Gender Studies

Figuring Age: Women, Bodies, Generations. Kathleen Woodward, ed. 1999.

This anthology is extremely broad, with over 20 authors. Includes a chapter on “Aging and the Scandal of Anachronism” by Mary Russo, that positions aging as “historical misplacement,” and being “against time.” Susan Squier contributes to the section on “Historicizing Age,” noting that the term “gerontology” was actually coined by a zoologist, Elie Metchnikoff, in 1903 (p. 93), and positioning its development alongside reproductive and “age-extension” medicine. A useful text, but not thematically strong.

The Other Within Us: Feminist Explorations of Women and Aging. Marilyn Pearsall, ed. 1997.

This is the best volume on feminist aging to date, and recommended reading for anyone – anyone! – who wishes to expand their thinking on the topic. Refreshingly literary, the compilation includes essays by Paula Gunn Allen, Jewelle Gomez, May Sarton – and many more. Given the high quality of writerly perception, the book brings together diverse and various opinions on the aging process – from the delightful May Sarton, “Towards Another Dimension,” to the four-page gem – ‘The Space Crone” – by Ursula Le Guin.

History of Aging

Aging in World History, David Troyanski. 2016.

 This short book – 145 pages total, including at least 30 pages of references – is a comical mismatch for the topic of “Aging in World History.” Swap in “Western History,” and we might have more of a case, since Europe is the sole focus until Chapter 9. At this point, we are introduced to “Old Age in the Context of Colonialism, Imperialism, and Decolonialism,” where a mere 5 pages is offered on this potentially vast, and culturally-specific, topic. 

Drawing on his extensive references, Troyansky observes that “The historiography of old age has been very Western” (Troyansky, 87). And it is, but this book does not help in any way to correct that problem. Not recommended, except for brief passages and the reference list, for the specific purpose of Western European Studies.

Aging in America: A Cultural History. Lawrence Samuel. 2017.

Lawrence Samuel offers a compelling hook, the claim that: “Old age was revered in early America, in part because it was so rare.” However, to the detriment of his thesis, this broad historical claim is only explored in – two! – pages of the Introduction, and never raised again.  The claim is based on a few scanty references, and deserves further historical research. 

To be fair, Samuel is mostly interested – as he also states – in the post-WWII phenomenon of aging, through which he takes the reader on an enjoyable, leisurely romp. In the style of popular non-fiction, we are happily introduced to individuals who are experiencing age, and tidbits about their lives/perspective. Samuel himself is the founder of an aging consultancy firm – Boomers 3.0 – so clearly, this is a topic, and a community, with which he is to some extent familiar. However, the book does not deliver “a cultural history” in an academic or scholarly sense.

A History of Old Age. Pat Thane, 2005.

The ambitiously titled “A History of Old Age” is a collection of articles by various authors, edited by Pat Thane. The individual sections are titled by century, but vary widely in terms of diversity, as well as gender(ed) considerations. 

We begin in The Age of Old Age, written by the editor, which completely obviates any historical relevance by lumping “old people” into a single uniform category. Older women, older men – all are the same, in this chapter.

The lack of attention to gender is highlighted by a sidebar: “Old women were dangerous,” begins the short paragraph, alongside a tiny Goya reproduction. The painting “A Fine Teacher,” shows a younger woman astride a broomstick, behind an older one. Potential for analysis is cut short – concludes only 50 words later – and witches, such a profound and recurring archetype of older women, are never again mentioned in the book. 

The entirety is devoted to Western Europe. This is simply like comparing apples to apples, though of course, sociological changes occur over the centuries – but we have the same framework of a patriarchal culture. As with many history textbooks, individual women are highlighted as a way to “diversify” a male narrative. Whiteness stands uncomplicated throughout the text. 

The book is not particularly recommended, unless one’s interest is in the struggles of elite men with the aging process. Color photographs are included to illustrate this theme.

LGBTQ Aging

Queer Aging in North American Fiction. Linda M. Hess, 2019.

 Hess makes some important and key points in the introduction – foremost, the concept that “growing old, aging, and old age are still principally imagined in heteronormative terms” (2, Hess).  As she points out, “How often do we think of grandfathers as having boyfriends, or of trans-persons as grandparents?”

Hess further insists that in her review of the literature, “representations of queer aging did exist – they simply did not seem to receive any attention” (1-2, Hess). These are important points, for a field (Queer Aging Studies) that has not yet intersected with popular culture in any meaningful or sustained way. 

The remainder of the book focuses on these existing representations, in films, television, literature, etc. Hess offers a close reading, but the limits of drawing from a homophobic popular culture are keenly felt – we beigin with “The Older Lesbian as Predatory” (Chapter 1), and “The Menace of Gay Aging” (Chapter 2).

Other

Towards a Medical Anthropology of Ageing. Kottow, Miguel. Newcastle upon Tyne, UK: Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2018.

This book begins with the uninspired sentence – “Rocks age, and so do refrigerators, as well as all living beings” (2, Kottow). This blunt comparison foreshadows the entire book, which is sadly bereft of any emotive, or even human-centered, analysis.

Despite the introductory claim that “a non-specialized propositional text is well-advised to steer clear of technical language” (x, Kottow), the author leaps immediately into further jargon-filled statements. Published in 2018, this book surprisingly contains chapters that sound like a 1950’s Time/Life edition: What is Man? and Who is Man?  In case you were not already exhausted with this inquiry, he continues:  “The question ‘what is man’… needs to be replaced with man asking himself, ‘who am I’?” (34, Kottow). A few male historical figures (Seneca, Cicero, etc.) are quoted. 

Putting aside the myopic gender bias, the book lacks theoretical or philosophical richness on the topic of aging, and is not recommended. However, we must also recognize that the hyper-academic and entirely male focus is characteristic of literature in gerontology, philosophy, and medical anthropology.

Notable Book Chapter(s)

Woody, I. (2017). Aging Out: Ageism, Heterosexism, and Racism among Aging African American Lesbians and Gay Men. In LAMB S. (Ed.), Successful Aging as a Contemporary Obsession: Global Perspectives (pp. 55-67). NEW BRUNSWICK, CAMDEN, NEWARK, NEW JERSEY; LONDON: Rutgers University Press. 

Photography 

To Survive on this Shore: Photographs and Interviews with Transgender and Gender Nonconforming Older Adults by Jess T. Dugan and Vanessa Fabbre. Over a 5 year period, Jess Dugan (photographer) and Vanessa Fabbre (social worker), collected interviews and stories from older adults, across the United States.

Excerpts from the interviews can be found here, and highlight a range of experience. The photographs are stunning full color reproductions that capture the essence of their subjects – fully embodied, and with visceral, artful presence.

On inner strength: “So just find that inside yourself and take time with that person. Faults, flaws, wishes, all of it, it doesn’t matter. We’re not going to get it all. None of us gets it all. Okay? But what we do have, we can polish. We can polish it, honey, till it blinds them.” (Dutchess Milan, 2017). 

On invisibility, after transition: “Even in the LGBT community, it can feel very isolating for FTM [female-to-male] guys. We become invisible. If you pass as a man, sometimes you don’t even feel welcome in LGB spaces. When my partner and I show up to events, nobody thinks we’re queer. We look like a little old straight couple. And it’s like, “Oh girl, if you only knew… I was every letter of LGBT long before you were born!”” (Mitch, 2016).