Media’s Representation of Aging and Society’s Obsession with Youth
“Our limbs fail, our senses rot. We degenerate into hideous puppets haunted by the memory of the passions of which we were too much afraid and the exquisite temptations that we had not the courage to yield to. Youth! Youth! There’s absolutely nothing in the world, but Youth!” These are the “magnificent” words of Oscar Wilde, an educated and renowned poet, and playwright. The ripple effect of Oscar Wilde’s ideology of aging can be felt in the world today. We live in an era where every pharmaceutical and beauty industry is trying to provide a solution to aging, trying to fight against a natural and human process that should otherwise be embraced with open arms. This brings me to the question: Why are we so obsessed with maintaining our youth? Is growing old the new abnormal? My name is Levijoel Tamou. It is an honor to speak in the presence of greatness, that is you.
Today, I stand before you guided by the spirit of humanity which unites us all, to take a stance against the false representation and underrepresentation of people above the age of 65; some of whom are our close friends, parents, grandparents, and employers- people to whom we look up to. I want to disregard the popular opinion that portrays old age as the worst thing that could ever happen to you and me. It is my wish that through my insights, you may experience a somewhat spiritual awakening that will remind you of how precious and enlightening growing old is and pull you out of the miasma of falsehood that the media continues to bombard you with. Don't use plagiarised sources.Get your custom essay just from $11/page
A few centuries ago, old age was something that most people longed to keep at bay. Not because that had always been a norm, but because of what they read heard and were made to believe, by poets and writers, about old age. Oscar Wilde, in his famous novel The Picture of Dorian Gray, gives us a glimpse of what it meant to be aged in the 19th century. The book narrates the story of a man so spellbound by the beauty of his youth that he willingly sells his soul to stay young forever. Out of his lips come forth, the words “Youth is the only thing worth having. When I find that I am growing old, I shall kill myself.” What is even more intriguing is the fact that old age is portrayed as a curse. That as punishment for his debaucheries, Dorian’s portrait ages while he remains young.
In the 2010 romantic tragedy film Never Let Me Go, we are drawn into a 20th-century utopia where the fear of old age and death, two very normal and natural processes, supersedes moral and ethical obligations. In this utopia, people are willing to do anything to abate old age, even if it means sacrificing the bodies and souls of others. The “sacrificial lambs” for longevity are child donors cloned and raised by humans with their fate already written -that they will die to save others from the “curse” of old age and death.
Why are we so obsessed with staying young? Is growing old is the worst thing that could ever happen to someone? Has the media played a role in distorting our perceptions about this beautiful and natural process?
We may all have to agree with Lester and Ross in their article Pictures that injure. Pictorial Stereotypes in the media when they use the phrase “Pictures can injure
.”
The Media plays quite an essential role in informing aging individuals about what it is like to be old. The concept of visual ageism was coined by researchers Eugene Loos and Loredana Ivan to describe the social practice of visually misrepresenting, underrepresenting, or representing older adults in a prejudiced way and in so doing creating negative perceptions about old age and older adults.
Visual ageism includes older people being depicted in minor roles without any positive attributions; exaggerated, distorted, and nonrealistic portrayals of older people and an over homogenized characteristic of this social group.
A study by Nielsen revealed that in 2017, 16% of movie ticket buyers in Canada and the U.S.A were above the age of 60. This same group spent about 55 hours a week glued to their televisions. You would expect that with their dedication to their television sets, they would feature prominently in the media. But this has never been the case. In 2016 alone, only 11% of characters in film were aged 60 years and above. Not only are older characters rare, but when they appear in film, they are predominantly male and white.
In both Eastern and Western contexts, older adults only appear in certain advertisements depicting specific pharmaceutical products, foods, insurance policies, and services deemed appropriate for their social group. Take, for example, the Butterfinger commercial where two older people find a more creative way to eat their Butterfingers because they have no teeth. I will let you decide how inspiring such an advert is to both the old and the young.
Let’s take a second to reflect on Nike advertisements. How many older people have you seen in any? Does it mean they do not exercise, are not healthy enough, and cannot be associated with? Or does it just imply that we have such a negative perception of aging that an advert wouldn’t rank well if it older healthy people were in it?
In a society that places a lot of value in power balance and social justice, the portrayal of older people in society, and the characteristics associated with them matters a lot. Groups that appear more often in the media enjoy more power and status in daily life. Media portrayals play a role in stereotype formation and reinforce already formed stereotypes.
Besides, negative portrayals can significantly affect self-esteem, physical wellbeing, cognitive performance, and even the health status of older people. It’s one thing to grow old and another thing to be made to feel like you have been afflicted with a disease that needs treatment.
We are obsessed with remaining young because we have been taught to associate old age with disease, suffering, and death. We no longer see it as something to embrace but rather something to flee away from, to fight with every bone tooth and muscle. I am convinced that if we had a more positive image of old age, more people would embrace it, enjoy it and live healthily through it.
We need more positive and diverse images that are desirable for older media users and support a positive self-image. The article Visual Ageism in the Media offers a long term solution of representing older people more as third agers who are active, healthy, and enjoying life than as fourth agers who are dependent and inactive.
Today, our judgement about aging and older people springs from what we have heard, read, and been told in the specific societies we identify with. In western cultures, old age is mostly associated with disease, dependency, and financial overburden. It’s not a surprise that the West leads in the numbers of nursing homes worldwide. We have demonized old age and cut off associations with older people despite the latter being a beautiful and natural process that everyone should look forward to and where everyone is headed.
Take the story of 82-year-old John Kingery, who was found looking lost and helpless at the doorstep of a nursing home. His daughter had abandoned him. To her, he had become a liability, another bill to think about, and a source of immeasurable stress. Unfortunately, the law doesn’t protect older people or prohibit their abandonment even when incapable of taking care of themselves.
In sharp contrast to the West is the African society, which celebrates old age. In many African nations, older people are regarded as sacred treasures of the communities they belong to. The older a person becomes, the more he is regarded wiser and more respectable. In a society governed by patriarchy, even older women are considered people of high moral standing who deserve a front seat in society. Within the African society, children are mandated to take care of their parents’ until their deaths. It’s not an option but an obligation that every child must respond to where need be.
While many countries have turned their backs on older people, I believe you, and I can stand and make a difference. We can choose to increase and support the visibility of older people in society and foster more respect and a better understanding of old age. By joining or supporting visibility advocacy groups, we could create and reinforce a positive image of old age and make aging appear more normal and acceptable.
Perhaps one day, we will turn on our televisions and see a commercial for an aging body lotion that brings the best of our wrinkles instead of hiding them. We will be sending a message that older people are active, healthy, and living well-that old age should be embraced.
When all is said and done, “we all complete,” some sooner than the others. So before we get to our completion phase, let us decide now to embrace it and make it embraceable. To teach others to look forward to it. To portray it positively and to shun everything that tries to convince us otherwise.