Okay, to be fair. There is NO WAY someone can intake this book in one reading. Maybe if you spent a year dissecting the data, researching out from what the book details and you had a team working for you. Maybe. Just maybe. But this, my friends, is a good thing. Do we need another spy novel? Sure, yes, of course, but we also need to challenge ourselves and The Fourth Turning is a book that does just that.
Let’s talk subtitles. “An American Prophecy—What the Cycles of History Tell Us About America’s Next Rendezvous with Destiny.” How is that for a punch in the mouth? History is revealing and it also repeats and repeats rather consistently which is what authors William Strauss and Neil Howe point out, but they do so in a way that will bend your mind. And their predictions have been right on the money.
The short of it, we might be hosed, screwed, up a creek. Not that we need a book to tell us that. Just look outside and lick your finger. The prevailing wind is one of doom, maybe. Okay, what is the fourth turning and how does it work? Well, feast on this. “Looking back to the dawn of the modern world, The Fourth Turning reveals a distinct pattern in human history, cycles lasting about the length of a long human life. Each cycle is composed of four “turnings,” and each turning lasts the span of a generation (about 20 years). There are four kinds of turnings (High, Awakening, Unraveling, Crisis), and they always occur in the same order.”
Again, I can’t go into the depth or layers this book stacks upon the above statement, but if you are even remotely interested then BUY this book and take your time. Your life just might depend on it.
Comments 10
This intrigues me, even though at 70, I may not be around to witness.
I’m intrigued, too. I think people can create patterns with large data sets, but I also think there’s something to the rise and fall of empires.
Yes, I agree with you on the empire thing, and ours is in the falling stage.
Author
Chuck,
We are seeing system failure. That is for sure.
Author
Scott,
The timing of the fall might not be great for you and I….
Author
Chuck,
Yes, might be something NOT to know.
a very interesting book. as you said lots of research involved in reading his book
Author
Rick,
It’s like eating an entire loaf of bread then washing it down with a stout.
A really profound book. Am listening to the audiobook now (while at the gym). The authors point out what we’ve always known albeit just below conscious awareness. Cycles in history not unreasonable when you consider nature has cycles. It ties in with a growing understanding of the economy as an ecosystem and NOT an equilibrium. Check out, Nick Hanauer. He’s a capitalist who’s given a couple of Ted talks who talks about re-imagining capitalism.
Author
Jim,
Greed and corruption define modern capitalism, at least in my mind. Heavy overtones we all talk about and have even come to expect. We need a reset.