Yes. If only because Hollywood makes films primarily for the Americans themselves. But, naturally, not all aspects of life are shown. The topic of studying is often omitted, and only because a lot here depends on the school: students from good schools devote a lot of time to studying (especially in high school) in order to score high on the exam and get into a decent college, about truancy, humiliation and bad behavior in such schools there is no question (this is quickly decided by the authorities). In schools at a lower level, the rules are not as strict, and the student population there is completely different (lower standard of living and ambitions).

So all that remains is to film about what unites both groups - the social aspect. Teenagers in America really have nowhere else to go other than shopping malls. There are no courtyards in the form we are familiar with, parks are only in big cities. They stay at the shopping center for communication, and for dating, they stay at the “registration” center.

Template models of behavior, such as “a handsome athlete is an egoist, a beautiful cheerleader, an ugly nerd” and so on are sometimes greatly exaggerated, but reflect reality from the psychological side: they are drawn to beautiful people, beautiful people love themselves -> selfish, nerds don’t have enough time and desire to take care of your appearance and other banalities. But these types of teenagers are not unique to America.

Basically yes, with adjustments for obvious imagination, somewhat greater poverty (see below), and the presence of immigrants (also see below).

I will give a few examples of films that, in my opinion, show American teenagers very realistically. (IMDB Links)

Many films where John Hughes was the director (ru.wikipedia.org) and www.imdb.com). Breakfast Club http://www.imdb.com/tit le/tt0088847/ , 16 candles http://www .imdb.com/title/tt0088128/ , Ferris Buehler http:// www.imdb.com /title/tt0091042 / (except for the title character, of course) very accurate portraits of typical American teenagers. (Of course, several decades have passed, and today's youth have smartphones... but the behavior is the same)

Heathers www.imdb.com also perfectly shows how some teenagers are “friends against” others - typical behavior in an American school. Some are offended, most are not. (Of course there are elements of fantasy - killing someone and faking suicide, or blowing up a school - just fantasy)

Bully www.imdb.com is based on the true story of the murder of a boy by his school friends. Shows the atmosphere of less wealthy/up and coming families very well.

In general, American cinema and television likes to show characters living more richly than most viewers, because it is more interesting for viewers. In the movies, a teenager and his friends can suddenly decide to fly to Mexico for a weekend to swim in the sea. In reality, such a trip is really accessible to many, but you need to plan, save money for it, etc. Or, for example, few families will buy a car for their child’s 16th birthday. (Even if there is money, teenagers are now significantly less interested in driving licenses).

Russian and American teenagers have different attitudes towards education. Russian teenagers take their studies easier than American teenagers. For them, school years are a time of carelessness. Whereas the American one approaches the education process with all responsibility.

Most likely, this is due to the fact that most Americans decide in advance about their future profession and admission to the desired university. At the same time, Russian teenagers cannot realize their future calling for a long time. In addition, parents often make the choice for them.

American teenagers love to study. They spend a huge amount of time on educational activities and actively participate in school or student life. From an early age they learn to plan their time. In America, it’s simply a shame not to study, because either sponsors or parents pay a lot of money for studying. At the same time, children understand that the invested funds need to be worked off.

In American schools you cannot see anyone cheating from someone else. They strictly monitor this. Even classmates, having noticed someone cheating, can give him away. Russian schoolchildren not only cheat themselves, but also willingly let others cheat.

From early childhood, it is customary for the United States to participate in charity events and fulfill certain duties. They strive to be perceived as individuals. Russian schoolchildren are unlikely to take part in such events. Although in Russia there are many ideological personalities.

Appearance.

American teenagers do not attach any importance to their appearance. Even those who are overweight have absolutely no complexes. Clothing is very often simple and casual. The boys wear T-shirts and shorts. Girls - the same T-shirts and skirts.

Russian high school girls will never come to school in washed and unironed clothes. This is quite normal for American women. In addition, their clothes rarely match each other. It’s not that they don’t care about appearance and don’t want to be beautiful, they just have their own ideas about beauty.

In many states, there is no difference in the cost or quality of clothing among teenagers. They do not focus on the presence or absence of a particular car. In this regard, there is no differentiation based on social status or the amount of money a family has. More precisely, it exists, people just don’t advertise it to each other.

Children of all nationalities have many common characteristics and their development follows a similar pattern. However, during adolescence, certain differences begin to appear. With the US and Russia regularly pitted against each other, it will be fun to see what the differences are between Russian and American teenagers.

