Several years ago I acquired a quasi-niece (long story), now 22, who,
frequently with friends, spends almost as much time at my house as at her
mom’s. One upside to this for me is a less distant exposure to Millennials than
otherwise would be the case. It is often entertaining, if only for sociological
reasons.
Some argue that any division of people into generations is arbitrary
and meritless, but I can see some value to it. There really are moments in
history which impact the people who experience them as youths in characteristic
ways. Two people who experienced WW2 at 20, for example, even if diametrically
opposed in political and economic views, will have much more in common with
each other than with a Boomer of any philosophy; they grew up with the same
music, the same cultural presuppositions, and the same physical environment.
William Straus and Neil Howe in their book Generations argue that generations are
formed by “social moments” that are analogous to watersheds. Social watersheds
need not be tall, but they in many ways determine how we flow. There is some disagreement
about the boundaries between generations, especially by those who were born
near a commonly accepted one and would prefer to be on the other side. Also,
the world is not in synch; there is a strong correspondence of generational
types nation-to-nation in the West, but types may vary a lot elsewhere. But
granting some fuzziness at the edges, the generations still with us break down
roughly as follows in the US.
GI Generation: This group is dwindling fast. It
consists of those old enough to have served in WW2 (even if in fact they
didn’t) but too young also to have served in WW1. This makes 1928 the last
birth year that would qualify.
Silent Generation: They were born 1929 – 1945. They are called the
Silents because they had so much to say and loudly: Martin Luther King, Ted
Turner, Gloria Steinem, William Shatner, Elvis Presley, Jimi Hendrix, etc. They
invented rock-n-roll. So they were, y’know, quiet. All of the 60s social revolutions for which Boomers like to take credit
were really effectuated by the Silents (with support from a few key GIs);
Boomers were too young to do much more than follow (or, in some cases, boo).
Baby Boomers: 1946-64. There actually are four distinct sub-cohorts of
this group, each with its own flavor: those born in the1940s fully experienced
the 1950s as kids/tweens and they turned 20 in the 1960s; those 1950-55 (my
cohort) remember the 1950s but as small kids, and we experienced the 60s as
teens; 1956-60 don’t remember the 1950s (except perhaps as fuzzy snippets) but
knew the 1960s as tweens; 1961-64 remember the 1960s as kids. Yet, all four cohorts
do retain enough commonality of social experience to belong together. We all romped
in the freewheeling 1970s, when the 60s social revolution came to full fruition,
as young adults.
Generation X: Cynical X tossed aside the loony ideals and flamboyance
of the 60s in favor of pragmatic career choices and goth/grunge gloom. 1965 is
the start, but the last birth year is a matter of debate. 1979 is one commonly
chosen number. Some people place the end date a few years earlier or a few
years later, depending on whom they want to include or exclude.
Millennials, aka Gen Y: Starting date is debated, but 1980 is a common
one, if only because the oldest members are still under 35 this year. 2000 is a
common end date. The next group presumably is Generation Z which sounds like
they’re zombies.
Anyway, getting back to the Millennials in the house, I couldn’t help
overhearing a discussion about their futures. All wanted “a life less
ordinary.” None wanted to settle down or close any doors for themselves for at
least a decade if ever. None wanted to settle. None wanted to just “live up to
low expectations.” They aimed “higher.”
I can relate to that. Boomers talked a lot like that, too, to the
puzzlement and irritation of our parents. The GI Generation experienced a Depression
and a World War; to them, a secure boring job, a cozy marriage, and a modest
Cape Cod house on a quarter-acre lot was aiming high. It was called the
American Dream. Boomers, benefiting from the wealth our parents created,
dreamed more imaginatively (LSD might have helped too), though perhaps less
successfully. Xers and Millennials continued their drift from the GI’s Dream. Take
marriage: two thirds of the Silents aged 18-32 were married; only 48% of
Boomers 18-32 were married; 35% of Xers in that age span had tied the knot; in
today’s 18-32 group 26% are married. In 1992 78% of graduating college students
said they wanted kids at some point; in 2012 only 42% said they wanted ever to
have them (Ref: study by Prof. Stewart Friedman at the University of
Pennsylvania). The current generation sees no point in running into such
constrictive responsibility. Rather than a conventional life, they want
something…else. Something more, not necessarily in the sense of material wealth.
Once again, this is not a new thought. Ben (Dustin Hoffman) in The
Graduate (1967) says about his future, “I want it to be different.” He
means different from his parents’ lives, but he obviously has no idea what the
alternative might be.
Well, it is normal to want more, I suppose, whether in material or
Bohemian terms. It might be a bad idea to expect it though. It leads to
disappointment, which might explain the extraordinary (legal) use of anti-depressants
among twenty-somethings. But so long as the hopes are tempered with realism, there
is nothing really wrong with crying “more, more, more!”
Billy Idol (b.1955)
Makes me wonder at times where it's all going. It may be that less and less people are tying the knot, but it seems more and more are living with each other, changing partners more frequently, so that there's a different dynamics going on there. I suspect you can further break that down into demographics ie. race, wealth, etc.
ReplyDeleteWhere that might lead to is anyone's guess. I'm one of the Boomers that never got married. I think in part because I was more career motivated, but at the same time was never that happy at my job (I know--take a number and join in line).
I didn't particularly like my field of work, well, I did starting out for a few years, at least I found it okay, but over the course of years, it changed dramatically. When it changed, it got less enjoyable/tolerable, and more like drudgery, but I stuck it out.
I wonder if the current generation want more or perhaps something different all together. It appears they are less obsessed about material things, technology has helped along those lines--you don't need a physical book, you can read or have a book on iPad, same for music, movies, etc., and that's an interesting trend. Perhaps they want more experiences, maybe more freedom to do whatever it is they want to do. At least without material things they aren't as tied down as previous generations.
I was married for all of three years -- long enough to know not to do it again. There are people who thrive as part of a couple. I'm not one of them.
DeleteDream jobs -- say, being paid to sample and rate luxury resorts around the world -- are a bit scarce. Some folks really do make a financial success out of what they love to do:painting, music, star gazing at Mt Palomar, or what-have-you -- and they often mistakenly believe anyone can do the same. In fact, however much they try, few painters, musicians, or (for that matter) astronomers manage to make a living at it. Most of us eventually do what needs to be done to pay the bills, whether or not it relates very much to our formal education or if the job also counts as a hobby. Our parents' generation, for the most part, was just fine with that. Each subsequent generation has grown less and less fine with it. That's certainly understandable. It might not change the ultimate result, though.
Last week I reviewed "Adult World," a title with a double meaning; the film addresses this point pretty well, I think. Amy, the college student protagonist, is a poet even if she needs a day job; if she gets recognition/money for her writing, great, but that's not the reason to do it.