IELTS Writing Task 2 – Old generations often hold some traditional ideas on the correct way of life
Old generations often hold some traditional ideas on the correct way of life, thinking and behavior. However, some people think that it is not helpful for the young generations to prepare for modern life in the future.
What’s your opinion?
Same Topic –
You should spend about 40 minutes on this task.
You should write at least 250 words.
IELTS Writing Task 2/ IELTS Essay Sample
Sample Answer 1:
Generation gap has been a debated issue since the dawn of civilization. I partially agree with
this statement. Modern life has changed beyond recognition in many ways and so many
ideas of the old generation are not suitable for today’s life, but still there are some
traditional ideas which are evergreen and hold true even today.
The elderly had a very disciplined life. For instance, they believed in sticking to one job for
life. They also believed in fixed-hours job. They had a stress-free work life. Moreover, they
believed that marriage was for life. Divorces were rare. They had a stable family life. These
values, if followed, are good for today’s generation also.
However, in many ways the ideas of the elderly are obsolete in the times of modernity. The
elderly live like a frog in the well. They forget that change is progress. They also want their
children to follow the same profession. They do not give importance to aptitude. Youngsters
are more intellectually evolved. They want to explore the un-trodden path to face the cut-
throat competition of today.
Furthermore, the young differ in dress, food and habits. These things were not available to
the elderly. The elderly had lesser opportunities to come in contact with the western world.
The earth was a big planet. Now it is a global village. The young speak a universal language,
eat Italian pizza and Chinese food and wear a universal dress. The leisurely ways of the old
are gone. The young have the speed of bikes, cars and planes. What can link them to the old
bullock cart? The young today have to change to survive.
To put it in a nutshell, I pen down saying that, there are some traditional ideas of the elderly
that are evergreen and will hold true for times to come. But, in many ways, they are
obsolete in today’s time.
Model Answer 2:
As the world is rapidly developing in this era of ever evolving technology, mindsets of old generations struggle to adapt to the current changes. People from these generations hold firmly to long-established lifestyle and expect the youth to follow it without considering thoroughly how it might trouble them. Personally, I am convinced that although the youngsters should preserve the traditional values, most of the conventional ideas are inappropriate to apply in the modern time.
To begin with, some traditional ways of thinking can go as far as to negate recent revolutionary conceptions. The most obvious example to look at is the violation of gender equity. In some countries, especially the Asian ones, women are normally considered to be inferior to men in several aspects. Not only are sons preferably given the educational opportunity, but daughters are also considered as misfortune in some rural areas. Such norm has but great negative impacts on young generations, since they are brought up with wrong ideas how life works.
Another, equally important, aspect is that prejudice might intervene in one’s individual private life. The choice of educational field, career and life partner are quite different than the past centuries and the old generation will have contradicting ideas about those important issues. Thus new generations should be allowed to choose those important aspects of their life as long as they are capable of taking decisions. The older generations have many false prejudices and superstitions which should not be passed to the new generations.
To sum up, it is undeniable that some traditional ideas have timeless validity, as they come from long-life practice and experiences and these should be embraced and followed. Nevertheless, from my perspective, many conventional concepts are out-of-date and they should be discarded to keep our society cohesive.
Model Answer 3:
It is true that many older people believe in traditional values that often seem incompatible with the needs of younger people. While I agree that some traditional ideas are outdated, I believe that others are still useful and should not be forgotten.
On the one hand, many of the ideas that elderly people have about life are becoming less relevant for younger people. In the past, for example, people were advised to learn a profession and find a secure job for life, but today’s workers expect much more variety and diversity from their careers. At the same time, the ‘rules’ around relationships are being eroded as young adults make their own choices about who and when to marry. But perhaps the greatest disparity between the generations can be seen in their attitudes towards gender roles. The traditional roles of men and women, as breadwinners and housewives, are no longer accepted as necessary or appropriate by most younger people.
On the other hand, some traditional views and values are certainly applicable to the modern world. For example, older generations attach great importance to working hard, doing one’s best, and taking pride in one’s work, and these behaviours can surely benefit young people as they enter today’s competitive job market. Other characteristics that are perhaps seen as traditional are politeness and good manners. In our globalised world, young adults can expect to come into contact with people from a huge variety of backgrounds, and it is more important than ever to treat others with respect. Finally, I believe that young people would lead happier lives if they had a more ‘old-fashioned’ sense of community and neighbourliness.
In conclusion, although the views of older people may sometimes seem unhelpful in today’s world, we should not dismiss all traditional ideas as irrelevant.
Sample answer 4:
It is true that older generations believe in traditional values that often seem incompatible with the need of younger people. This is the reason some people hold the opinion that traditional ideas are not helping new generations especially youngsters; whereas, others have the conflicting views. While, in the below essay, I will try to enunciate on this fact with my own perception.
To begin with, there are multifarious ideas that old people have that are becoming less relevant for younger generations. Firstly, in the olden days people were advised to learn a profession and find a secure job for life; whereas, nowadays, workers need variety and diversity in their career and this is the reason they change their jobs more frequently. Secondly, older generations used to give importance to relations, thus they used to believe in arrange marriage and marry a man or woman that they never met in life before. However, now youngsters take their own decision for getting married to a girl or a boy of their choice. Finally, roles of breadwinner and housewives are no longer valid or accepted by most of the younger people. By the contrast, others have the conflicting views.
As per them, some traditional values are certainly applicable to modern world. For example, older generations used to work very hard by doing their best and take pride’s in one work. Undeniably, this behavior will teach today’s generations to face the competitive world with positive attitude. Moreover, other characteristics that are shown and can be accepted by adolescents are of good manners and politeness. Definitely, because of work younger adults can meet many people from huge backgrounds; therefore it is better for them to meet all of them with respect. Finally, youngsters can live happier lives if they follow the same old fashioned sense of community.
To recapitulate, by looking at the above facts even though there are some ideas that are sometimes seem unhelpful in today’s world, we should not dismiss all traditional ideas as irrelevant
Get More Sample Answer – Writing Task 2
Submit your Essay here in the comment section, we will add your essay in our post.
(Collected, Source – Book, Internet)
