The Real World XXIII: Ambassadors of Generation Y

By Sarah Timmings

Love it or hate it: The Real World has truly become ingrained in Gen Yer’smind’s as a reality show that stands apart from the rest, and in the minds of older generations as the show that is predicting the downfall of our way of life.  It has inspired countless imitators, none of which has been able to reproduce the following and notoriety that our eight strangers have.

I love The Real World. I started watching it nearly a decade ago when the housemates were still made up of seven strangers.  Usually, I am not a big fan of reality TV, but for some reason I hold TRW on a different level.  Sure, it’s exploitive and outlandish, but I can’t get enough of it.

That said, the casting crew at MTV is not fooling me.  I realize that, by trying to create a household of “diverse” housemates, they are really trying to pick a combination of people most likely to engage in ideological and religious arguments—and, of course, sexual promiscuity.

What is most interesting to me is the unique group of people who may or may not represent our generation.  Erika and Josh are both well-behaved hipster musicians.  Callie radiates sunshine and seems incapable of cruelty.  Andrew is a character, for sure, with the worst game I have ever seen.  His only goal, evidently, is to get laid. Somehow, though, this comes off as endearing because he is absolutely clueless.

The remaining four housemates—Ty, Emily, Mike, and Ashley—are all about the drama.  Ty was abandoned as a child and cycled through foster homes before being adopted at five.  Emily was raised in what seems to be a cult, which she left as a teenager. She and Ty bond quickly over a mutual distrust of organized religion.  That relationship quickly dissolves because Ty develops an immediate attachment to the un-reciprocating Emily, who has severed ties with her abusive parents.  And, finally, Mike is religious, a former prom king, and a football player who recently came out as bisexual.

After watching part of the first episode, I thought, “Wow! MTV has really gotten a group of enlightened, decent people this season.”  Everyone seemed open-minded, politically informed, and genuine.  Well, the more I see, the more I realize I was wrong.  There have been fights over religion, misinterpretations of romantic advances, and flat out insults.  You know, the usual.  I will say this about the new housemates, though: they all own up to their mistakes—and flaws.  Everyone who misbehaves makes amends.  So maybe we are seeing some growth in how the show is cast.

However accurate or inaccurate Gen Yer’s think the relationships and drama that take place on TRW are, older generations view the housemates as ambassadors for our generation.  The housemates, who are usually between eighteen and twenty five, become the world’s schema for Gen Y without even trying.  By repeatedly televising the lives of slightly unstable men and women from our age group, TRW has forced older and younger generations to form the most obvious conclusions about us.  We must all be belligerent, promiscuous drunks.  Right?

Because people in their mid thirties and above do not watch MTV, they are most likely to hear about TRW in the news when a housemate has done something outrageous.  What they see in a 30-second viewing of the show, or what they hear from a critic in the news, will only lead to a snap judgment.  They may tune in only to catch Ashley and Mike cursing each other out or to see Andrew drunkenly hitting on girls, and think, “What is happening to the youth in this country?” They don’t know the back story when they make these assumptions.  Ashley lashes out because she was abused by her stepfather and abandoned by her mother. And Andrew is just painfully awkward when it comes to the opposite sex.  To someone who watches the show and understands the housemates’ motivation, these actions are certainly not justified, but they are understandable.

Another thing that continues to amaze me is how quickly people forget what it is like to be young.  Older people see the behavior on TRW as irresponsible and self-destructive, and some of it is just that.  They forget, however, that being young is about making mistakes sometimes.  Our youth is the only time in our lives when we have freedom and limited responsibility.  We are too old to worry about curfews and too young to worry about taking care of a family.  If there is a time in life when it is acceptable to stay out all night and be a little reckless, it would be now.  On second thought, maybe people remember exactly what it was like to be young.

But maybe they judge this behavior because it rings true to their own experiences.

Photo Credit: Washingtonian.com