Generation X
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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| + | "The term ''[[Generation X]]'' or ''Gen X'', popularized by [[Douglas Coupland]]'s novel ''[[Generation X: Tales for an Accelerated Culture]]'', was used to describe the generation that followed the [[Baby Boom Generation]], or those who came to adulthood in the late 1980s and early 1990s. In the UK, the [[Britpop]] scene arose in the 1990s, influenced by the 1960s mods, the 1970s/1980s mod revival, and other British [[rock music]] and subcultural styles. One of the main technological developments of the 1990s was the [[World Wide Web]]. Running on the older infrastructure of the [[Internet]], the web allowed small subcultures to grow into large global online communities. [[Online game]] communities, forums, [[chat rooms]] and [[Internet cafe]]s became popular. The 1990s saw the rise of the [[anti-globalization movement]]. This was a response to the increased impact of [[globalisation]] and [[global capitalism]]. The anti-globalisation protest movement was accompanied by the [[fair trade]] movement."--Sholem Stein | ||
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| - | '''Generation X''' is the term given to the generation of people born between [[1961]] and [[1975]]. Although the exact boundaries of the dates vary largely when used for the demographic purposes, in terms of popular culture, Generation X is defined by the generation of people who were teenagers during the Pop explosion of the [[1980s]] and were part of the popular twenty-something culture of the [[1990s]]. | ||
| - | ==The Rise of a Global Generation== | + | '''Generation X''' (or '''Gen X''' for short) is the [[demography|demographic]] [[Cohort (statistics)|cohort]] following the [[baby boomer]]s and preceding the [[millennials]]. Researchers and popular media use the early-to-mid-1960s as starting birth years and the late 1970s to early 1980s as ending birth years, with the [[generation]] being generally defined as people born from 1965 to 1980.<!-- This date range is based on the sources given in the text below; please seek talk page consensus before changing --> By this definition and [[United States Census|U.S. Census]] data, there are 65.2 million Gen Xers Most members of Generation X are the children of the [[Silent Generation]] and early boomers; Xers are also often the parents of [[millennials]] and [[Generation Z]]. |
| - | One of the defining factors of Generation X is the transitions resulting from the decline of [[Colonialism|colonial imperialism]] to the fall of the [[Berlin Wall]] and the end of the Cold War. Another more prevalent factor is a bell curve bottoming out in American births from [[1964]] through [[1979]], after the American Baby Boom from [[1946]] to [[1963]]. A small, often "invisible generation" in the wake of the socially-reconstructing Baby Boomers, those born in the U.S. between [[1964]] and [[1979]] received the "X" tag for lack of a defining social identity. | + | |
| - | As young adults, Generation X drew media attention in the late [[1980s]] and early [[1990s]], gaining a stereotypical reputation as apathetic, cynical, disaffected, streetwise loners and [[slacker]]s. As Generation Xers have now become American parents, however, their media persona is gradually becoming more that of protective [[security mom]]s and dads in a [[post 9/11]] world. | + | As children in the 1970s and 1980s, a time of shifting societal values, Gen Xers were sometimes called the "[[latchkey kid|latchkey]] generation", an image spawning from children returning to an empty home and needing to use the [[door key]], due to reduced adult supervision compared to previous generations. This was a result of increasing [[divorce]] rates and increased maternal participation in the workforce, prior to widespread availability of childcare options outside the home. |
