The Fourth Turning: What the Cycles of History Tell Us About America's Next Rendezvous with Destiny

The Fourth Turning presents a theory of historical cycles and what past generations reveal about navigating periods of upheaval. It examines the roles of Boomers, Generation X, and Millennials in America's future. According to Strauss and Howe, history moves in cycles lasting roughly a human lifetime, each divided into four twenty-year eras called "turnings." These turnings follow a pattern: a High (confident expansion), an Awakening (spiritual exploration and rebellion), an Unraveling (individualism over institutional decline), and a Crisis or Fourth Turning (a great historical passage). By analyzing five hundred years of history and the post–World War II period in detail, the authors identify this seasonal rhythm of growth, maturation, entropy, and rebirth. The book offers predictions about America's future based on historical patterns and suggests how individuals and society can prepare for what comes next.