讲解人 · John
原文
At 23, Sophie falls firmly into Gen Z, the cohort born between 1997 and 2012.
She suspects that her generation may never own homes, accumulate comfortable retirement savings or achieve other traditional financial milestones.
She’s not alone: Gen Z content creators are loudly airing their nihilism on TikTok and expressing frustration at what they call unattainable financial goals.
But experts say the disgruntled TikToks don’t tell the whole story.
Around the globe, the eldest Gen Z-ers are heading into their late-20s amid undeniable economic headwinds.
Per the July 2024 World Economic Outlook update published by the International Monetary Fund, “momentum on global disinflation is slowing”, marked by ongoing higher-than-average inflation in services prices, cross-border trade restrictions and central banks’ reluctance to initiate rate cuts.
With that in mind, financial negativity isn’t just a Gen Z problem.
Financial wellness company Brightplan’s 2024 Wellness Barometer Survey of 1, 400 US-based knowledge workers at global companies found that a majority, regardless of age, report feeling stressed about their financial situation, citing high inflation, rising interest rates and market volatility as complicating factors.
The younger generation still wants to flourish, says Mark Beal, an assistant professor at the Rutgers University School of Communication and Information.
“Gen Z does have financial goals, “ notes Beal.
“They’re just approaching [goals] differently.
It’s not quite as structured and rigid as previous generations — those of us who thought, ‘By the time I’m 30, I need a house with a white picket fence’.”
带着问题听讲解
- 如何理解 nihilism 这个词？
- 根据文章，专家对 Z 世代的财务目标有何看法？
- 根据文中提及的调查，为什么大多数人对自己的财务状况感到压力？
讲解
重点词汇
nihilistic
/ˌnaɪ.əˈlɪs.tɪk/
adj. 虚无主义的；虚无主义者的
- 词根词缀：nihil（拉丁语，nothing）例句：His nihilistic view of life led him to believe that nothing truly mattered.
cohort
/ˈkoʊ.hɔːrt/
n.（有共同特点或举止类同的）一群人，一批人
- 搭配短语：the 1999 birth cohort搭配短语：a cohort of 400 patients aged 65 plus
air
/er/
v. 使公开；宣扬；播送，播放
- 例句：The new episode of the series will air tonight at 9 PM.原文释义：to say in public what your opinions or complaints about something are例句：He aired his concerns about the project at the company meeting.
nihilism
/ˈnaɪ.ə.lɪ.zəm/
n. 虚无主义
disgruntled
/dɪsˈɡrʌn.t̬əld/
adj.（尤因事情未如所愿而）不满的；失望的；恼怒的
- 搭配短语：a disgruntled client（不满的客户）相关词汇：gruntled（adj. 高兴的；满意的）
headwind
/ˈhed.wɪnd/
n. 逆风，顶头风
- 反义词：tailwind（n. 顺风）搭配短语：a stiff / strong headwind
- 例句：The airplane faced strong headwinds during its flight, which delayed its arrival by an hour.
per
/pɝː/ /pɚ/
prep. 依照；依据；每，每一
- 例句：Calculate the cost per kilo.近义词：according to例句：Per your advice, I accepted their offer.搭配短语：as per
- 例句：The work was done as per your instructions.
outlook
/ˈaʊt.lʊk/
n. 展望；前景；世界观；人生观；（对事物总体的）观点，看法；景色；景致
- 英文释义：a view from a particular place；your general attitude to life and the world例句：They shared the same kind of outlook on life.例句：The general outlook is much better than it was last year.
momentum
/məˈmen.t̬əm/
n. 势头；冲劲；冲力，推力，动力
- 英文释义：the force that makes a moving object keep moving例句：The vehicle gained momentum as the road dipped.搭配短语：gain / gather momentum（加速；有冲劲）例句：The movie loses momentum toward the end.（没劲儿，变得无聊，没看头）
initiate
/ɪˈnɪʃ.i.eɪt/
v. 使开始；发动（重要的事，如正式的程序或新计划）
- 例句：They have decided to initiate legal proceedings against the newspaper.
barometer
/bəˈrɑː.mə.t̬ɚ/
n.（反映事物变化的）晴雨表，指标，标志；气压计，晴雨表
例句：The skin is an accurate barometer of emotional and physical health.
volatility
/ˌvɑː.ləˈtɪl.ə.t̬i/
n. 易变，变化无常
- 相关词汇：volatile（adj.（局势）易变的，变化无常的，动荡不定的）
- 例句：The stock market can be very volatile.
flourish
/ˈflɝː.ɪʃ/
v. 成功；兴旺；茂盛；兴盛
- 英文释义：to be very successful
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