Excerpt: Gender and Aging

Slevin, Kathleen, and Toni Calasanti. [2001] 2005. "Gender and Aging". Pp. 70-73 in Understanding Society, 2nd ed., edited by Margaret L. Andersen, Kim Logio, and Howard Taylor. Belmont, CA: Thomson Learning, Inc.

Ageism, much like racism and sexism, allows people to think of others as "different". The influence of capitalism and culture has led to significant changes in our conception of the old in recent decades; images of the old in modern America, the authors argue, have shifted from that of the vulnerable elderly to that of the "greedy geezer" or burdensome old folks.

Economically, the old are dependent on the young for their well-being. The Social Security Act of 1935 is cited as a key step in the institutionalization of retirement, which defines "old" in years and promotes dependence by the old on the state (and, by extension, the younger taxpayers). Certain groups of people qualify for different Social Security and welfare benefits (varying by class, race and ethnicity, gender, and sexuality), with some people who do not have assets becoming more dependent than those who do.