In her 2019 book, The Problem with Everything: My Journey Through the New Culture Wars, author Meghan Daum takes on a host of topics. These topics include the Trump presidency, feminism in the modern day, cancel culture, and the differences between Gen X and Millennials.
In The Problem With Everything, Daum writes about being a kid in the 1970s, a time of of the TV show Zoom and when girls weren’t forced into the color pink. Things were a bit more unisex back then. She writes about the 1980s, when women were climbing the corporate ladder, yet were admonished as selfish careerists in a time of latchkey kids. And she also covers the 1990s, when she was in college and an intern in New York City. She looks back at these decades and compares them to the modern day. How have things changed? How have things not changed?
One things Daum talks about is the cancellation of people who may have a difference of opinion. She wonders where is the nuance and critical thinking when it comes to various issues. Perhaps, in the day of social media, where one tweet can be misconstrued, this may no longer be the case. Everything is so black and white. Will we ever embrace the gray in-between? Will conservatives and liberals offer each other an olive branch?
When it comes to feminism, Daum thinks it has accomplished most things. And yes, many women are better off than their grandmothers. But we still have a long way to go. She also questions the feminism of Millennials, which can come across as both celebrating victimization and calling oneself a “badass.” We’ve gone from Riot Grrrl to #Girlboss, but what does it mean? I know one, thing. Gen X feminists were also looked down upon back in the 1990s.
Daum also discusses the dissolution of her marriage, the state of the college campus then and now, and how people are afraid of the most mildest of criticism, worried they will be brandished a racist, homophobe, or misogynist. There’s really a lot to unpack these days.
I found Daum’s writing to be enlightening and interesting even though I didn’t agree with her on everything. But she does bring up some very compelling ideas that should provoke debate and discussion. And I wonder what Daum’s take on the issues she she could write about in 2022 in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, the January 6th insurrection, and the overturn of Roe V. Wade. Perhaps Daum will cover these things in her next book. I know if she does, I will definitely read it.
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