Relationship with studies

Teenagers in the United States take the educational process with full responsibility. Plus, they love to learn. They take an active part in the social activities of the educational institution and devote a large amount of time to the development of certain projects. In addition, in the USA it is not at all prestigious not to study, since studies are paid for by parents or sponsorship structures, and the invested funds must be worked off. For Russian youth, learning time is a fun and carefree period. Accessible and free school education is taken for granted. Therefore, personal responsibility is developed.

American teenagers mostly know in advance which university they will go to next and who they will be in the future. Sometimes their parents make this choice for them. This forces teenagers to learn to plan their own time and life for the future. Russian schoolchildren, for the most part, unfortunately, may not know exactly where they will go next until the very end.

Another fascinating point is the issue of cheating and cheat sheets. American teenagers don't do this on exams. In addition, when they notice someone cheating, they will definitely tell the teacher. For Russian teenagers this is something like a sport. They not only cleverly cheat during exams, but also actively help their classmates.

From a young age, American children and adolescents are taught to have an active social life. Charity events and other events do not take place without their participation. Russian schoolchildren can also boast a large number of activists, but this practice is not yet so widespread.

Appearance

Teenagers in America don't worry much about their appearance. They are often not fixated on excess weight and other shortcomings. Without trying to imitate fashion trends, both boys and girls wear loose T-shirts and jeans. Therefore, any complexes regarding social status, the price of clothing, or belonging to a particular brand naturally disappear.

Among Russian students, everything is completely different. While guys often take their own appearance lightly, for girls this is a very serious topic. They carefully approach the issue of choosing outfits, as if competing with their peers.

Relationships with elders

It is quite difficult to form a definite opinion based on youth films and news information alone. But it’s hard not to pay attention to the fact that they have respect and support from the older generation. In the States, they believe that the future belongs to young people, therefore, when a person has the opportunity to provide a teenager with a job or help realize a plan, he will definitely do it. Even when for this purpose it is necessary to displace an employee with experience and send him to retire, the manager will prefer to give way to a young one.

As for Russian youth, it is much more difficult for them to realize themselves. As a rule, the older generation looks at teenagers with distrust or some condemnation. All projects or intentions of self-expression are regarded with hostility. Very often, in many institutions, good positions are occupied by pensioners, while young people are not able to find a job.

Carier start

Work is considered an integral part of the everyday life of American teenagers. From the age of 13, a teenager has the full right to independently earn money for personal expenses, having received permission from school and parents. Such activities could include delivering mail, walking pets, babysitting, and so on. At the age of 16, young people try to go to work in catering establishments or gas stations. And this does not interfere with the educational process at all, since employers calmly make concessions. This is how teenagers from a young age get used to independent activities and begin to save for their future.

There are huge differences between Russian and American teenagers here. Our children do not have legal grounds, nor the opportunity to work, for example, from the age of 13, which is why they depend on their parents for a long time.

Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, the differences between Russians and Americans are gradually disappearing. In both countries, children wear fashionable clothes that vaguely resemble the eighties, they listen to very loud music (and perhaps not as good as “nowadays”), and they all yearn to live in a freer country that could be more responsive to their wishes.

But despite the superficial similarities between the rising generations in the United States and Russia, the cultural differences between the countries run deep. Of course, the presidents of both countries may be great friends, but that doesn't mean teenagers will copy them. Cultural differences remain. Let's note some of them.

1. Schools in Russia are more formal than in America.

These days, most high schools give students a lot of freedom. For example, very often teachers do not prohibit teenagers from having drinks in class as long as they do not violate discipline and behave normally. In Russia, the atmosphere in schools is more businesslike; not only is it prohibited to bring food and drinks into classes, but students cannot even choose their own curriculum. In public schools, all students follow the same curriculum.

2. Respect for teachers is on another level.

In Russia, children stand up when the teacher enters the classroom, as if when a commander appears. Teachers are encouraged to maintain an emphatically formal relationship with students. In the USA, a teacher can exchange a few phrases with students on abstract topics or tell a story from life. This is not allowed in Russia.

3. Russian teenagers are not happy with their American peers

It's not that they don't like Americans, but rather just the American government. They were raised that way (they are a bit xenophobic). American teenagers, on the contrary, are generally not at all interested in what is happening outside their country. So, yes, some Russian teenagers don't like America, but at least they have their own opinions on international relations, is that bad?

4. In America EVERYONE goes to school

Nowadays, the number of students in an average American school can reach 2,300 people and even exceed this figure, which can shock their Russian peers. In Russia, the average number of students in a class is 18 (in the USA - 23).

5. American school bells no longer ring.

Several years ago, the traditional bell in American schools was replaced by an electronic sound signal transmitted over an intercom system. Russian schools still use the sound of a bell.

6. Schools don't have lockers.

In America, this is so common that children even hide things they don’t want to keep at home in their school lockers. Russian schoolchildren cannot afford a little personal space in their schools.

