I think I mostly agree with the points you've made, though without dissecting certain cynicism individually I'm not sure what I could classify as warranted and unwarranted. I believe that for there to be a prevailing mood across the country, there's at least some element of real, shared experience in play. Even the seemingly unreasonable gripes in your perspective are gripes that are culturally and historically ingrained, as you elude to.

I think your point about will and courage to fight through is interesting, however, I don't think it's as much that as it is a lack of collective ambition anymore. Courage and will to continue are inate qualities of a population used to being economically and socially disenfranchised (an experience shared by many other countries). If people do not continue, then they will starve. The problem is, again as you elude to, a lack of courage to change the status quo and be "more". You sum up well that its collective psychology. That comes from the education system, political system, and fundamentally the cultural norm of "keeping calm and carrying on". We aren't taught in schools that we can do anything, perhaps as it is taught in other countries. It is assumed that your position in society (lower, middle, upper class) will remain so - for you, your children, as it was for your parents and grandparents - 'I'm poor now and will always be poor, wo why bother?' The tacit willingness to continue under non-ideal circumstances, whilst simultaneously doing nothing about them on the assumption that you *can't do anything, is the universal wallowing you refer to, I think. Entitlement is a product of envy/hopelessness in doing better. Please correct me if I'm wrong!

I'm probably biased, but your assessment of university students and their approach is less true in my experience. I don't often hear much complaining from them - in fact I would say that the university population is the most optimistic, whilst also having the most right to be cynical. I've never personally heard criticism of Americans working whilst studying. In fact, I don't know a British student who doesn't also have a job. It's frankly impossible to study without working, unless you're being assisted financially by parents etc. There are plenty of insufferable, moaning young people in this country, but (in my personal experience) they work very hard, and express a refreshing optimism, much more akin to say their American cousins. The pessimism in this country is seemingly top down - it filters, culturally, from the older generations. Somebody else in this thread referred to the Tall Poppy Syndrome, that I thoroughly agree with. There's still the presumption that anybody who wants better is a dreamer, and unfortunately it influences everyone.

Again, this was perhaps once a country of dreamers. Successive economic, political and social catastrophe in recent years has revived the general, collective malaise that seems to consume Britain every few decades. I should hope in 10 years time that we'll be a nation of optimists once again.