Turnings

From Missiopedia

Overview: History - Epochs - Turnings - Centuries BC - Centuries AD - Future Millenniums: 1st millennium - 2nd millennium - 3rd millennium

See also Turnings in History

Turnings are a cyclical way of looking at history. Although many writers have advocated a cyclical view, the most recent work which pioneered the term "Turning" was The Fourth Turning by Strauss & Howe. In that work, the authors tracked the Turnings in the United States back to the mid-15th century and described how they seemed to occur in sets of four: a High, Awakening, Unraveling, and Crisis. These turnings are stereotypical of the culture as a whole, and different nations may be at different periods at different times.

[edit] Turnings

Each turning lasts roughly the length of one generation, or about 30 years.

• The First Turning is a High--an upbeat era of strengthening institutions and weakening individualism, when a new civic order implants and the old values regime decays. Old Prophets disappear, Nomads enter elderhood, Heroes enter midlife, Artists enter young adulthood--and a new generation of Prophets is born.
• The Second Turning is an Awakening --a passionate era of spiritual upheaval, when the civic order comes under attack from a new values regime. Old Nomads disappear, Heroes enter elderhood, Artists enter midlife, Prophets enter young adulthood--and a new generation of child Nomads is born.
• The Third Turning is an Unraveling --a downcast era of strengthening individualism and weakening institutions, when the old civic order decays and the new values regime implants. Old Heroes disappear, Artists enter elderhood, Prophets enter midlife, Nomads enter young adulthood--and a new generation of child Heroes is born.
• The Fourth Turning is a Crisis --a decisive era of secular upheaval, when the values regime propels the replacement of the old civic order with a new one. Old Artists disappear, Prophets enter elderhood, Nomads enter midlife, Heroes enter young adulthood--and a new generation of child Artists is born.

Source: http://www.fourthturning.com

[edit] Generations

The turnings themselves are caused by different Generations, which follow a similar pattern: Prophet, Nomad, Hero, Artist. Turnings are caused in large part by the dominance of particular configurations of these patterns:

• The Prophet archetype is born in a High, enters young adulthood in an Awakening, midlife in an Unraveling, and elderhood in a Crisis.
• The Nomad archetype is born in an Awakening, enters young adulthood in an Unraveling, midlife in a Crisis, and elderhood in a High.
• The Hero archetype is born in an Unraveling, enters young adulthood in a Crisis, midlife in a High, and elderhood in an Awakening.
• The Artist archetype is born in a Crisis, enters young adulthood in a High, midlife in an Awakening, and elderhood in an Unraveling.

Thus:

Turning	Elders	Midlife	YoungAdult	Child
High	Nomad	Hero	Artist	Prophet
Awakening	Hero	Artist	Prophet	Nomad
Unraveling	Artist	Prophet	Hero
Crisis	Prophet	Nomad	Hero	Artist

[edit] Turnings in History

Late Medieval Saeculum

• Unraveling: Retreat from France (1435-1459)
• Crisis: War of the Roses (1459-1487)

Tudor Saeculum

• High: Tudor Renaissance (1487-1517)
• Awakening: Protestant Reformation (1517-1542)
• Unraveling: Intolerance & Martyrdom (1542-1569)
• Crisis: Armada Crisis (1569-1594)

New World Saeculum

• High: Merrie England (1594-1621)
• Awakening: Puritan Awakening (1621-1649)
• Unraveling: Reaction & Restoration (1649-1675)
• Crisis: Glorious Revolution (1675-1704)

Revolutionary Saeculum

• High: Augustan Age of Empire (1704-1727)
• Awakening: Great Awakening (1727-1746)
• Unraveling: French & Indian Wars (1746-1773)
• Crisis: American Revolution (1773-1794)

Civil War Saeculum

• High: Era of Good Feelings (1794-1822)
• Awakening: Transcendental Awakening (1822-1844)
• Unraveling: Mexican War & Sectionalism (1844-1860)
• Crisis: Civil War (1860-1865)

Great Power Saeculum

• High: Reconstruction & Gilded Age (1865-1886)
• Awakening: Third Great Awakening (1886-1908)
• Unraveling: World War I & Prohibition (1908-1929)
• Crisis: Great Depression & World War II (1929-1946)

Millennial Saeculum

• High: American High (1946-1964)
• Awakening: Conciousness Revolution (1964-1984)
• Unraveling: Culture Wars (1984-2005)
• Crisis: Millennial Crisis (2005-2026?)