***"Rebecca Reviews" examines contemporary books, films, television shows, and other cultural products through the lens of the generational saeculum. These are not sponsored posts; I purchase each item with my own funds and there are no affiliate links here. The opinions expressed on this blog are entirely my own. Regardless of my recommendation, please do your own research and decide what you're comfortable consuming.***
I was a weird kid in high school. I read Smithsonian Magazine on the band bus. I listened to National Public Radio for hours on Saturday mornings. And I carried around a FranklinCovey Collegiate Planner to keep notes on due dates, projects, and all things that were Urgent & Important, or some permutation thereof. (Those were the days before smart phones and PDAs. Yes, I know I’m old.)
Anyway, with that Franklin Covey planner came a cassette tape by Steven Covey about the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. I listened to it over and over, and what I remember most from Covey’s teachings is this: Begin with the end in mind.
WHAT IS IT?
Save the Cat! author and screenwriter Blake Snyder calls it “the promise of the premise*." We purchase books and movie tickets because we’ve already answered the “What is it?” question and are now ready to hop on board for the ride. Romantic comedy? Social critique? Steampunk fantasy? Take me away! The problem is, it’s really easy for a writer to get stuck on creating a stimulating experience and forget to pay off the premise. If we order the grilled cheese and get served a BLT instead, we’re going to be disappointed— even if it tastes good.
This is the central problem of Boomers: The Men and Women who Promised Freedom and Delivered Disaster by Helen Andrews (Sentinel, 2021).
I did not start out to write a critical review of Andrews’ premiere book. By contrast, I had already expended almost 1,000 words describing and praising it. Andrews is witty and sharp. She has excellent command of prose. I consider myself fairly well-read among different journals, and her writing stands out as some of the best. Her book is well-researched and well-organized— there are some 28 pages of endnotes and another seven pages of index for reference. She is conservative, and holds no punches when it comes to the moral failings of the six Baby Boomers (1943-1960) she choses to profile in the book (Steve Jobs, Aaron Sorkin**, Jeffrey Sachs, Camille Paglia, Al Sharpton, and Sonia Sotomayor).
But what’s the purpose of this book?
In the preface to Boomers, Andrews says the idea came from her editor, who suggested she write a book modeled on Eminent Victorians by Lytton Strachey. Andrews seems to indicate that she thought this was a good idea for two reasons: Eminent Victorians was influential in eroding the influence of the Victorians (who were apparently to blame for the horrors of World War I), and the book was a runaway best-seller (p. ix-x). Andrews adds a third reason given by her editor: “You’re like Strachey; you’re an essayist, and you’re mean.”
Andrews says she forgives her editor for this unflattering compliment, but after reading several of her essays provided on her website, herandrews.com, and posted on her Twitter account, I don’t think he was wrong. Andrews has a habit of quickly repudiating public figures with expertly-rendered, grotesque portraits of their worst character traits and choices. What purpose does this serve? Any author who desires to combat the character of another person on moral grounds should also contend with the moral purpose behind his or her own work. Being mean is neither virtuous nor helpful. Telling the truth in love— real candor— is both.
At the end of the preface, Andrews says she believes that Boomers should not be allowed to leave the scene of public influence until they have been made to regret the consequences of their choices, namely “debt, inequality, moribund churches, and a broken democracy” (p. xv). Yet the very narcissistic bent of their generation, which Strauss and Howe describe in their works, makes it difficult or almost impossible for unredeemed Boomers to experience remorse. This is not entirely their own fault; they were raised to think this way. But even if Boomer apologies were a worthy goal, Andrews’ approach seems ill-calculated to achieve it. Telling someone “You suck!” is more likely to produce defensive anger than genuine self-examination.
Is being “mean” cathartic for the Millennial generation, who believe their current sufferings can be laid at the feet of Boomer elders? Probably.
Is Boomer blame a trendy and profitable topic for a book? Probably.
Is it effective at eroding the influence of Boomers? Doubtful.
A NEW HOPE
Boomers are people, not monsters. They are husbands and wives, fathers and mothers, grandparents, bosses, and heads of state. Despite the prominent liberals among them who have fought to dismantle traditional pillars of society, there are other prominent conservatives who have likewise fought to dismantle the shadow structure of Marxism and crony capitalism, bad theology and wrong thinking. Boomers are not perfect. Neither are the rest of us. The difference is, they are pretty old (ages 61 to 79), and especially with the COVID-19 crisis, some have already passed. Their influence is waning, but the rest of us have a chance to make a change. There’s still hope.
The end of Boomers concludes this way: “And if the boomers think that they can unmoor millennials from our past, immiserate our futures, tell us we’re rich because we can afford iPhones but not families, teach us that narcissism is the highest form of patriotism, and still have a nation resilient enough to bounce back to normal after the younger generation starts to riot in the streets, then the boomers will be wrong about us.” Does that sound hopeful to you? Does that offer any opportunity for change, any suggestion for improvement?
I don’t think so, and there’s a reason why. HERO generations (such as Millennials) struggle with understanding the future implications of their present, collective actions***. And that’s okay— Generation X stands in the gap, and their pragmatic leadership, though categorically ignored by media (and this book), will help guide the shift through this chaotic Crisis Era not to “normal,” but to different. We won’t be thanked for it, of course, but such thanks mean little compared to the payoff of a better life for our kids.
