Documenting a generation

College students analyze the trends and traditions of today's culture, but few get to experience these ideas directly. Matt Wiggins, A&S '06, is one of the few students who gets to apply his hard-earned knowledge by trail-blazing a path across the country.

Wiggins joined his friends Matt Heineman, Ben Grinnell, and Adam White on a trip around the country to interview people in every state to get a feel for the ideas and themes expressed by our generation.

The group of four boys, three of whom graduated from Dartmouth last spring, took off from Acadia National Park in Maine, the easternmost point of the United States, on Sept. 21, the first day of fall. They will drive and fly around the country, hitting 49 of the 50 states in three months. Their project is slated to end on Dec. 21, the first day of winter, in New York.

The trip really got rolling when Nantucket Nectars agreed to sponsor the documentary.

"When [Natucket Nectars] joined, the project became a little more feasible," said Wiggins. "The founders were both entrepreneurs in college. They promote youth movement and entrepreneurship and they saw [our trip] as a way to connect to that market. They're about fresh ideas, and it was marketing for them. It was a big risk on their part. We were just four unproven college kids coming to them with a proposal."

Giving up his fall semester of senior year was one of the most difficult things involved in Wiggins' decision to do the project.

"This trip pushes me back a full semester, so I'll graduate with the class of 2007, officially making me a super-senior," said Wiggins. "After this trip, I'm sort of excited to have a little extra time in college to figure out the next step."

Wiggins spent eight weeks in Argentina during the spring semester, which influenced his decision to join the project.  

"While I was there I was thinking about the project, and I met a girl in a bar at the southernmost town of Argentina and we started talking about the cultural differences between Argentina and America," said Wiggins. "She started asking me questions like 'What are young people like in America? I know what your country and leaders are like - I see that everyday - but what are you guys like?' It sort of hit me that I didn't really know the answer myself."

After being on the road for over a month and a half, the guys have seen some interesting themes emerge. Even though they had scheduled interviews in advance in some towns, they are finding that the best stories come from the people they just meet along the way.

"My favorite part was going to random places and meeting random people," said Wiggins. "There was one day, we finished a profile and we were in Fremont, Indiana. It was a one-stoplight town. I walked through a grocery store to get water and got engaged in conversation with the cashier, and she had a story to tell. On her 15-minute break, she came to where we were parked and answered some of our questions. She broke down about her sister being in Iraq and how crystal methamphetamine was ravaging her town. When she was 15 she started exploiting her body, letting anyone do what they want. At 19, she shifted her mindset and started trying to clean up her life. She said the grocery store was a minimum-wage job, but at least it was honest. She had the most grim outlook on her surroundings, but she was the most positive about our generation. She was a true idealist. She said, 'there are a lot of reasons I should follow the path of everyone else in my hometown, but I have faith in myself and the American dream - so I'm going to aim higher.'"

Another key aspect of the trip that has influenced the boys has been the ability to see people and get exposure to cultures that are radically different from anything you'd see on the East Coast.

"In Northwestern South Dakota we met a guy who lived in a town of 120 people, and he had moved there from a town of 12," said Wiggins. "It had been just his family and one other family living there. He'd just submitted his first film to Sundance, and he thought it was a really big deal because he was able to do it from where he was living. He didn't need to be in a hub like Boston, New York, or L.A. Digital technology could let him do anything from anywhere.

"One thing that's been brought up numerous times as we've been heading west is crystal meth," said White. "Of course, there are plenty of positive trends, but this drug issue has been surprising for me because we just don't hear much about it in the Northeast. But in the Midwest and beyond, meth is taking a very real and substantial toll on our generation."

They've also found that the people they meet are eager to talk and express their opinions.

"When we're in town for a day or two we don't have time to worry about rejection, so we just go up and talk to anyone," said Grinnell. "Nine and a half out of 10 times, people are willing to talk. This openness has been an emerging theme."

Despite the range of personalities and landscapes they've visited, there are specific themes that keep surfacing in the thoughts and opinions of the interviewees. Some are expressions of exasperation at certain aspects of pop culture and the dominance of controversial political issues over others, which may have more pressing effects on all of humanity. There are, however, a lot of encouraging things being voiced as well.

"Community, regardless of the size, is a constant draw for most of these people," said Wiggins. "It might be a punk-rocking community, a frat, a close-knit family, or even an online community. The way these communities are formed is interesting. Nurture is more important than nature for most, but geography also shapes beliefs tremendously. So we're trying to figure out how that fits in."

When the trip ends, Wiggins will take the lead and do most of the editing on the BC campus.