7. Different attitudes towards the past

When an American parent wants to tell his child something about his life, he usually feels as if he is talking to a brick wall. American teenagers don't care about what happened before they were born. In Russia, teenagers are interested in the history of their country, regret the collapse of the great state, but (according to the author of the article) do not recognize the difficulties with which life was full at that time.

8. Different attitudes towards human rights

In modern American society, children are taught to demonstrate kindness to others in any way possible, including in relation to gender differences. It is allowed to love a peer of the same sex, to question the gender of friends, it is believed that in this way, through play, the child learns to be honest (after all, it is so good to be honest). In this regard (as the author of the article puts it), Russia's reputation is very low, so Russian teenagers prefer not to even think about it, much less protest.

9. Teenagers in Russia have the right to vote

In the 2016 US presidential election, of the 138 million voters who turned out to vote, only 24 million were under the age of 30. In other words, voting is not a priority for young people in America. They are much more interested in participating in open-air protests on Wall Street. In Russia, young people have the right to vote. As one teenager I talked to said, “The only real help we can give to our country is to go vote in elections.”

America. The first thing that is associated with this word is New York (Manhattan), Hollywood, the film industry, etc. Anything except fashion. At first glance, this is as it should be. After all, Paris is considered the fashion capital all over the world. It was France that brought up many of the most famous couturiers, such as: Jean-Paul Gaultier, Christian Dior, Yves Saint Laurent, Pierre Cardin, etc.

On the other hand, one of the first things we pay attention to when watching American films or TV series is a special style of clothing that everyone wants to copy literally from the first minutes.

The modern American style of clothing was formed quite long and difficult. One of the first prerequisites was the era of the 20s. The era of Gabrielle Chanel, who created the image of a simple American worker. Then there were the 40s - the time of Dior and his new feminine images. In the 60s, feminist and pacifist movements developed; the air “smells” of freedom, the removal of canons, and the blurring of boundaries between the sexes. And finally, the 80s gave birth to a new grotesque style - neoclassicism.

All this mixture of styles, their gradual development, acquired the character of chaos and spontaneity.

As J. Goebbels said: “everything ingenious is simple.” The style of modern Americans is not about beauty and grace, but, above all, about convenience and comfort. The simpler the clothes, the better. This is freedom.

Now every second person dreams of visiting this unusual, multinational and very free country.

Distinctive features of the style

To feel like one of the strangers, a guy should buy a couple of extremely simple, but incredibly comfortable cool things:

• Sweatpants (in addition designer sneakers);
• A pair of oversized sweatshirts with a geometric or cartoon print;
• As many T-shirts as possible that fit slightly around the body;
• Jeans, jeans and more jeans. Denim is one of the most popular fabrics in America, especially among teenagers and young adults;
• Suede or khaki wool jacket in a cowboy style;
• Leather Jacket;
• A checkered shirt, preferably a large one.

You should wear the most comfortable shoes on your feet, preferably made of genuine leather, suede, or possibly moccasins. Americans hold shoes in special esteem.

When creating an image, you can pay attention to the headdress. A suede jacket with jeans will be perfectly complemented by a cowboy hat. Moreover, in the USA it will not look out of place. And for sweatpants and a sweatshirt, a baseball cap is the best option.

An American teenager's closet should be bursting with old, forgotten, long-unworn items. Whether it's grandma's dress or mom's sweater from 30 years ago. Everything will come in handy. Unable to buy branded items for themselves, teenagers, without noticing it themselves, introduced fashion to worn jeans, T-shirts with patches, and bulky sweatshirts inherited from an ex-boyfriend or older brother. Girls' favorite clothes are denim shorts; they are worn in any weather. All these styles look very natural and surprisingly harmonious.

Shoes are exclusively sports.

Minimum makeup, maximum jewelry (lots of bracelets, earrings - rings, pendants on chains).

There are many layers in clothes, a combination of incongruous things.

In order to become an American girl and understand their style, you need to have a simpler approach to life and be always on the move.

For girls in America, it is not typical to spend a long time getting ready for a regular trip to the store or taking out the trash. American women prefer speed and convenience. They choose functional outfits for all occasions.

The blurring of gender boundaries has borne fruit. Women in the United States are increasingly dressing “like men.” No one will be surprised by a girl walking down the street in a classic suit and men's shoes or in a jacket 2 sizes too big. They add women's accessories to men's clothing, then the image will be more harmonious.

Everything should be appropriate and natural. From makeup to shoes. By the way, about her. You rarely see a woman in America wearing heels, especially in everyday life. They prefer flat soles: ballet flats, espadrilles, sandals with thin straps or wedges. All this should be made from natural materials.