Generation X-ers X 新生代

Yoko:: So what year were you born?

Jim: 1971. yes, I'm part of the Generation X.

Yoko: Generation X? I think I've heard of it, but I don't know what it means.

Jim: It's basically a trendy classification(时兴的分类） for the generation born in the United States after 1965. It was coined （造出新词）in 1991 by author Douglas Coupland, who wrote a book by that title.

Yoko:  So what is the distinction of the Generation X? What characterizes them?

Jim: Well, they are usually college educated and dissatisfied with their careers.

Yoko: So, they are basically overeducated and underemployed?

Jim: Right. And they're also have a pessimistic attitude about society. They don't see life getting any better. They're disillusioned （不抱幻想）with corporate America（美国大家庭）. They don't even like the label "Generation X. "

Yoko: I can see why. Nobody likes to be stereotyped.

Jim: There are actually two different stereotypes associated with the Generation X-ers. One is the slacker（懒惰散漫的人） image in which the individual has no motivation and is a whiner（爱发牢骚的人）. One the other extreme is the highly educated computer hacker （爱玩电脑的人）who has his own business.

Yoko: So tell me some more Generation X lingo（特有的词汇，隐语）?.

Jim: Sure. There's another term called "McJob（低薪职业）." It was also coined by Coupland and refers to low-paying jobs with no prestige and no future.

Yoko: Like working at McDonalds? Is that where they got the "Mc"?

Jim: Exactly. And to a large extent it's true. You just can't depend on a company for lifetime employment anymore.

Yoko: Lifetime employment is even beginning to change in Japan.

Jim: That's true. The wave of the future （未来的浪潮）is really working on your own.

Yoko: By the way, what do you do for a living, Jim?

Jim: Oh, I'm a free-lance writer. I work at home.

Yoko: I should have guessed.