Then Larkin ponders how “forty years back” he would have been envied by his parents’ generation. My parents looked at my generation and envied our social mobility, access to education, increased prosperity. Today, when I think of my children having children of their own – something I long for – I sometimes shudder at my own wishes. What I hate most is that I feel pity – sorrow and pity – towards my own children’s generation. With every choice we take, my generation and my parents’ generation make the lives of the young worse.

Source: The Herald January 05, 2026 17:30 UTC