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Jessie Hu, a Chinese female college student who covered her face with a graduation cap while taking her college graduation photo./Washington Post and Jessie Hu
Jesse Hu (22), a graduate of the English department at Lanzhou University in Gansu Province, western China, took an unusual photo at the graduation ceremony. She took a photo of herself lying down on the lawn with his graduation cap on her face. The reason Jesse did this ‘photo performance’ was to express his frustration. He tried to get into graduate school, but after failing, he sent his resume to five companies. However, all documents were rejected. Jessie told the Washington Post, “I felt overwhelmed between so many options, including going to graduate school, studying abroad, and getting a job,” and added, “I took a graduation photo of me lying down to express the pressure.”
‘Tangping (body flatting)’ is popular among China’s Generation Z, who are frustrated by high youth unemployment and an uncertain future. Tangping, which means ‘lying flat,’ refers to a state of being helpless and having given up on marriage or employment. Young Chinese people are expressing their feelings of despair by taking pictures of themselves lying down on college campuses or on the streets and posting them on social media. These young people are called ‘Tangping people’ or ‘Tangping generation’.
Female students from Hunan University of Science and Technology are taking pictures while performing a lying performance at the graduation ceremony./Washington Post and Yaxin Shu
Tangping also contains the meaning of frustration that it is difficult to achieve one’s dreams no matter how hard one tries and anger towards the government that is indifferent to improving the lives of young people. Therefore, the Tangping generation is accepted as a similar concept to Korea’s ‘Npo generation’ and Japan’s ‘Satori generation’.
◇Desperation due to severe employment difficulties
Brenda Lu (21), who studied media communication at Nanjing University, took a photo of Tang Ping sitting on a bench wearing a graduation gown and covering her face with a book. He said, “My friends who have been stuck in the dormitory for three years during the pandemic and taking online classes are desperately trying to find a way out. This year’s job search situation can only be described as particularly bleak.”
Lane Su (22), who majored in digital media at Zhejiang University of Science and Technology in Hangzhou, also took a graduation photo lying on the floor of the school gym. It expresses her frustration at failing to find a job. He said, “Even my friends who have jobs only get paid about $350 a month,” and “the monthly rent in Hangzhou is so expensive that I can’t live (on $350).”
As the term Tangping became popular, T-shirts with this term on it were being sold on Amazon./Amazon
The reason Tangping people are appearing one after another is because of China’s severe employment shortage. Last June, China’s youth unemployment rate was 21.3%, the highest since 2018 when related statistics began to be compiled. Compared to December last year, which was 16.7%, it rose by nearly 5 percentage points in half a year. The Chinese government has not announced the youth unemployment rate since last July, and because it is too high, there are suspicions that it is no longer disclosing it.
Some argue that China’s actual youth unemployment rate is higher than what the government announces. Zhang Dandan, a professor at Peking University, announced in March that China’s actual youth unemployment rate was estimated to be 46.5%, more than twice the 19.7% announced by the government.
◇Chinese Generation Z suffers from a sense of helplessness
Some say that the reason Tangping is popular is not just because of employment difficulties, but also because of overall dissatisfaction with the older generation. Some say it contains a sense of loss that society is stagnant and that a bright future cannot be achieved no matter how hard one tries, or disappointment about the corruption of officials. There are also stories that young people’s anger has built up as various controls due to the coronavirus outbreak have been particularly intense in China for a long time.
Graphics = Kim Eui-gyun
Moreover, even if they succeed in finding a job, there are growing complaints that they are forced to work excessively compared to their salary. Sal Hang, 29, from Beijing, said in an interview with The Guardian, “When I was at work, I couldn’t meet the excessively high expectations set by my boss, so I lost motivation to work and ended up putting in minimal effort.”
Tangping began to spread around 2021, and recently the term ‘Bairan (摆烂)’ has also become popular. Byran, an expression from a basketball game, means ‘the score gap is so large that a team that is certain to lose is forced to give up the game.’ The South China Morning Post (SCMP), an English-language Hong Kong newspaper, said, “Bai Lan is popular among many young people who feel helpless.”
China’s job search crisis. Young people in Hangzhou are looking at job information. /The Wire China (thewirechina.com)
◇ Government solution to “Go to the countryside” is growing opposition
The Chinese government is giving the impression that it is trying to forcefully suppress the Tangping generation’s grievances rather than resolve them. In an editorial, the state-run media outlet People’s Network said, “The trend of Tang Ping and Bai Lan is a trend of avoiding responsibility,” and argued, “College students must be able to say ‘no’ firmly to this.” President Xi Jinping also told college students in May, “Have the spirit of ‘You have to endure the hardships and do it yourself.’”
Chinese President Xi Jinping/AP Yonhap News
As it is difficult to easily solve the problem of lack of jobs suitable for college graduates, the Chinese government is encouraging people to choose blue-collar jobs or get jobs in rural areas. However, the intensity of dissatisfaction is increasing as it is perceived as forcing young people to make sacrifices. SCMP said, “The idea of going to rural areas and getting a job is reminiscent of the downward movement during the Mao Zedong era.”
Chinese economists, including Professor Liu Shaoguang of Renmin University, recently issued a report warning, “If structural youth unemployment is not resolved, a social and political crisis may occur (in Chinese society).” These economists proposed guaranteeing people’s rights through the rule of law and strengthening the protection of private property rights as a solution.
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2023-10-01 21:00:00
