Chapter Fifteen Summary and Analysis

The G.I. Generation achieves more than any other generation in the twentieth century by fighting World War II, building the Interstate System, and holding the presidency for over thirty years. The G.I. Generation is the most recent example of a hero generation in American history, and Millenials will be the next. Each hero generation shares three characteristics: they are born at a time of social upheaval, they follow a generation that is thought of as a disappointment, and they are intensely protected by adults as children.

The G.I. Generation is born at a time of Progressive Era reforms that frequently sought to protect children such as state pensions directed at widows. Parents of G.I. children raise them more strictly than the earlier Lost Generation had been raised but also keep the children from working as...