So let me offer a suggestion, drawn from my research on the outcomes of Marxist feminism in culture. The best form of activism is personal choice. You want to see a return to morality in culture? Be a moral person! Read the Bible! Follow the Golden Rule! You want to end socialism? Be a capitalist! Start a business! Vote and run for office! You want to restore the pillars of society? Build a strong family! Invest in your marriage! Equip your kids with a strong sense of identity and a moral compass! Perpetual cynicism will only prolong the misery, but if enough people start living out the truth in love, a world of good is possible.
EPILOGUE IN THREE
It was incredibly difficult to write this review because, as I said before, I did like the book. There is so much historical context contained in the book that I have even cited some two of those passages in my previous post. My personal hardcover copy of Boomers is full of sticky flags, underlined passages, and penciled notes. However, it is a hallmark of postmodernism to have appearance without substance. Like a hallway that leads to a brick wall instead of a door, its end is futility. Sadly, we so often internalize our culture that we reproduce its themes in our own works without cognizance. I believe that Boomers is such a book: it is entirely a product of the postmodern culture.
When I taught composition, one of the first lessons was always on the rhetorical triangle. A strong argument must have three elements: logos (logic), ethos (truth), and pathos (feeling). These elements are naturally intertwined, but if one is missing, the whole argument will fail. However, in postmodernism, all three elements are subject to futility: chaos trumps logic, lies trump truth, and personal feelings trump sympathy.
In Boomers, the logos is the premise that the six Baby Boomers profiled in the book are representative of an entirely disastrous generation. However, this argument is undercut by various statements Andrews makes herself: namely, that these particular Boomers were different from their kin in certain ways, and that in the end they were simply the ones she felt like writing about (xi). This is contradictory: Why hold to the fire the people you admire? Why simultaneously praise and berate them? This confuses the reader, and fails to bring a full narrative arc from past (where Boomers came from) to present (what Boomers have created) to future (what will the rest of us do now?).
The ethos of the book, as I have detailed earlier, is undermined by the lack of morality in its approach (being mean instead of examining evil, simultaneously praising the skills and successes of its subjects while bemoaning the consequences of their actions). It also fails to provide a moral point of reference for the people profiled in it. If Boomers are truly monsters who have ushered in disaster, we should receive a better understanding of why what they did was wrong. If they’re simply a group of people who followed their selfish desires to a disastrous end, we should see more humanization of them so that we may extrapolate a moral lesson from their failures to apply to oursevles.
The pathos of the book is the most nebulous part of it. Andrews tells us that Boomers were often their own first victims (xiv). However, even given the examples in the book, it’s unclear to me that Boomers think of themselves as victims at all. Rather, they strike me as either opportunistic (willing to play the victim card to ensure a good outcome for themselves, as in the case of Sonya Sotomayor’s emphasis on her minority status) or happily committed (willing to follow a personal philosophy regardless of the outcome, as in the case of Steve Jobs’ death after avoiding conventional cancer treatments). Moreover, as I have said before, the Boomers in this book are objectified rather than humanized— there is little here to make us feel sympathetic to their plight. Instead, the pathos seems directed toward Millennials, who are portrayed as the victims of boomer “disasters”.
So what would this book look like if it had fulfilled the “promise of the premise” and laid its argument on a solid foundation of logos, ethos, and pathos? Perhaps something like this:
Title: Eminent Boomers: Six Men and Women Whose Choices Rocked American Society
Premise: Profiles of six Baby Boomers from different fields whose positions of power and influence have uniquely affected American culture
Logos: Use numerical data and facts to demonstrate a direct causal link from the actions of each Boomer to a current societal condition.
Ethos: Using a moral text or point of reference (such as the Bible or the U.S. Constitution), examine the good and bad actions and outcomes for each Boomer.
Pathos: Engage the emotions of the reader by rendering each subject in his or her whole human form. Demonstrate what made them so charismatic that others were drawn to their leadership. Examine their human frailties and do not shy away from the precise tragedy and emotional pain they may have experienced, or caused others to experience.
Conclusion: Each profile is either a cautionary or inspirational tale of what charisma, position, and influence can achieve— for better or worse. The reader is encouraged to take these lessons to heart and consider his or her own influence on the future now being created.
Writers are people of influence, no matter their generation. With the ability to write well comes the responsibility to use that influence for good. I truly believe in the ability of Millennials to use their influence to change the world for the better. I have no wish to belittle or berate Helen Andrews for the considerable work she has done in undertaking this book. My only wish is to exhort her into using her considerable skills for something greater, and to exhort you, Dear Reader, into thinking critically, examining morally, and working toward the future with optimism fully grounded in truth.
Have you read Boomers? Do you have a suggestion for a "Rebecca Reviews" post? Let me know your thoughts here or send me an email at Rebecca@rebeccamartell.com.
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*Save the Cat! The Last Book on Screenwriting that You’ll Ever Need, by Blake Snyder (p.190)
**Aaron Sorkin, born 1961, belongs to Generation X according to Strauss and Howe
***Generations: The History of America's Future, 1584-2069, by William Strauss and Neil Howe (p. 360-362)