I know a huge thing that you see online is talks about different generations, and it almost seems as if to me that for some folks, “generational conflict” has replaced class conflict. Furthermore, I worry that the American dream was supposed to die so everyday baby boomers could buy houses and see their property values go up hundredfold and invite otherwise working class folk into an “honorary bourgeoisie” system. But ultimately this is still a class struggle rather than a generation struggle. Like I’m gen Z and I do not see baby boomers as my oppressor, there’s plenty of millennial landlords ready to rip me off because LinkedIn told him to liquidate his assets’ or whatever idk I don’t speak Porkuguese.
I’m no exception, I’ve made my guesses on why any given generation is the way it is, but I can’t help but wonder when did this focus on generation over class all start? Did baby boomers grow up identifying as baby boomers, and when they were in their 20s-40s was there this idea that millennials were going to be their designated bagholders? If so, did baby boomers always have a consistent culture and identity?
Sorry if this is a dumb question, it’s just that the generational struggle seems really flimsy upon further scrutiny.
There are documents whining about the impropriety of the youth going back thousands of years. So it's been a concern forever.
I think the current iteration started with Gen X. There was always a certain amount of resentment from the Boomers. As a cohort they really are unique in history which has made it easy to single them out and assign blame to them for, basically everything. Xer pop culture emphasized the idea of being stifled and rendered superfluous by an oppressive Boomer culture. This wasn't really a thing in Xer praxis, but their pop culture emphasized the idea of being disconnected from a Boomer dominated system and emphasized responses like slacking and being indifferent or apathetic.