Zeitgeist
The Zeitgeist (spirit of the age or spirit of the time) is the intellectual fashion or dominant school of thought which typifies and influences the culture of a particular period in time.
About the assignment: You may work with a partner on this assignment if you wish, but note: you will share your grade for this assignment, regardless of who does what. Only work with a trusted partner.
1. Identify and briefly describe your generational cohort group (Baby Boomer, Generation X, Millennial, Generation Z). This will serve as the introduction to your assignment and will be about a paragraph or two.
Baby Boom Generation (1946-1965)
a. Dominant Events:
d. Dominant Attitudes:
3. Gather 2-3 images per category (or more if you're feeling ambitious) to symbolize the Zeitgeist for your generation and insert it into your project. You can capture a new image with your camera or download an existing image from the internet. If you find an image online, you must provide the location.
Side note: How to cite a digital image
Digital Image – A picture which can be viewed electronically by a computer.
Structure:
Last, First M. Title of Work. Digital Image. Website Title. Website Publisher, Date Month Year Published. Web. Date Month Year Accessed.
* Image search: Do not cite the search engine where the image is found, but the website of the image the search engine indexes.
* Data Accessed: This is the day that you found the image.
Example of citation:
Guggenheim Museum in Spain. Digital image. HowStuffWorks. HowStuffWorks. Web.
22 July 2010.
4. Write 1-2 sentences about the significance of EACH symbol you gather. These sentences will appear beneath each image. For example: why did you choose it? What does it signify?
EXPLAIN your ideas about what defines and characterizes the Zeitgeist of your generation.
5. Your "conclusion": Write a paragraph predicting the Zeitgeist for a future generation. What can you imagine their dominating events, ideals, social groups, attitudes and technologies might be?
6. Include a works cited at the end of your images found or any sources used
How will I put this project together?
This is where you can be creative! You don't necessarily have to turn this in as a "printed" paper at all; in fact, I would encourage you to use another means of creating your project. We will discuss possibilities in class.
What do I recommend?
Exposure (free for 14 days-- plenty of time to complete this, as it's due next week!)
Storify
Prezi
About the assignment: You may work with a partner on this assignment if you wish, but note: you will share your grade for this assignment, regardless of who does what. Only work with a trusted partner.
1. Identify and briefly describe your generational cohort group (Baby Boomer, Generation X, Millennial, Generation Z). This will serve as the introduction to your assignment and will be about a paragraph or two.
Baby Boom Generation (1946-1965)
- Born after the World War II, their parents belonging to the G.I. Generation.
- A 14 year increase in birth rate worldwide.
- Focused on the civil rights movement and cultural development.
- Lived through the Vietnam War, MLK, the Kennedy assassination, the Nixon resignation.
- They came of age in the ‘60s with the hippie movement, Woodstock and college rages.
- Boomers I or The Baby Boomers (1946-1954) and Boomers 2 or the Jones Generation (1955-1965).
- Many of the Baby boomers embraced a more conservative behavior and eventually gave birth to Generations X and Y.
- Known as "the slacker" generation. Also known as the Gen X or Busters, this is the first generation to follow the Baby boomers. They have the “carpe diem” attitude • First generation to develop ease and comfort with technology • “X” described the lack of identity that members of Generation X felt, not sure where they belonged • Experienced more divorces than any other generation • Had to learn to fend for themselves
- This is also the first generation to be named and defined by marketers.
- Many of its members are aware of their generational title.
- Historical Events: AIDS • End of Cold War • Vietnam • Watergate • Nixon resignation • Computers • Grunge/Hip-Hop • Vietnam • MTV • Challenger explosion • Fall of Berlin Wall • Reaganomics Generation
- The all-knowing spoiled kids of the Baby Boomers, yet with fewer ambitions and less driven to change the world.
- The generation X kids are called the “latchkey” kids, exposed to daycare and family instability and this has probably shaped how they regard their family life and how the next generation, Y, is being educated.
- The best educated with 29% obtaining a bachelor’s degree or higher (6% higher than the previous generation).
- Also known as the Echo Boomers or Millennial Generation or Entitlement Generation
- American sociologist Kathleen Shaputis labeled Millennials as the boomerang generation or Peter Pan generation, because of the members perceived tendency for delaying some rites of passage into adulthood for longer periods than most generations before them. These labels were also a reference to a trend toward members living with their parents for longer periods than previous generations.
- Population: 80 million • More ethnically and racially diverse than older generations
- The demographic cohort of individuals, primarily children of the Baby boomers.
- This generation grew up with many world-changing events including the rise of mass communication, technological advance. First generation of digital natives.
- Boomer and late X’er parents raised them to be sheltered and to constantly build Millennials’ selfesteem • Plagued with high levels of student debt • Second largest generation to be entering the workforce under the Boomers
- All knowing as the former Gen X, but are also willing to do something about it
- Historical events: Oklahoma City bombing • Rise of the Internet • O.J. Simpson trial • Death of Princess Diana • CDs/DVDs • Columbine shootings • Y2K • Terrorism • Swine flu 1988
- This generation benefits from all science advances and better education and has the ambition and desire to change the world.
- They have been exposed and seen so much that are now immune to traditional ways from marketing to sociology.
- The term generically used to describe the cohort of people born around 2000.
- Also known as iGeneration, Gen Tech, Gen Wii, Net Gen, Gen Next, Post Gen.
- This is a generation living in a society where everything is possible and the main communication channel is the internet.
- A volatile environment of terror threats, possible nuclear or biological attacks.
- Family stability and moral values put aside, heightened sense of self.
- Education is now focusing on developing practical skills and enriching creativity.
a. Dominant Events:
- World events, war, death of world leaders, etc.
- what was popular in art, music, entertainment, literature, fashion?
Include: Academy Awards. Emmy’s, Grammy’s NYT best seller list, etc. - what were the discoveries of the decade
- Were there any accidental events? Example: disasters, accidental discoveries
- Principles your generation lives by
d. Dominant Attitudes:
- This can be towards anything you want—towards sex, drugs, education, politics, etc.
3. Gather 2-3 images per category (or more if you're feeling ambitious) to symbolize the Zeitgeist for your generation and insert it into your project. You can capture a new image with your camera or download an existing image from the internet. If you find an image online, you must provide the location.
Side note: How to cite a digital image
Digital Image – A picture which can be viewed electronically by a computer.
Structure:
Last, First M. Title of Work. Digital Image. Website Title. Website Publisher, Date Month Year Published. Web. Date Month Year Accessed.
* Image search: Do not cite the search engine where the image is found, but the website of the image the search engine indexes.
* Data Accessed: This is the day that you found the image.
Example of citation:
Guggenheim Museum in Spain. Digital image. HowStuffWorks. HowStuffWorks. Web.
22 July 2010.
4. Write 1-2 sentences about the significance of EACH symbol you gather. These sentences will appear beneath each image. For example: why did you choose it? What does it signify?
EXPLAIN your ideas about what defines and characterizes the Zeitgeist of your generation.
5. Your "conclusion": Write a paragraph predicting the Zeitgeist for a future generation. What can you imagine their dominating events, ideals, social groups, attitudes and technologies might be?
6. Include a works cited at the end of your images found or any sources used
How will I put this project together?
This is where you can be creative! You don't necessarily have to turn this in as a "printed" paper at all; in fact, I would encourage you to use another means of creating your project. We will discuss possibilities in class.
What do I recommend?
Exposure (free for 14 days-- plenty of time to complete this, as it's due next week!)
Storify
Prezi