On the evening of May 3, one day before China's Youth Day, well-known actor He Bing made a speech on Bilibili, a video-sharing platform themed around animation and games. The 52-year-old praised the younger generation, especially those born in the 1990s, and expressed his expectations for them.

This short video, titled Back Wave, was later aired on state broadcaster CCTV during prime time, sparking strong reaction and debate. The term back wave refers to the new generation, in contrast to the front wave of previous generations.

Some said they were inspired and encouraged by He's speech, while others argued that the video only reflects the lives of a small fraction of China's youth, namely the elite, and neglects the regular majority. Some also blamed the video for endorsing extravagance.

Unreal picture

Xie Minghong (www.jiemian.com): Today, upward social mobility is extremely difficult in China. Those born in the 1980s may have been unlikely to transform society, but for most of them it was not hard to move up the social ladder. In contrast, those born in the 1990s are told that working 12 hours a day, six days a week is a blessing.

Given these circumstances, it is natural for people from different backgrounds to view things differently. They are not haters, rather they just want to make it clear that their lives are not as glossy as the Back Wave video presents.

This raises the question as to whether a video seemingly so detached from the lives of most young people can really motivate the youth.

Social progress and the troubles plaguing this generation are ever-present in today's China. The video focuses on those who skydive abroad, not the couriers trudging through the rain. There are scenes of car racing, but no exhausted driving commuters. It presents an extravagant picture of the youth today. In reality, most attend standard universities, harbor dreams they will likely never attain, seldom travel abroad and earn just enough to make ends meet.

Undoubtedly, these people are not fond of the video. They don't relate to the video's scenes of prosperity which claim to represent their lives. A video that reflects the real lives of the majority of China's youth would have been more popular.

Cao Jili (New Weekly): He Bing's passionate speech in Back Wave stirred different emotions in different groups of people. I'd like to say that this idealized video was attractive but unconvincing, as most young people in China do not have the kind of freedom that he supposedly envies.

Bilibili's successful stars are a small fraction of the younger population. They have been successful at a young age. However, a number of young people have to fight just for survival. It is shocking that young people are living such different lives in the same society.

In the video, one passage came across as particularly tone deaf. "Yes, you've spent 10 years studying hard at school to get to where you are today, and you feel it unfair that others who haven't studied or worked as hard as you enjoy a much better life than yours. Yet don't forget that these people are standing on the success of several generations of their family."

Some think that it was excellent, unable to understand why so many people feel despair at so many things in today's society. The older generation believes that they have endured more hardship than today's youth. So why are so many young people lamenting their experience in life?

I don't mean to deny the positive side of this video. Indeed, nowadays some young people are more innovative and braver than their forebearers, but this is only a select few. The vast majority are ordinary people, working silently and invisibly, and they are absent in this video.

A lot of the criticism has focused on the fact that there are almost no scenes of ordinary people in this video. Hard work is respected and praised across society, but whether this sentiment can translate into a real change in attitude toward ordinary working people remains to be seen.

Family background aside, personal choices figure prominently as watershed moments in young people's lives. What should they study at university? Should they use their extra income to buy stocks or property? Is buying a big house in your hometown or a small flat in a big city the better choice?

Time will tell whether someone's choices are good or not, but regardless, life is too short for a second chance.

Why are so many young people complaining about the back wave tag? A primary reason is that it fails to address a fractured society. Most of China's younger generation are not covered by this video, and their lives are a world away from the gleaming life lived by the influencers presented in the video.

Hollow praise

Gen Xiangshun (c.m.163.com): At first glance, the Back Wave video is impressive and exciting. This generation should feel blessed and proud to live in such a prosperous, peaceful and technologically developed time awash with opportunities. This excitement manifests in immediate action, performing some great feats, becoming an example for the youth of today.

Take a second look, and you'll find this video smells of chicken soup—feel-good stories that have no tangible effect on people's lives. Yet the video has been hailed by some as speaking on behalf of China's youth. It did not choose a representative of the younger generation, but a middle-aged man as its star. He Bing praises and flatters the younger generation for their talent and vitality, referencing the prosperous time they are living in. Despite the many frequently quoted plaudits, he fails to grasp exactly how the youth of today are living, what they are thinking and experiencing. In my opinion, his speech should not be regarded as representing the youngergeneration.

Nowadays, young people in China don't have to endure war and famine, they enjoy health and life security, as well as freedom in choosing jobs and building businesses. As far as their talent allows, they can go to prestigious universities and seek a brighter future than the older generations would have dared dream of. In this sense, they are living a much happier and freer life than their forebearers.

Nevertheless, what Back Wave shows is a tiny fraction of China's young population: the elite, who are ensured the economic foundations for extravagant lifestyles and personal development. But these polished images cannot conceal the numerous challenges ordinary young people are facing.

Most young people today feel anxious about their future at university given this year's grim employment situation affected by the novel coronavirus outbreak, commute to work in crowded buses and metros for meager incomes at small companies, and worry about their mortgages, car loans and next month's rent.

Eye-watering housing prices and skyrocketing living costs prevent a large number of young people from settling down in major cities after graduating from university. Rural young people travel to faraway cities for mostly casual work, and are easily dispensable at middle age. Many in this generation feel apprehensive about their future prospects, lamenting that they can't secure a foothold in cities yet have no jobs in their rural hometowns.

The so-called back wave generation may have more freedom in their choices and better access to information, but only that which is left over by previous generations.

While it may seem that the back wave has the world at their feet, from a social perspective, most of this world's resources belong to the front wave. The world may ultimately be passed on to the younger generation, but only to a small proportion of this group.

Older generations may envy the youth of today for the endless opportunities awaiting them, but the youth envy their parents' generation for the opportunities thanks to the more than four decades of fast economic growth brought by reform and opening up, the Internet boom and globalization. Their own future, as they see it, is clouded with uncertainty.

Less chicken soup and more reality, please! This younger generation is realistic and will not be tricked easily.

Copyedited by Laurence Coulton