ABSTRACT
This chapter considers the fundamental issue of the consequences of ageing on autonomy. The relationship between the definition of a person and the ascription of autonomy is a somewhat circular one. To be a person is a necessary, though not sufficient, condition for the ascription of autonomy; no-one seriously suggests that animals possess autonomy. Ageing need not necessarily is detrimental to autonomy; indeed, at some stages in life, it is a prerequisite for it. Ageing is not simply a matter of chronology; there is also an element of social construction involved in the concept. Certainly the physiological deterioration that generally accompanies ageing in various degrees is very real and it may result in the elderly becoming less able to care for themselves and consequently more dependent on others. Ageing may certainly result in limitations in oneself, for physiological performance declines with age.
