Shen Xiang lives in a shipping crate on a construction site in Shanghai which he

shares with at least seven other young workers. He sleeps in a bunk and uses a bucket to
wash in. “It’s uncomfortable,” he says. Still, he pays no rent and the walk to work is only a
few paces. Mr Shen hails from a village of mountains, rivers and trees”. He is a migrant
worker and the son of two migrants, so he has always been a second-class citizen in his own
country.

Shen Xiang locuieste/traieste intr-un container situat intr-un santier din

Shangai pe care il imparte cu cel putin alti 7 muncitori tineri. Doarme intr-un pat
supraetajat si se spala la galeata/ se spala cu ajutorul unei galeti. “E incomod”, spune
el. Totusi, nu plateste chirie si drumul pana la munca e scurt. Dl. Shen provine dintr-
un sat inconjurat de munti, rauri si copaci. Fiind un muncitor si fiul a doi imigranti, a
fost mereu considerat un cetatean de mana a doua in propria lui tara.

In China, many public services in cities are reserved for those with a hukou
(residence permit). Despite recent reforms, it is still hard for a rural migrant to obtain a
big-city hukou. Mr Shen was shut out of government schools in Shanghai even though his
parents worked there. Instead he had to make do with a worse one back in his village.

In China, multe dintre serviciile publice din orase sunt rezervate pentru cei
care detin un hukou (permis de sedere). In ciuda reformelor din ultima vreme, inca
este dificil pentru un immigrant din mediul rural sa obtina un hukou pentru orase mari.
Dlui. Shen nu i-a fost permis accesul la scolile de stat din Shanghai, chiar daca
parintii lui lucrau acolo. In schimb, a trebuit sa se multumeasca cu o scoala mai slaba
din satul lui natal.

Now he paints hotels. The pay is good—300 yuan ($47) for an 11-hour day—and jobs
are more plentiful in Shanghai than back in the countryside. His ambition is “to get married
as fast as I can”. But he cannot afford to. There are more young men than young women in
China because so many girl babies were aborted in previous decades. So the women today
can afford to be picky. Mr Shen had a girlfriend once, but her family demanded that he
buy her a house. “I didn’t have enough money, so we broke up,” he recalls. Mr Shen doubts
that he will ever be able to buy a flat in Shanghai. In any case, without the right hukou his
children would not get subsidised education or health care there. “It’s unfair,” he says.

Acum, vopseste/ varuieste hoteluri// este zugrav in hoteluri. Se plateste bine –

300 de yuani (47 de dolari) pentru 11 ore pe zi – iar locurile de munca sunt mai
numeroase in Shanghai decat la tara. Ambitia/ Visul lui este sa “ma insor cat de
repede pot”/ “se insoare cat de repede poate”. Dar nu-si permite. In China sunt mai
multi tineri decat tinere, pentru ca multe fetite au fost avortate in deceniile
precedente. Deci, femeile din ziua de astazi isi permit sa fie pretentioase/ selective.
Dl. Shen a avut o prietena mai demult, dar familia ei i-a cerut sa-i cumpere o casa.
“N-am avut destui bani, deci ne-am despartit,” isi aminteste. Dl. Shen se indoieste
ca va putea vreodata sa cumpere un apartament in Shanghai. In orice caz/ Oricum,
fara hukou-ul potrivit copiii sai nu ar avea parte de educatie si asistenta medicala
gratuite. “Nu-i correct,” spune.

There are 1.8 billion young people in the world, roughly a quarter of the total
population. (This report defines “young” as between about 15 and 30.) All generalisations
about such a vast group should be taken with a bucket of salt. What is true of young
Chinese may not apply to young Americans or Burundians. But the young do have some
things in common: they grew up in the age of smartphones and in the shadow of a global
financial disaster. They fret that it is hard to get a good education, a steady job, a home
and—eventually—a mate with whom to start a family.

In lume exista 1,8 miliarde de tineri, adica aproximativ un sfert din populatia
totala. (Acest studiu incadreaza un “tanar” in intervalul de varsta 15-30 de ani/
acest studiu defineste tinerii ca fiind persoane cu varsta cuprinsa intre 15 si 30 de
ani). Nicio generalizare despre un grup atat de vast nu ar trebui luata de buna. Un
lucru valabil pentru tinerii chinezi poate sa nu se aplice tinerilor americani sau
burundezi. Dar tinerii au cateva lucruri in comun: au crescut in era telefoanelor
inteligente si in contextul unui dezastru financiar de dimensiuni globale. Se tem ca
este greu sa obtina o educatie buna, un loc de munca stabil, o locuinta si, in cele din
urma, un partener cu care sa intemeieze o familie.