| - | In [[India]], the Generation X tag went to a new generation of globally educated citizens. The men and women of this generation took an active interest in the fields of Electronics, Medicine, Engineering and Art. There was a significant rise of leadership from the younger crowd and the first signs of a globally contemporary lifestyle were introduced. | + | As adolescents and young adults in the 1980s and 1990s, Xers were dubbed the "[[MTV Generation]]" (a reference to the [[MTV|music video channel]]), sometimes being characterized as [[slacker]]s, [[Cynicism (contemporary)|cynical]], and disaffected. Some of the many cultural influences on Gen X youth included a proliferation of musical genres with strong social-tribal identity such as [[Punk rock|punk]], [[post-punk]], and [[Heavy metal music|heavy metal]], in addition to later forms developed by gen Xer's themselves (e.g [[grunge]], [[grindcore]] and related genres). Film, both the birth of franchise mega-sequels and a proliferation of [[Independent film]] enabled in part by [[video]] was also a notable cultural influence. [[Video game]]s both in amusement parlours and in devices in western homes were also a major part of juvenile entertainment for the first time. Politically, in many [[Eastern Bloc]] countries generation X experienced the last days of communism and transition to capitalism as part of its youth. Whilst, in much of the western world, a similar time period was defined by a dominance of [[conservatism]] and [[free market]] economics |
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| - | In addition, Generation X is noted as one of the most entrepreneurial and tech-friendly generations in American history, as they've driven a majority of the Internet's growth and ingenuity from day one. Amazon, Google, Yahoo, MySpace, Dell, and countless other billion-dollar tech companies were founded by American Gen Xers. | + | |
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| - | ==Movement in World Cinema== | + | |
| - | The 1990s was one of the most exciting decades in the history of cinema. The rising success of the independent cinema market and the introduction of direct-to-video option for low-budget filmmakers resulted in an enormous amount of films in the market. Filmmakers from all around the world made some of the greatest films ever seen. | + | |
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| - | ===Palme d'Or Winners=== | + | |
| - | *1990: ''[[Wild At Heart]]'' ([[David Lynch]]/ USA) | + | |
| - | *1991: ''[[Barton Fink]]'' ([[Joel Coen]] and [[Ethan Coen]]/USA) | + | |
| - | *1992: ''[[The Best Intentions]]'' ([[Billie August]]/ Denmark) | + | |
| - | *1993: ''[[Farewell My Concubine]]'' ([[Chen Kaige]]/ China) and ''[[The Piano]]'' ([[Jane Campion]]/ New Zealand) | + | |
| - | *1994: ''[[Pulp Fiction]]'' ([[Quentin Tarantino]]/ USA) | + | |
| - | *1995: ''[[Underground]]'' ([[Emir Kusturica]]/ FR Yugoslavia) | + | |
| - | *1996: ''[[Secrets and Lies]]'' ([[Mike Leigh]]/ UK) | + | |
| - | *1997: ''[[Taste of Cherry]]'' ([[Abbas Kiarostami]]/ Iran) and ''[[The Eel]]'' ([[Shohei Imamura]]/ Japan) | + | |
| - | *1998: ''[[Eternity and a Day]]'' ([[Theo Angelopoulos]]/ Greece) | + | |
| - | *1999: ''[[Rosetta]]'' ([[Luc Dardenne]] and [[Jean-Pierre Dardenne]]/ Belgium) | + | |
| - | + | ||
| - | ===Important Gen-X Films=== | + | |
| - | ====1990==== | + | |
| - | *''[[Close Up]]'' ([[Abbas Kiarostami]]/ Iran) | + | |
| - | *''[[Edward Scissorhands]]'' ([[Tim Burton]]/ USA) | + | |
| - | + | ||
| - | ====1991==== | + | |
| - | *''[[Night On Earth]]'' ([[Jim Jarmusch]]/ USA) | + | |
| - | *''[[My Own Private Idaho]]'' ([[Gus Van Sant]]/ USA) | + | |
| - | + | ||
| - | ====1992==== | + | |
| - | *''[[El Mariachi]]'' ([[Robert Rodriguez]]/ Mexico) | + | |
| - | *''[[Reservoir Dogs]]'' ([[Quentin Tarantino]]/ USA) | + | |
| - | *''[[Batman Returns]]'' ([[Tim Burton]]/ USA) | + | |
| - | + | ||
| - | ====1993==== | + | |
| - | *''[[Arizona Dream]]'' ([[Emir Kusturica]]/ FR Yugoslavia) | + | |
| - | *''[[What's Eating Gilbert Grape]]'' ([[Lasse Hallström]]/ USA) | + | |
| - | *''[[True Romance]]'' ([[Tony Scott]]/ USA) | + | |
| - | *''[[Philadelphia]]'' ([[Jonathan Demme]]/ USA) | + | |
| - | + | ||
| - | ====1994==== | + | |
| - | *''[[Reality Bites]]'' ([[Ben Stiller]]/ USA) | + | |
| - | *''[[Forrest Gump]]'' ([[Robert Zemeckis]]/USA) | + | |
| - | + | ||
| - | ====1995==== | + | |
| - | *''[[Dead Man]]'' ([[Jim Jarmusch]]/ USA) | + | |
| - | *''[[To Die For]]'' ([[Gus Van Sant]]/ USA) | + | |
| - | *''[[Se7en]]'' ([[David Fincher]]/ USA) | + | |
| - | *''[[The Basketball Diaries]]'' ([[Scott Kalvert]]/ USA) | + | |
| - | *''[[Clueless]]'' ([[Amy Heckerling]]/ USA) | + | |
| - | *''[[Heat]]'' ([[Michael Mann]]/ USA) | + | |
| - | *''[[Toy Story]]'' ([[John Lasseter]]/USA) | + | |
| - | + | ||
| - | ====1996==== | + | |
| - | *''[[Trainspotting]]'' ([[Danny Boyle]]/ UK) | + | |
| - | *''[[Ghost In The Shell]]'' ([[Mamoru Oshii]]/ Japan) | + | |
| - | *''[[Schizopolis]]'' ([[Steven Soderbergh]]/ USA) | + | |
| - | *''[[Romeo + Juliet]]'' ([[Baz Luhrmann]]/ USA) | + | |
| - | *''[[Fargo]]'' ([[Joen Coen]] and [[Ethan Coen]]/ USA) | + | |
| - | + | ||
| - | ====1997==== | + | |
| - | *''[[Jackie Brown]]'' ([[Quentin Tarantino]]/ USA) | + | |
