Is it normal to feel weird to enjoy something created by someone younger than you

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So I’m 20 years old now, so I’m fairly young, so most of my life all the stuff I’ve enjoyed has been made by people older than me. But a thought dawned on me: at some point those people are all going to be younger than me, and if I live long enough most of the things I’ll be enjoying will be made by younger people!

About the closest I’ve come was when we read Frankenstein in school, but it was a revised edition, but I know Mary Shelley was only around 19 when she wrote the original. The closest I’ve come to hearing someone else say something similar, was one time I remember my grandpa talking to me about the music he liked and mentioned he listened to Elvis even though he was younger (my grandpa was born 1930, Elvis 1935). I also introduced my grandpa to The Hobbit, and he ended up reading most of it, and this was when he was nearly 81, the age JRR Tolkien was at the time of his death!

I guess I just considered works of art, in all mediums, as something big, something adults did, and the idea of consuming things created by younger people is kinda weird, especially books. It’s like looking for wisdom and insight from a younger person. Does anyone else agree?

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Based on 15 votes (13 yes)
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Comments ( 5 )
  • Boojum
    4 years ago

    Mozart wrote his first concert when he was eight fricking years old. It may not be your cup of tea, but it was very popular at the time and the idea of a kid that old creating something like that is mind-boggling.

    I think it's generally accepted that novelists create their best work around the age of fifty, but there are young writers who hit the zeitgeist and create something that speaks to people. Whether that opinion stands the test of time is another question. It's very common for novels that were wildly popular at one point to be completely forgotten about in a few decades.

    As an old geezer, it seems to me that neither youth nor age has a monopoly on wisdom. There's no shortage of old fools, and there are young people who are wise beyond their years.

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  • RoseIsabella
    4 years ago

    Ask yourself if what it really makes you feel is jealous, or inadequate.

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  • litelander8
    4 years ago

    I appreciate this thought. Thank you

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  • mauzi
    4 years ago

    I feel this way about memes and ytp. I am getting close to 30 and that stuff still makes me laugh even though it’s creators are probably teenagers

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  • JellyBeanBandit
    4 years ago

    I suppose it's normal, you'll get over it though soon enough.

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