The Forgotten Generation

AIM ^ | 6/8/04 | Reid Collins

[wardaddy]

Nice article.....the likes of which will be more rare as history fades.

[visualops]

Sad but true.

[MineralMan]

There's a lovely memorial to WWI veterans on the Mall in Washington, and dozens of other memorials to the fallen of that war around the nation.

Since those who fought in WWI are now long gone, these memorials are often forgotten, but they exist, and are worth visiting, even though they are memorials to our great-grandfathers or even great-great grandfathers.

[Tax-chick]

Interesting point ... the adults of 1900-1910 produced the children who became "The Greatest Generation." Then those children produced the Baby Boomers, and the huge expansion of government power from the late 40's on.

I guess it shows the fallacy of all the "generation" stuff. People and history are too complicated for generalizations.

[NathanR]

That generation already has a name. It is/was called the "Lost Generation". I believe that the name was given because so many men lost their lives in WWI.

[MineralMan]

"That generation already has a name. It is/was called the "Lost Generation". I believe that the name was given because so many men lost their lives in WWI."

That, and in the great influenza epidemic of those years, which killed so many young people, just as they were reaching their adult years.

So many died, and so many soldiers died of the flu, too, before ever setting foot in Europe.

[Wallace T.]

In terms of national leadership, the Lost Generation, those born between 1885 and 1904, were represented by only one President, Dwight Eisenhower, whose fame derived from his successful leadership of armies mostly made up of the G.I. (Greatest) Generation. The generation of those born in the aftermath of the Civil War, from 1863 to 1884, dominated the American presidency from 1921 to 1953 (Harding to Truman), a span of 32 years. The G.I. Generation held the White House for an even longer period, 42 years, from Kennedy to the elder Bush. The Silent Generation, those born between 1928 and 1942, have so far been shut out of the Presidency. This election poses John Kerry, a "borderline" Baby Boomer born in 1943, against George W. Bush, an early Baby Boomer (1946, the year Bill Clinton was born). Most of those mentioned as being "in the wings" for the 2008 Presidential election cycle, such as Jeb Bush, Rudy Giuliani, Hillary Clinton, and John Edwards, are Baby Boomers.

The relatively small size of the Lost and Silent generations compared with the postwar generations of 1863-84 and 1943-64 is a major factor behind their being largely left out of the Chief Executive Office. Additionally, the Lost Generation suffered the short, but intense, loss of life connected with World War I, as well the lion's share of the economic privations of the Great Depression. The young adult and middle aged years of the Silent Generation did not have the great military and economic stress of the Lost Generation, but were on the front lines of the culture wars that began roughly after JFK's assassination.

I suspect Generation X will be similarly shut out of national leadership due to its relatively small size. Additionally, this generation, born between 1965 and 1982, came to maturity as what had been the counterculture ascended to dominance in the American cultural, educational, and political establishment. More than the Baby Boomers or Generation Y (those born between 1983 and 1999), they will be on the front lines of the culture wars, whether that war remains a "cold" one or becomes "hot" (like the slavery and secession issues became "hot" in 1861-65).

[DakotaGator]

WWI was my grandfather's war. WWII was my father's and uncle's war. Korea was another uncle's war. Viet Nam was my brother's war. The Cold War through the Tanker War and the Gulf War were my wars.

I grew up with my grandfather's and father's generations. Their and my own experience gave me family knowledge of the great events from the Spanish American War to the present.

Now, in this age of instant communication and unlimited history access, I cannot speak with a high school or college kid who even remembers last week.

Generations are forgotten only when we work at it.

[Hemingway's Ghost]

"That generation already has a name. It is/was called the "Lost Generation". I believe that the name was given because so many men lost their lives in WWI."

I've always associated that name with the literary likes of Fitzgerald, Hemingway, et al, who became "lost" during the period between the World Wars.

[x]

Good article. It's true that they are forgotten now, but that's no reflection on them. Just about everything that came before us is forgotten today, and every generation will in some way be forgotten at some time or other. But unlike other generations, their age lives on in movies and recordings easily accessible to all of us. When people talk about Truman or Eisenhower, Sgt. York or Frank Capra, this is the generation they are talking about.

This forgotten generation did show much virtue in their ability to put up with great privations. That virtue grew out of scarcity and troubles. It's not something that we can easily adopt today simply by wanting to. Our virtues, if we have them, will probably take a different form, but if need be perhaps we could rise to a similar occasion. Any society will need endurance, stamina, and stoic virtue if it is to survive.

For a different view, though, see Strauss's and Howe's Generations. Admittedly looking from the very top of society down, they see some of the same problems of Generation X in the "Lost Generation" of the 1920s. Things of course, looked differently from the bottom up.

[Wallace T.]

There were, in July 2003, less than 500 veterans of World War I service in the U.S. Armed Forces still alive. In 1998, there were 4,800 still alive. Since the youngest veteran of that war would have been born in 1901, it is probable that this decade will see the last veteran who went "Over There" pass away.

[MineralMan]

"There were, in July 2003, less than 500 veterans of World War I service in the U.S. Armed Forces still alive. In 1998, there were 4,800 still alive. Since the youngest veteran of that war would have been born in 1901, it is probable that this decade will see the last veteran who went "Over There" pass away."

I'm surprised that there were that many alive in 2003. I'm sure you're right, though. One day we'll have a story about the last WWI veteran passing away.

I still remember the story about the last Civil War veteran dying, and we just heard about the last widow of a Civil War vet's death.

I did not know my paternal grandfather, who fought in WWI, but my maternal grandfather fought in the Spanish-American war. He died many years ago.

[Betis70]

My grandparents were part of the Lost and my parents part of the Silent. I'm part of Gen X. Probably we all will be cut off from the Presidency, save for Ike.

I guess my family needs to marry younger or something.

[Conservomax]

Isn't that what Gertrude Stein called "The Lost Generation"

[Fiddlstix]

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[NewRomeTacitus]

The writer spoke of the their sacrifices and perseverance without touching on what gave them their strength and sense of unity; what they had in abundance that makes our modern generation seem impoverished by camparison.

Christian faith.

[sonofron]

I'm a Gen-x'er. Parents were baby boomers.

Gen Y should be more like generation PC.

[dg62]

Interesting reading. I think my grandparents were Lost Generation. What I remember about them was that they and their friends were bossy and short about a lot of things, and so were their friends. But I think they are the only REAL chiefs I have ever met. Back then, it seems elders were were firmly in control. And it seemed like that group commanded a lot of respect from younger people.

But that being said I loved all of the ones in our family because they were so sweet to kids, and always had a treat in the kitchen, and told the most great stories about the olden days. And they knew how to make issues clear.

[dg62]

Interesting reading. I think my grandparents were Lost Generation. What I remember about them was that they and their friends were bossy and short about a lot of things, and so were their friends. But I think they are the only REAL chiefs I have ever met. Back then, it seems elders were were firmly in control. And it seemed like that group commanded a lot of respect from younger people.

But that being said I loved all of the ones in our family because they were so sweet to kids, and always had a treat in the kitchen, and told the most great stories about the olden days. And they knew how to make issues clear.