ABSTRACT
Old age is a social and cultural construction. Such words as ‘aged’, ‘elder’, ‘elderly’ or ‘old’ are used unproblematically in everyday language. These terms are applied both to people and to objects, in ways that convey a deep sense that the passage of time is a key feature in establishing identity (Hazan 1994). In this sense ‘old age’ is often equated with personal chronology (how old a person is in years). In some circumstances old age may be imbued with positive values. Providing ‘links with the past’, a sense of ‘continuity’ or ‘history’, representing ‘tradition’, ‘heritage’ or being ‘venerable’, are all facets of old age as good. At the same time, old age is also closely associated with decline, decay, decrepitude and death.
