Is angst a defining feature of the coming-of-age- process?

Ashley Poleon

Miranda Campbell

English 103

September 30^th, 2014

Is angst a defining feature of the coming-of-age- process?

The coming-of-age is a person’s transition from childhood to adulthood, now the definition of the term angst comes from feeling anxiety, having a feeling of dread, also can be used in the term of feeling anguished. The term anguished means experiencing mental, emotional, and physical pain or suffering. If we did a poll on young teenagers ever feeling anguished, in my personal opinion the rank would be high. Everybody in their life has dealt with anxiety in a situation, nobody is perfect.  As a child you’re not handed decisions or experiences you don’t know how to handle. The older you get, the more life throw stones at you, and many don’t know how to handle many situations they get themselves into, and that can bring pressure.

In my personal opinion, the coming of age always comes with different experiences. Everyone’s coming of age is always different depending on what society you’re brought up in, but it doesn’t disregard the feeling of ever feeling anguished. When you reach the stage of becoming a teen and transitioning into a life adult, you get handed life choices and experiences, many get handed experiences they wish to never be in but that always comes with having a feeling of anxiety. I remember when I was twelve, going into high school for my first time, I was beyond excited the night before that I was starting a new chapter or my life but also dreading having to make new friends, and having to deal with the new workload I never had to deal with in elementary school. Eventually as the years went by, I adapted to dealing with change, but that came with experience.

I sometimes deal with anxiety myself, when I catch myself in a battle of getting everything done the same time as others. Society’s way of thinking everything has an age limit on something, I am sometimes in a battle of racing to get things done based on my age. I sometimes feel at the age of twenty I should have certain things figured out already, and move a little faster with my life on getting things done. Realistically speaking, there’s no age limit for school, getting married, getting your own place, and etc. Just because one person you know, managed to succeed at something you’re still struggling to succeed on doesn’t mean you need to both be at the same pace in your life. Everybody grows on their pace, and that’s one thing I still need to always remind myself on.  My anxiety always seems to kick in when I am comparing my life accomplishments to others.

In conclusion, I do believe angst describes perfectly the coming-of-age, the coming-of-age always comes with pressure. The pressure of figuring out what you’re planning on doing for the rest of your life, the pressure of fitting in, the pressure that society opposes onto you, and etc. Feeling pressured can also be a form of anxiety.  The older you get, the more decisions life hands to you, and that can be hard for many people who don’t have everything figured out.