Henry David Thoreau wrote "Most men lead lives of quiet desperation and go to the grave with the song still in them." It appears as if such quiet desperation repeatedly plays out among undergraduates and graduate students. Away from the moorings of home, undergrads conform to the "Animal House" mythology for parties where alcohol flows freely, weed and experimentation is accessible, peer pressure is at an apex. For most with still developing identities, escapist hedonism appears the most ready answer; but hedonism is unrealized. Pleasure is sought but, devoid of substance, many are left searching without a compass.
For post-college days, many have given up this search and settled for an unsatisfying morass of just being in the presence of others. Perhaps it is the atmosphere of economic downturn and job scarcity but they've entered a haunted insomniac pursuit: over-entertained but lacking introspection. There is no patronizing here but a observation of many contemporary young adulthood. The light in all this is that being young and educated there remains room for hope.
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