Companies are obsessed with understanding how the new generations think, the
better to recruit them or sell them stuff. Consultants churn out endless reports explaining
that they like to share, require constant praise and so forth. Pundits fret that the young
in rich countries never seem to grow out of adolescence, with their constant posting of
selfies on social media and their desire for “safe spaces” at university, shielded from
discomforting ideas.

Companiile urmaresc cu disperare sa inteleaga cum gandesc noile generatii,

pentnru a-i recruta sau a le vinde lucruri. Consultatii scot rapoarte interminabile pe
banda rulanta in care explica faptul ca tinerilor le place sa impartaseasca, ca au
nevoie de lauda constanta si asa mai departe. Expertii se tem ca tinerii din tarile
bogate nu par sa se maturizeze niciodata, cu toate pozele lor de tip autoportret
postate pe retelele de socializare si cu dorinta lor pentru “spatii sigure” la
universitate, departe de idei suparatoare.
1. How would you describe Mr Shen’s life in Shanghai? What are the
advantages and disadvantages of his situation?
Mr. Shen lives a hard life in Shanghai. He sleeps in an overcrowded room,
washes using a bucket and has never had access to subsidized healthcare
and education there due to not having a residence permit. Still, he doesn’t
pay rent and doesn’t have to commute to work.
2. Which are the public services not accessible for migrant workers?
Public services are not accessible for migrant workers due to them not
having a hukou (residence permit)
3. Why do you think the Chinese government denies migrant workers residence
permits?
Because it would lead to a massive wave of migrants coming to the city.
4. How many young people are there in the world and how is youth defined in
this article?
1,8 billion, youth is defined as people between the ages of 15 and 30
5. Explain the sentence: ‘All generalisations about such a vast group should be
taken with a bucket of salt.’
The sentence means that, because young population is so diverse,
generalisations regarding this age group can often not apply to everyone in
it.
6. Why does the author pit the young Chinese against the young Americans or
Burundians? What are the pontetial differences between these two groups
of youngsters?
The author does that because they belong to different communities and
cultures, thus facing different experiences.
7. What are the hurdles that young people face?
Unemployment, difficulty obtaining education, rising housing costs
8. How are young people described by experts?
Smarter, more talented, with more opportunities than their predecessors;
at the same time, they are an “oppressed minority” held back by their
elders.
9. The report suggests that this is a fortunate era for the younger
generation. List the reasons provided.
“They are richer and likely to live longer than any previous generation. On
their smartphones they can find all the information in the world. If they
are female or gay, in most countries they enjoy freedoms that their
predecessors could barely have imagined. They are also brainier than any
previous generation. Average scores on intelligence tests have been rising
 for decades in many countries, thanks to better nutrition and mass
education.”
10. The article claims that, paradoxically, young people have a more difficult
time than their parents. Why? List the reasons provided.
“Yet much of their talent is being squandered. In most regions they are at
least twice as likely as their elders to be unemployed. Over 25% of
youngsters in middle-income nations and 15% in rich ones are NEETs: not in
education, employment or training. The job market they are entering is
more competitive than ever, and in many countries the rules are rigged to
favour those who already have a job.
Education has become so expensive that many students rack up heavy
debts. Housing has grown costlier, too, especially in the globally connected
megacities where the best jobs are. Young people yearn to move to such
cities: beside higher pay, they offer excitement and a wide selection of
other young people to date or marry. Yet constraints on the supply of
housing make that hard.”

11. Explain:

a. ‘The job market they are entering is more competitive than ever, and in many
countries the rules are rigged to favour those who already have a job.’

This is because experience is often one of the requirements for a job. So, if you
never had a job -> you can’t get a job.

b. ‘Alas, despite improvements in fertility treatment the biological clock has not been
reset to accommodate modern working lives.’

Young people focus more on career than on building families -> get married later in
life -> might lead to difficulty in having children

12. In lines 48-52, a contrast is described in the way money is transferred from
one generation to another. What does this contrast consist in?

“Throughout human history, the old have subsidised the young. In rich countries,
however, that flow has recently started to reverse. Ronald Lee of the University of
California, Berkeley, and Andrew Mason at the University of Hawaii measured how
much people earn at different ages in 23 countries, and how much they consume.
Within families, intergenerational transfers still flow almost entirely from older to
younger. However, in rich countries public spending favours pensions and health care
for the old over education for the young. Much of this is paid for by borrowing, and
the bill will one day land on the young.” ( Basically: the old used to pay for the
young, but now the young pays for the old)

13. What does ‘borrowing’ in line 53 refer to?

Borrowing money/ Racking up debt

14. Discuss the young people’s relation to politics, politicians and political parties.

Despite caring a lot about political causes, young people lack faith in politicians and
political parties, which makes them not vote.

15. The final paragraph suggests that it is dangerous not to use young people’s
talent. Explain.

Because they could get angry & start revolutions