Generational History. Strauss and Howe. A way of understanding the world.

[stephendare]

Riversidegator has attempted to define what ideologies I believe in for quite a while, coming as he does, from an extremely far right fringe point of view.

However this set of ideas, the idea of generational changes in politics and history is closer to what I think than anything else.

Here are a few excepts from the wikipedia page on the authors, Neil Howe and William Strauss.

Its one of the reasons that I think McCain just doesnt have a chance.

Between the GI generation's hubris and the fanaticalism of the Baby Boomers have left the world in quite a mess.   Strauss and Howe, with historical backup and painstaking research predict that Generation X lets things go to a certain point and just when the holy crusaders are about to blow everything up wake up and sweep them all pragmatically aside in favor of survival and sanity.

Strauss and Howe's first book, Generations (1991), tells the history of America as a succession of generational biographies circa 1584 to present. The authors identify a pattern in these generations: each can be seen as belonging to one of four archetypes that repeat sequentially. Every living generation therefore shows a remarkable parallel in character with generations of the same type throughout history. "Generations" plots a recurring cycle of spiritual awakenings and secular crises in American history, from the founding colonials through the present day.

Strauss and Howe followed in 1993 with their second book, 13th Gen, which examines the generation born between 1961 and 1981, "Gen-Xers" (alias "13ers", since they are literally the thirteenth generation since America became a nation). The book shows how 13er's location in history--they were children during the Consciousness Revolution--explains their pragmatic attitude and disproportionately low reputation.

In 1997, they published The Fourth Turning, which expanded on the ideas presented in Generations. Examining 500 years of Anglo-American history, The Fourth Turning reveals a distinct historical pattern: modern history moves in cycles, each one lasting approximately the length of a long human life (about 80-years), and each composed of four eras, or "turnings." Analyzing particularly the period from the end of World War II until today, they describe the general persona of each living generation, from the powerful proactive G.I.'s, the thoughtful Silent, the values-obsessed Boomers, and the pragmatic 13ers, to the new coming-of-age generation of powerful, proactive Millennials. By situating each living generation in the context of a historical generational cycle and archetype, the authors claim to clarify the personality and role of each--and the inevitability of a coming crisis in America.

This book is remarkably prophetic, as they predicted both terrorist attacks on american soil, the reaction of the Bush regime, and the collapse of the economy.  More importantly they predicted not only the crisis, but also the general public reactions.

In 2000 the two authors published Millennials Rising. This work investigated the personality of the generation currently coming of age, whose first cohorts were the much celebrated high school graduating class of 2000. Strauss and Howe show how today's teens are recasting the image of youth from downbeat and alienated to upbeat and engaged. They also say Millennials are held to higher standards than adults apply to themselves; they're a lot less violent, vulgar, and sexually charged than the teen culture older people are producing for them, and, over the next decade, they’ll entirely recast what it means to be young. According to the authors, Millennials could emerge as the next great generation.

The Fourth Turning (1997) is the third book by William Strauss and Neil Howe. It expands the theory they presented in their first book Generations by examining the generations in Anglo-American history since the War of the Roses (1459-1487). It classifies every generation into an archetype explaining the function, motivation and course of each. The second half of the book specifically looks at the five most recent generations (G.I., Silent, Boomers, 13th and Millennial)

Turnings last about 20 years and always arrive in the same order. Four of them make up the cycle of history, which is about the length of a long human life. The first turning is a High, a period of confident expansion as a new order becomes established after the old has been dismantled. Next comes an Awakening, a time of rebellion against the now-established order, when spiritual exploration becomes the norm. Then comes an Unraveling, an increasingly troubled era of strong individualism that surmounts increasingly fragmented institutions. Last comes the Fourth Turning, and era of upheaval, a Crisis in which society redefines its very nature and purpose.

Strauss and Howe state that Generations last the length of time of one phase of life--the same length of time as a turning. Like turnings, generations come in four different archetypes, defined in "The Fourth Turning" as Prophet, Nomad, Hero and Artist.

    * Prophets are values-driven, moralistic, focused on self, and willing to (see other people) fight to the death for what they believe in. They grow up as the increasingly indulged children of a High, come of age as the young crusaders of an Awakening, enter midlife as moralistic leaders during an Unraveling and are the wise, elder leaders of the next Crisis. The Boomers are an example of a Prophet generation.

    * Nomads are ratty, tough, unwanted, diverse, adventurous, and cynical about institutions. They grow up as the underprotected children of an Awakening, come of age as the alienated young adults of an Unraveling, become the pragmatic, midlife leaders of a Crisis and age into tough, post-crisis elders during a High. Generation X and the Lost Generation are examples of Nomad generations.

    * Heroes are conventional, powerful, and institutionally driven, with a profound trust in authority. They grow up as the increasingly protected children of an Unraveling, come of age as the Heroic, team-working youth of a Crisis, become energetic and hubristic mid-lifers during a High and become the powerful elders who are attacked in the next Awakening. The G.I. Generation that fought World War II is an example of a Hero generation. Millennials are expected to emerge as the next generation of this example.

    * Artists are subtle, indecisive, emotional and compromising, often having to deal with feelings of repression and inner conflict. They grow up as the over-protected children of a Crisis, come of age as the sensitive young adults of a High, rebel as indecisive midlife leaders during an Awakening, and become the empathic elders of an Unraveling. The Silent Generation is an example of an Artist generation.

Each of the four turnings is composed of a unique constellation of generational archetypes. During an Awakening, for example, the children are always a Nomad generation, the young adults a Prophet generation, the mid-lifers an Artist generation, and the elders a Hero generation. During a Crisis, by contrast, the children are always Artists, the young adults are Heroes, the mid-lifers are Nomads, and the elders are Prophets. In "The Fourth Turning", Strauss and Howe state that this has held true with remarkable consistency over 500 years of Anglo-American history, since the birth of modernity.

Strauss and Howe believe that history shapes each generation depending on what phase of life it occupies as it encounters key historical events--a period of crisis will leave an impression on children that is different from the one it leaves on midlife leaders. The boundaries of each generation and the characteristics of its members emerge because they share a common age-location in history. For instance, Strauss and Howe define the Boomer generation as anyone who doesn't personally remember World War II. They are different from the Silent Generation, who share the formative experience of childhood during the war. Thus history creates the generations--and these in turn reproduce the cycle of history. As the protected children of a High who never personally experienced Crisis, and as the moralistic, uncompromising crusaders of an awakening, the Prophet-Boomers are most likely to provoke a new crisis when they grow to control the nation's institutions. As the overachieving children of an Unraveling who never personally experienced an Awakening, and as the team-working, conformist civics of a crisis, the Heroes are most likely to provoke a new awakening when they get control.

[BridgeTroll]

Glad you bumped it for me...

[BridgeTroll]

Just added a word to my vocabulary...

Saeculum

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saeculum

[BridgeTroll]

Next time I am at the library I will look for this...  Looks like it may be a tough read tho...

[RiversideGator]

I delete personal attacks only, not substantive discussion.  I would urge you to focus on the later rather than attacking the moderator.  Be the change you say you want to see.  I did not delete anything because I disagreed with it.

[RiversideGator]

And you are making things up.  Also, you are the primary source of vitriol in the forums.  Do not engage in personal attacks and use appropriate language and none of your posts will be deleted.

[RiversideGator]

These sorts of posts are really inappropriate.  PM me if you have a problem with something I have done.  No one else wants to read the drama.