Unexpected turns in lifelong sentimental journeys: redefining love, memory and old age through Alice Munro's ‘The Bear Came Over the Mountain’ and its film adaptation, Away from Her

2013 ◽  
Vol 35 (2) ◽  
pp. 389-404 ◽  
Author(s):  
NÚRIA CASADO-GUAL
Keyword(s):  
Gender Difference ◽  
Old Age ◽  
Short Story ◽  
Romantic Love ◽  
Late Life ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Film Adaptation ◽  
Retirement Home ◽  
Film Version ◽  
And Gender

ABSTRACTAlice Munro's 2001 short story ‘The Bear Came Over the Mountain’ and its 2006 film version, Away from Her, directed and adapted for the screen by Sarah Polley, are two interconnected narratives through which diverse (and even divergent) representations of romantic love and memory in later life can be analysed. Even if the two texts are constructed on an apparently simple plot line, which basically depicts the last phase of a 44-year-long marriage once the wife, Fiona, presents symptoms of dementia and is interned in a retirement home, they both allow for, at least, two contrasted interpretations. As will be demonstrated, these two possible readings unveil different cultural, social and psychological facets of memory in connection with late-life expressions of love; and each of them contributes, in their own way, to the construction of a dialogical narrative that mediates between the complexities of old age, dementia and gender difference, while at the same time demonstrating the power of literature and the cinema to reflect and refract the complexities of contemporary forms of ageing.

Beauvoir, Simone de (1908–86)

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stella Sandford
Keyword(s):  
Old Age ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Public Intellectual ◽  
Major Influence ◽  
Feminist Philosophy ◽  
Second Sex ◽  
Historical Investigation ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Political Essays ◽  
The 1960S

Beauvoir was an existentialist philosopher, novelist and writer. Her early philosophical work (including The Ethics of Ambiguity, 1947) attempted to develop an existentialist ethics, rethinking the ideas of freedom, responsibility and action through the prism of the self–other relation. Her work helped to shift existential thought towards a greater emphasis on embodiment and the analysis of oppression. This approach culminated in The Second Sex (1949), an interdisciplinary study of the oppression and situation of women. This is both a historical investigation into the social conditions that cast women as 'Other' and second to men and a philosophical (existential and phenomenological) account of the lived experience of 'feminine' existence. The Second Sex is of outstanding importance for feminist philosophy and the philosophy of sex and gender, as well as being a major influence on the women's movement since the 1960s. Beauvoir is also well known for her philosophical novels and plays, political essays, travel writing and published letters. Her last book, Old Age (1970), is one of very few philosophical works on ageing and old age. She was co-founder (1945) and lifetime editor of the important political and philosophical journal Les temps modernes. As a prominent public intellectual she was an influential supporter of many leftist and, in later life, feminist causes.

‘I Don't Feel Old’: Subjective Ageing and the Search for Meaning in Later Life

1992 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 23-47 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Thompson
Keyword(s):  
Life History ◽  
Old Age ◽  
Intimate Relationships ◽  
Life Experiences ◽  
Late Life ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Search For Meaning ◽  
Self Perceptions ◽  
The Relationship

ABSTRACTA critique of the study of ageing by sociologists and historians is provided in this paper, on the basis of the comparative neglect of life history studies across the whole lifespan. It points to the skewed nature of studies reported in the literature. As a corrective, results from a UK life history based study are presented. It focuses on leisure, grand- parenting and intimate relationships between adults, leading to conclusions about the relationship between class factors in the determination of late life experiences and self perceptions of the meaning of old age.

Psychological Response to Later Life Widowhood: Coping and the Effects of Gender

2005 ◽  
Vol 51 (1) ◽  
pp. 33-52 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kate Mary Bennett ◽  
Georgina M. Hughes ◽  
Philip T. Smith
Keyword(s):  
Gender Differences ◽  
Content Analysis ◽  
Grounded Theory ◽  
Qualitative Data ◽  
Late Life ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Psychological Response ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Well Data

The study examined the effects of psychological response and gender on coping with late life widowhood. Forty-six men and 46 women (55 years +) were interviewed about their experiences of widowhood. Participants were classified as to whether they were coping well or less well. Data were analyzed using grounded theory, content analysis, and three-way loglinear analyses. Loglinear analyses revealed three-way interactions for Gender, Coping, and Response. Men who report feeling upset or selfish are more likely to be coping, as are women who report being comfortable alone. There were two-way interactions between Coping and Response and Gender and Response. Participants who talk to their dead spouse are more likely to be coping than those who do not. Those who “keep themselves to themselves” are more likely not to be coping than those who do not. Gender differences were found in psychological response. Differences were also found between those who coped and those who coped less well. The study has enabled the synthesis of quantitative and qualitative data to present a more complete view of late life widowhood than has previously been possible. In addition, the article draws attention to the importance of distinguishing between the effects of bereavement and those of widowhood.

