What is Generation X?

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What is Generation X?
Generation X refers to the generation of people that were born after the generation of “baby boomers” which happened after World War II. Though there is no absolute timeline on the exact start and end of this generation, Generation X more or less comprises the period from the 1960s up to about the early 1980s or up to 1981. Those born by around 1982 are labeled as ‘Generation Y”.

The term “Generation X” is attributed to a man named Robert Cappa, a photographer for Magnum Photos which was a US-based photographic cooperative. It was back in the early part of the 1950s that “Generation X” was first coined by Cappa to describe young people in pictures after World War II. After which, the term was used to refer to the young generation who seemed to have no identity, hence the “X” in the term. It was also said that the young people at that time felt alienated and wanted to come out of the shadows of their “baby boomer” parents. It was like a freedom movement among the young generation who wanted to have some independence from their supposed strict parents of the previous generation.

“Generation X” then evolved into some form of stereotype to describe the somewhat rebellious nature of teenagers who wanted to have their voices heard and who wanted to make decisions on their own. This stereotyping of this generation was also promoted in various forms of media adding to the basic idea of individuality among “Generation X-ers”. The media was also involved in labeling the young people of Generation X as those that involve in listening to rock or grunge music and those that slack off and hang-out at bars and coffee shops. These activities are deemed as some sort of “quiet” defiance to the conservative standards imposed by “baby boomer” parents.

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