| - | *''[[That Thing You Do]]'' ([[Tom Hanks]]/ USA) | + | |
| - | + | ||
| - | ====1998==== | + | |
| - | *''[[Rushmore]]'' ([[Wes Anderson]]/ USA) | + | |
| - | *''[[Godzilla]]'' ([[Roland Emmerich]]/ USA) | + | |
| - | *''[[Saving Private Ryan]]'' ([[Steven Spielberg]]/ USA) | + | |
| - | + | ||
| - | ====1999==== | + | |
| - | *''[[The Limey]]'' ([[Steven Soderbergh]]/ USA) | + | |
| - | *''[[Fight Club]]'' ([[David Fincher]]/ USA) | + | |
| - | *''[[The Matrix]]'' ([[Larry Wachowski]] and [[Andy Wachowski]]/ USA) | + | |
| - | + | ||
| - | ===Important Gen-X Filmmakers=== | + | |
| - | *[[Quentin Tarantino]] (USA) | + | |
| - | *[[Steven Soderbergh]] (USA) | + | |
| - | *[[Robert Rodriguez]] (USA) | + | |
| - | *[[Wes Anderson]] (USA) | + | |
| - | *[[David Fincher]] (USA) | + | |
| - | *[[Peter Jackson]] (New Zealand) | + | |
| + | In midlife during the early 21st century, research describes them as active, happy, and achieving a [[work–life balance]]. The cohort has also been credited as [[Entrepreneurship|entrepreneurial]] and productive in the workplace more broadly. | ||
| + | ==See also== | ||
| + | * [[Generation gap]] | ||
| + | * [[Generation Jones]] | ||
| + | * [[List of generations]] | ||
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"The term Generation X or Gen X, popularized by Douglas Coupland's novel Generation X: Tales for an Accelerated Culture, was used to describe the generation that followed the Baby Boom Generation, or those who came to adulthood in the late 1980s and early 1990s. In the UK, the Britpop scene arose in the 1990s, influenced by the 1960s mods, the 1970s/1980s mod revival, and other British rock music and subcultural styles. One of the main technological developments of the 1990s was the World Wide Web. Running on the older infrastructure of the Internet, the web allowed small subcultures to grow into large global online communities. Online game communities, forums, chat rooms and Internet cafes became popular. The 1990s saw the rise of the anti-globalization movement. This was a response to the increased impact of globalisation and global capitalism. The anti-globalisation protest movement was accompanied by the fair trade movement."--Sholem Stein |
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Generation X (or Gen X for short) is the demographic cohort following the baby boomers and preceding the millennials. Researchers and popular media use the early-to-mid-1960s as starting birth years and the late 1970s to early 1980s as ending birth years, with the generation being generally defined as people born from 1965 to 1980. By this definition and U.S. Census data, there are 65.2 million Gen Xers Most members of Generation X are the children of the Silent Generation and early boomers; Xers are also often the parents of millennials and Generation Z.
As children in the 1970s and 1980s, a time of shifting societal values, Gen Xers were sometimes called the "latchkey generation", an image spawning from children returning to an empty home and needing to use the door key, due to reduced adult supervision compared to previous generations. This was a result of increasing divorce rates and increased maternal participation in the workforce, prior to widespread availability of childcare options outside the home.
As adolescents and young adults in the 1980s and 1990s, Xers were dubbed the "MTV Generation" (a reference to the music video channel), sometimes being characterized as slackers, cynical, and disaffected. Some of the many cultural influences on Gen X youth included a proliferation of musical genres with strong social-tribal identity such as punk, post-punk, and heavy metal, in addition to later forms developed by gen Xer's themselves (e.g grunge, grindcore and related genres). Film, both the birth of franchise mega-sequels and a proliferation of Independent film enabled in part by video was also a notable cultural influence. Video games both in amusement parlours and in devices in western homes were also a major part of juvenile entertainment for the first time. Politically, in many Eastern Bloc countries generation X experienced the last days of communism and transition to capitalism as part of its youth. Whilst, in much of the western world, a similar time period was defined by a dominance of conservatism and free market economics
In midlife during the early 21st century, research describes them as active, happy, and achieving a work–life balance. The cohort has also been credited as entrepreneurial and productive in the workplace more broadly.
See also