Social Identity in Later Life: A Situational Approach to Understanding Old Age Stigma

1987 ◽  
Vol 25 (3) ◽  
pp. 177-193 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul C. Luken
Keyword(s):  
Social Identity ◽  
Old Age ◽  
Social Stigma ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Social Category ◽  
The Social ◽  
And Gender

Social identity it a product of emergent definitional processes occurring in socially defined situations. This article presents a situational approach to understanding an aspect of social identity in later life—the social stigma of old age. Social stigma is conceptualized as an attribute which is perceived to be discrediting, incongruent with expectations, and non-pivotal in regard to the cluster of attributes associated with a specific social category. A typology of situations, based on their potential for producing the stigmatization of old age, is presented. Additionally, stigmatization in these situations is influenced by the following: commitment and legitimation, generational contacts, performance norms, and gender. Implications of a situational approach to the investigation of old age are discussed.

A new partner as a resource for social support

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Torbjörn Bildtgård ◽  
Peter Öberg
Keyword(s):  
Social Support ◽  
Old Age ◽  
Rational Choice Theory ◽  
Choice Theory ◽  
Late Life ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Intimate Relationship ◽  
Theoretical Perspectives ◽  
Practical Support ◽  
The Individual

This chapter investigates the gains of repartnering in old age. What can a new intimate relationship offer the individual who repartners in later life and are these rewards different in later life than earlier in life? The chapter starts with a brief presentation of two theoretical perspectives that have been used to understand the reasons for late-life repartnering: rational choice theory and functionalism. It continues by detailing different kinds of social support that a new relationship can offer the individual – companionate, emotional and practical support.

scholarly journals Working in old age in Mexico: implications for cognitive functioning

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-21
Author(s):  
Francisca S. Rodriguez ◽  
Joseph Saenz
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Functioning ◽  
Old Age ◽  
Labour Force ◽  
Verbal Learning ◽  
Late Life ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Visual Scanning ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Delayed Recall ◽  
Cognitive Benefits

Abstract Previous studies indicate that occupation might affect cognitive functioning in late life. As people in low- and middle-income countries often have to work until late life, we sought to investigate if there are cognitive benefits to working later into life and whether cognitive function deteriorates after exiting the labour force. We analysed longitudinal data from the Mexican Health and Aging Study (MHAS), a nationally representative sample of Mexican adults age 50+ (N = 7,375), that assessed cognitive functioning by verbal learning, delayed recall and visual scanning. Analyses were carried out using mixed-effects modelling corrected for the influence of gender, instrumental activities of daily living, diabetes, stroke, hypertension, depression, income and marital status. Results suggest that working actively, compared to exiting the workforce, was associated with cognitive performance only in context with occupation. Domestic workers had a faster decline in verbal learning (b = −0.02, p = 0.020) and delayed recall (b = −0.02, p = 0.036) if they continued working actively and people working in administration (b = 0.03, p = 0.007), sales (b = 0.02, p = 0.044) and educators (b = 0.03, p = 0.049) had a slower decline in visual scanning if they continued working in old age. Our findings indicate that continued participation in the labour force in old age does not necessarily come with cognitive benefits. Whether or not working actively in later life protects or even harms cognitive functioning is likely to depend on the type of job.

scholarly journals “It used to be called an old man’s game”: Masculinity, ageing embodiment and senior curling participation

2019 ◽  
pp. 1-25 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristi A. Allain ◽  
Barbara L. Marshall
Keyword(s):  
Older People ◽  
Old Age ◽  
Hegemonic Masculinity ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Older Men ◽  
Sport Culture ◽  
Complex Models ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Older Populations ◽  
Do So

The sport of curling, popular among older populations in Canada and conventionally imagined as a sport for older people, offers an important window into what it means to be an older man participating in sport. While researchers have extensively studied expressions of youthful masculinity in sport culture, scholarship about the confluence of gender expression and old age in sport is much rarer. Using Connell and Messerschmidt’s (2005) reconfiguration of hegemonic masculinity, and drawing on 19 interviews with older men who curl in mid-sized Canadian towns, we argue that later-life men negotiate complex models of appropriate masculinity that borrow from hegemonic exemplars available in earlier life, deploying certain forms of intellectual, class and gender privilege to do so. At the same time, they disrupt these hegemonies through an emphasis on interdependence, caring relationships and the acceptance of bodily limitations.  

