After reading Chapter 8 of Learning to Be Old by Cruikshank (2013) and Chapter 8 of Elderhood by Aronson (2019), I started to think about how often ageism shows up in everyday life and in the systems we work in. Both authors approach the issue differently but share...
Ceridwen Dovey closes her article “What Old Age is Really Like” with a quote from the late Adrienne Rich (reflected in the title of this blog post) that I feel perfectly encapsulates the complexity of aging and the deeply rooted, negative impact of ageism...
Most impactful example (Cruikshank & Aronson): Cruikshank’s breakdown of how appearance, stereotypes, and “old” as a social category shape how we treat elders hit me hard because I see it often. The examples are clear, the taxi cab refused to pick Eva up, and even...
In just three weeks, I’ll turn 50. That milestone has made this module on ageism hit differently. Reading Cruikshank, Aronson, and Dovey while reflecting on my own life has forced me to confront how much of society’s attitude toward aging I’ve quietly absorbed over...
The example of ageism that impacted me the most was in Aronson’s Chapter 8 of Elderhood, when she described visiting Yolanda at home. Yolanda was sitting in used diapers and clearly not getting the care she needed, even though she depended on others completely. What...
