to rehab and being shifted from one household to another, she is faced with the reality of “the real world”. She starts to develop her own thoughts and views of how ugly the world can be, because of the situation she is faced with. We start to see her anxiety, anxiousness and thoughts of death (something every teenager may face undergoing the coming of age process). Regardless the situation every youth undergoes a moment in the coming of age process of wondering what their purpose maybe in life.

I for one grew up with extremely traditional grandparents, that at the age of 17 years old I was forced to figure out what my career choice was going to be, and in their eyes it had to be something sophisticated (teacher, engineer, etc.). In my eyes I felt that I was being persuaded to go into a career that I may not even enjoy, at that age I had no idea of what I wanted to do because I was dealing with an ill father and a mother that was working fulltime to support her 2 children and taking care of her ill husband. Not only having to face with the situation at home I then started to feel the pressure from society because College applications were coming due and I was to decide what program I was to take. Feeling all this pressure from all ends of the stick, I felt the anguish, anxiety and the pressure from family and society to find my purpose in this world. Undergoing that situation helped me grow and develop my own ideas of what is right for me.  

Angst is important, without that inner conflict, frustration and anxiety, then the coming of age process will never happen. “Coming of Age” meaning that as an individual we have our own ideas and understanding of what we think, we are no longer dependant. Every culture is different but in the end every individual encounters a moment where they are to face a stepping stone in their life.

The People of Tomorrow

   What is Angst? A feeling of anxiety or dread, a constant worry, many feelings that can of course be related to the coming of age process. Coming of age is a period of transition from childhood to adulthood. For many of us this period is filled with many life-changing experiences that shape us into becoming the people of tomorrow. As teenagers, it is safe to say that the future is in our hands and this does not come without stress and anxiety and therefore, angst. As we get older we are expected to work harder and fight for everything we want in life. A recent article in USAToday shows us that a high 27% of teenagers feel “extremely stressed” during the school year. As a science student myself, I can honestly say I experience mild stress everyday because of school. For those of us who are ambitious and have a set goal in life, coming of age comes along with many hardships that we must overcome.

 

  Is angst a defining feature amongst teenagers? Yes. Can we overcome this worrisome feeling? Absolutely.

  We must learn to channel our inner angst in something powerful. We must have the willpower to succeed in life by working extremely hard everyday of our existence until we finally reach our goals. Dr. Hans Selye an Austrian-Canadian endocrinologist once said, “adopting the right attitude can convert a negative stress into a positive one.” I absolutely agree with Selye, in fact I probably do this everyday.

  Apart from school, there are many other things that stresses teens out such as family expectations, having a boyfriend/girlfriend, time management and many more things. Thankfully enough, stress and anxiety are not so hard to deal with after all. In my resistance training class last semester we had a section on stress coping skills. The four main things that have to be done in order to overcome daily stress is to identify the sources of stress in your life, learn how to cope with your type of stress, adopt a healthier lifestyle and expect a positive outcome. Although teenage angst is a feeling that most teens will experience while growing up, it is not a permanent feeling. I believe that with angst comes relief and a peace of mind.  

  

  Angst is very much a part of the coming-of-age process and although our generation has challenges that previous generations did not have, we also have opportunities and resources that previous generations we're not offered. Sometimes, all we need is a little change of perspective; we need to focus on what we really want and who we really are. Most importantly, we must always have a positive outlook on life. The future is ours to conquer.  

 

Smells Like Teen Spirit

You grow taller, your body starts taking shape, you grow hair, become independent, have greater responsibilities, go through puberty, experience changes amongst relationships... all things in becoming of age, right?  But is angst a defining feature too? Merriam-Webster dictionary defines teenage angst as a feeling of anxiety, apprehension, or insecurity.  Now, while for some teens it is definitely something they go through during their teenage years, it is not that situation for every teen. Assuming that all teens go through that moody, depressing, insecure phase is creating a single story. And a single story can be dangerous, as Chimamanda Adichie tells us during her TEDTalk.  Every teenager is different and every scenario is different as well. Situations in certain people’s lives bring out angst whereas other situations do the complete opposite. You cannot generalize an entire population of teenagers and say that everyone goes through teen angst because that’s just not the fact; there are no facts, statistics, or scientific proof that back up that claim.

It is hard to categorize teens as people who are angry and against the world around them when you have such a huge quantity of youth activists trying to make the world a better place. According to Statistics Canada, young Canadians, aged 15-24, are more likely to volunteer than any other age group.  Statistics Canada also states that 6 out of 10 young Canadians are said to volunteer one way or another.

With such a significant number of youth volunteers, it’s no wonder that there are so many organizations that are attracting youths. One organization that definitely contributes to the increase in youth volunteering and celebrates their accomplishments is Free the Children.  Empowering youths to fight for the rights of children around the world, Free the Children has currently made an impact in 9 countries. According to their impact report, the youth volunteer trips have contributed to 76,435 hours of volunteering, 52 new classrooms, 11 latrines, 33 murals, 8 housing units, and 2 school kitchens in the year 2013 alone… pretty remarkable! And that’s not all! Not only does Free the Children make an impact abroad, but in local communities as well.

Free the Children likes to give acknowledgement to those youth who are making an impact around the world and locally. That is why they’ve created We Day. And the greatest thing about this event, is that you cannot buy a ticket to it… you must earn your seat! You earn it through volunteering and/or fundraising. In We Day’s latest tour season, they held 14 global events with over 8000 schools participating, raised 45 million dollars for local and global causes, and accounted for 14.8 million volunteer hours. These aren’t just events of a few hundred people either; these are stadium-packed events of over 20,000 young activists.

This is just one organization, and there are so many more groups out there that are making similar impacts. Now how can you tell me that all teens are angry, unmotivated, and selfish people?

Your Angst, My Angst, Everywhere There’s Angst

How does one define the coming-of-age process? Is it by the angst that follows you through that time in your life? Many people view the coming-of-age process as a turbulent time in ones life.  And in all honesty it’s hard to disagree, we’ve all gone through those trying times, we’ve all had that one time where we snapped at our parents. To this, I must say that angst is seen everywhere throughout our coming-of-age process.

The Scream by Edvard Munch

Through our teenage years we all experience social discrepancies and changes. These experiences help shape our personality, not always in the best of ways, either with the loss of friends or changing of social statuses. The social dynamics change when you grow up and it causes fluctuations and unease, these feelings are what lead teenagers to their angst. This angst is there for a while, the anxiety fills you up and you don’t know where to put until life gives you the proper outlets. I truly believe that people do not lose the angst that comes up through those years and its actually our lives and our situations that give us the tools to cope with the anxiety, be it a really close friend, family, or even work, we learn and you move past it with a better outlook.

Through our life plenty of things happen, but I can say for certain that angst is part of the process of growing up for the character of Baby, from Lullabies for Little Criminals was anything but angst free.  She goes through an aspect of low self-worth when her pimp kisses her (181-182).  This is a great example of teen angst within this work of literature, it depicts the change in her state of mind, as a teenager she barely knows her right from wrongs. This kiss changes her personality to a deeper, more depressive view on life.

So is angst a defining nature within our coming-of-age process? Look around and tell me what you think.