Relationship of age and gender to the prevalence and correlates of psychological distress in later life

2012 ◽  
Vol 24 (6) ◽  
pp. 1009-1018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julie E. Byles ◽  
Lucy Gallienne ◽  
Fiona M. Blyth ◽  
Emily Banks
Keyword(s):  
Psychological Distress ◽  
Older People ◽  
Healthcare Providers ◽  
Late Life ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Comorbid Conditions ◽  
Age And Gender ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
And Gender ◽  
The Impact

ABSTRACTBackground:As populations age, psychological distress in late life will become of increasing public health and social importance. This study seeks to bridge the gap in information that exists about psychological distress in late life, by exploring the prevalence of psychological distress among a very large sample of older adults to determine the impact of age and gender, and the modifying effect of these factors on the associations between measures of psychological distress and sociodemographic and comorbid conditions.Methods:We analyzed self-reported data from 236,508 men and women in the New South Wales 45 and Up Study, to determine the impact of age and gender, and the modifying effects of these factors on associations between psychological distress and sociodemographic and comorbid conditions.Results:Higher education, married status, and higher income were associated with lower risk of psychological distress. Although overall prevalence of psychological distress is lower at older ages, this increases after age 80, and is particularly associated with physical disabilities. Some older people (such as those requiring help because of disability and those with multiple comorbid health conditions) are at increased risk of psychological distress.Conclusion:These findings have implications for both healthcare providers and policy-makers in identifying and responding to the needs of older people in our aging society.

Ageing, Authorship, and Female Networks in the Life Writing of Mary Berry (1763–1852) and Joanna Baillie (1762–1851)

2018 ◽  
pp. 73-98
Author(s):  
Amy Culley
Keyword(s):  
Old Age ◽  
Literary Culture ◽  
Life Writing ◽  
Late Life ◽  
Joanna Baillie ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Female Networks ◽  
Intergenerational Connections ◽  
Literary Networks

This chapter examines older women’s literary friendships in the context of critical narratives of ageing, authorship, and gender, as depicted in the correspondence and (auto)biographical writing of Joanna Baillie and Mary Berry. These works reveal creative and collaborative exchanges, relationships with writers (both from their own generation and the next), interactions with publishers and booksellers, anxieties of reception, the pleasures and pains of ageing, and their commitment to continued publication into late life. In addition to studies of Romanticism and old age, conversely, reading literary networks and social authorship through the lens of ageing brings into sharper focus intra- and intergenerational connections and locates Berry and Baillie within and beyond Romantic literary culture. Furthermore, extending the analysis of life writing materials to include the biographical prefaces, obituaries, and collective biographies that followed the deaths of Baillie and Berry helps us to refigure the enduring literary legacies of these authors.

Men's vulnerability–women's resilience: from widowhood to late-life repartnering

2015 ◽  
Vol 28 (5) ◽  
pp. 719-731 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chaya Koren
Keyword(s):  
Gender Differences ◽  
Old Age ◽  
Gender Inequality ◽  
Theory Development ◽  
Late Life ◽  
Dyadic Analysis ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Age And Gender Differences ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Feminist Gerontology

ABSTRACTBackground:The ongoing increase in life expectancy resulting in people living longer after the death of a lifelong spouse along with the stresses of widowhood is likely to increase the phenomenon of repartnering in old age. The aim of this article is to learn about the attributed meanings of late-life repartnering among older repartnered widows and widowers dealing with widowhood.Methods:The experiences of 27 couples (54 participants), in which both partners were widowed, were chosen from two larger studies on late-life repartnering: one took a dyadic perspective (interviewing both partners), and the other took an intergenerational approach (interviewing both partners and offspring). Criterion sampling in both studies used the criteria of widowers who repartnered above age 65 and widows above age 60, remarried or not, living separately, or under the same roof, and who had children and grandchildren from a lifelong marriage that had ended with the death of their spouse. All semi-structured interviews were recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed based on grounded theory principles and dyadic analysis adapted to families.Results:Present a grounded model indicating gender differences in dealing with the death of a lifelong spouse. Men tended to experience vulnerability whereas women tended to experience resilience.Conclusions:These findings make an innovative contribution by showing the reversal of gender inequality in old age, and gender differences between widows’ and widowers’ coping with widowhood, even though both repartnered. They are discussed in light of (critical) feminist gerontology including contribution to theory development and implications for practice.

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