The Fourth Turning: What the Cycles of History Tell Us About America’s Next Rendezvous with Destiny

Chapter 7 explores the most recent second turning, the era described by Strauss and Howe as the “Consciousness Revolution.” The era lasted from the death of President Kennedy in 1963 until the reelection of Ronald Reagan in 1984. The chapter follows the same framework as the previous one in that the authors describe the era and the characteristics of the turning, then apply the generational constellation to it.

Although the economy continued to roar, drastic changes in the mood of the nation were taking place in the mid-1960s. The Republican Party ushered in a new angry tone in politics by nominating Senator Barry Goldwater as its presidential candidate, violent protests were unfolding in many inner cities, and the free speech movement on college campuses was getting underway. Issues of conscience and dissent were the new mindset. The authors explain that to this new mindset, “[S]ocial authority came at an unacceptable cost: Corporations crushed the individual, police oppressed the poor, academe smothered creativity, and parents deformed the child’s psyche” (172). Later in the 1960s, the Vietnam War became the awakening’s epicenter, galvanizing fierce public debate and protest about America’s role in Asia.

Strauss and Howe argue the following:

[A]n awakening is an era of cultural upheaval and spiritual renewal. It begins when the waxing social discipline of the high suddenly seems tiresome, unfulfilling, illegitimate, and unjust—and when people begin to defy it in the name of spiritual authenticity (176).

At the same time that this gradual mood shift takes place, the generational archetypes begin moving into their next life phase. As heroes replace nomads in elderhood, their grand secular constructions set the stage for the spiritual goals of the young (177). As artists replace heroes in midlife, they apply expertise and process to improve society while also calming the passions of the youth (178). As prophets replace artists in young adulthood, they challenge the moral failure of institutions built by elders and spark a society-wide spiritual awakening (178). As nomads replace prophets in childhood, they are left under-protected during the social upheaval while adults embrace self-discovery.

In terms of specific generations entering into their new phases of life, the GI Generation, which had earlier defeated fascism and survived the Depression, entered into elderhood as the most economically and politically powerful elder generation in history. The Silent Generation entered midlife as the most upwardly mobile generation in American history. Baby Boomers entered young adulthood seemingly intent on purifying institutions and the old social order rather than building or improving them. The 13th Generation, or “Generation X,” born between 1961 and 1981, entered childhood at a time when American society and culture focused more on adults than children. By the early 1980s, it was clear that the enthusiasm and turmoil of the 1960s and 1970s was passing and a new agenda was being set—that “[T]he time for grand social movements had passed” (199). According to the authors, the generational archetypes were all primed for a new direction that would occur in the third turning. 

Chapter 8 examines the third turning, an unraveling era that the authors refer to as the “Culture Wars.” The turning began in 1984, just before President Ronald Reagan won a second term on a largely anti-government platform. At the time of the book’s writing, the third turning was more than half over, with the authors predicting that the unraveling would shift to a fourth turning crisis sometime around the middle of the 2000s. As had been the case with all third turnings, the civic attitude of the populace was the polar opposite of what it had been in the first turning high—public trust in government and institutions was low, but self-esteem was high. By the end of the 1980s, the gap between rich and poor had widened drastically, the Reagan administration had ballooned the national deficit, homelessness had surged, and a drug and crime epidemic was taking place in many cities. In the 1990s, the profound political and social divisions came to be known as the culture war.

Explaining the private/public mood shift of the unraveling, Strauss and Howe argue that America in the 1990s was “moving into an archetypal constellation that [was] reaching an apogee of inner (private) power and a nadir of outer (public) power” (207). The archetypal constellation that was emerging saw artists replace heroes in elderhood, quickening the pace of social change while shunning the old order in favor of complexity and sensitivity (209). Judgmental prophets were replacing artists in midlife while preaching values and moral conviction. Alienated nomads of the 13th Generation were replacing Boomer Generation prophets in young adulthood, lending their pragmatism and independence to an era of growing social turmoil (210). Millennial Generation heroes were replacing nomads in childhood and being nurtured with increasing protection by adults who had grown cynical about their insecure environment.

Now in elderhood, the Silent Generation lacked the gravitas of the G.I. Generation and the passion of Boomers, but it was a flexible mediator between the two neighboring generations. The authors predict that in the new millennium, the Silent would devote their final years to trying to bring people together and make life fairer. Now in midlife, the Boom Generation had transformed from the youth raging against the elite into the values-obsessed cultural elite. In the new millennium, the authors predict that “[A]s Boomers move more deeply into midlife, their collective mindset will grow more judgmental, snobbish, and severe” (229). Now in young adulthood, the 13th Generation had grown accustomed to the criticisms that labeled them a “nowhere generation” and a “high-expectation, low-sweat generation” (233), but their commitment to diversity and volunteerism was unique. As Millennial Generation children were born in the 1980s and 90s, America transitioned from the underprotection of children into a society that again focused on child safety and development. The authors predict that in the 21st century the Millennium Generation “[would] build a reputation for beating adult expectations” (249). 

In Chapter 9, Strauss and Howe examine fourth turnings throughout history. They begin the chapter reflecting back on V-J Day in 1945 and the hope and teamwork that existed in that crisis era. A fourth turning, according to the authors, “is a solstice era of maximum darkness, in which the supply of social order is still falling but the demand for order is rising” (255). They provide a morphology of crisis eras, stating that each one begins with a catalyst, which is a startling event that produces a shift in mood. Once catalyzed, a society achieves a regeneracy, which is a reenergizing and reunification of civic life (256). The regenerated society then propels toward a climax, a crucial moment that confirms the death of the old order and the birth of the new order (256). Finally, the climax culminates with a resolution, which is either a triumphant or tragic conclusion that separates the winners from losers, resolves the big public questions, and establishes the new order (256).

The authors then focus on the six previous fourth turnings in Anglo-American history, dating back to the 15th century. In reverse chronological order, these include the Great Depression and World War II (1929-1946) during the Great Power Saeculum; the Civil War (1860-1865) during the Civil War Saeculum; the American Revolution (1773-1794) during the Revolutionary Saeculum; the Glorious Revolution (1675-1704) during the New World Saeculum; the Armada Crisis (1569-1594) during the Reformation Saeculum; and the War of the Roses (1459-1487) during the Late Medieval Saeculum. Just as each of these fourth turning crisis eras featured a catalyst, a regeneracy, a climax, and a resolution, they also featured the same archetypal lineup: prophet children born after the previous crisis stimulate the next one in elderhood; nomad children born during an awakening become pragmatic midlife managers of crisis; hero children born during unravelings become the powerful young adult soldiers of crisis; and the children of the current crisis come of age afterward as artist youths.