The Fear of Inevitable: The Problem of Underrepresentation of Older People | Adrianna Bartoszek

The Fear of Inevitable: The Problem of Underrepresentation of Older People

I suddenly realised that I’m awfully scared of getting old. I’ve even caught myself identifying with Dorian Grey who chose a young body over his soul’s salvation. Maybe it’s just my vanity, but I know I’m not alone in this. I had the opportunity to interview people in their 20s about ageing. No surprise here, most of them were terrified of it. I realise that it is not because of our generational shallowness and the focus on appearances, but because of the sociocultural depiction of the elderly.

Our society is fascinated by youth. We value it, we mythologize it, and we tell magnificent stories about it. Social media, advertising, cinema, and literature are full of beautiful young people: their voices, their stories, and their bodies. They take up almost all of the space, making old age invisible. Actors and (especially) actresses over 50 star in major roles far less often and, interestingly, there is less diversity in the casting of older characters. Representations of elderly people in British movies do not reflect the age profile of the population. Furthermore, fashion and beauty product advertising mostly target younger clients. Models over 40 rarely appear in ads and they are almost completely absent from runways.

The media produces and consolidates stereotypes. A simplistic image of the elderly that portrays them as boring, inactive, weak, and unattractive is so prevalent that people tend to unconsciously embody it. Most of the positive representations are also stereotypical and inaccurate: To be considered entertaining, one has to overcome every possible difficulty associated with being old and instead fit into the ageist cliché. In other words, the stereotypical positive older character should actually behave and keep an approach to life as if they were 25 years old, because “age is just a number”. The lack of proper representation causes extreme difficulties in accepting the inevitable process of ageing, which is often defined as unquestionably negative. The anti-ageing industry makes us believe that we must prevent any signs of maturing because only youth is beautiful and valuable. Ageing is not just considered unattractive; it is basically unacceptable.

If older people don’t meet the expectations of our society’s beauty standards, they must remain hidden and invisible. We all can’t help but keep in mind the image of the “ideal body” dictated by mass media. Slim, fit, proportional, and, above all, young. Some believe that maturity marks the end of the oppressive body image promoted by the media in one’s life. Being mature or older means that one doesn’t need to fit this standard anymore, and is free from expectations that we connect to this ideal depiction. No more pressure, no more judgmental looks. Or no looks at all? It seems that at this point society’s pressure fades away. Still, I can’t help but think that it is not just freedom that our elders gain, but also social invisibility.

There is a prominent lack of proper representation of the elderly in general, but what remains the greatest taboo is sex and nudity. Older people are stereotyped as asexual and their bodies as disgusting. In horror movies, older women are portrayed as horrifying and abominable (think about The Shining and the lady from the bathroom!). In stories directed at children, old and unmarried women play the villain part (Ursula in The Little Mermaid, The Evil Queen/Old Hag Grimhilde in Snow White). Both of these typical depictions are based on the belief that women don’t have much to offer to society after they are past their reproductive period. On one hand, it is falsely believed that they can’t, shouldn’t, and don’t want to have sexual relationships. On the other hand, the media also pigeonholes sexually active mature people, portraying them, for example, as MILFs and DILFs. One reason for that may be prominent medical discourse about ageing. There is a tendency to perceive elderly people's lifestyles, bodies, and sexual relations through medical terminology. Therefore, the subject of the older body and eroticism is largely unexplored in mass media. Even within the body positivity or body neutrality movement, the subject is marginal. I believe it has an impact not only on older people, who may unconsciously internalise and embody these stereotypes, but also on younger generations. We perceive ourselves through culture. We identify with fictional characters, relate to people on social media, and see the world in a certain way because of our cultural background. However, it is not only what we see that shapes our perception, but also what is hidden.

Of course, there also exist some exceptions. One of the recent examples is Good Luck to You, Leo Grande directed by Sophie Hyde, starring Emma Thompson and Daryl McCormack. The film explores the subject of mature women’s sexuality. In a scene that may be considered the film’s culmination, Nancy (played by Thompson) stares at her completely naked body in the mirror. The scene is considered by many as brave because it displays something that usually remains hidden. It breaks the taboo. However, “brave” is not an entirely positive word in this context since it implies that the nudity of a mature actress may be something shameful and excludes the neutrality of the body. However, the director and the actress aimed to show exactly that: neutrality and authenticity. It is not surprising that it shocked the audience. We are so used to the picture of the “ideal body” that anything different becomes hyper-visible.

Hopefully, the topic will be explored more in the near future. I believe we need to see accurate, realistic and positive images and representations to become more aware of ageist stereotypes and to accept the process of ageing. Maybe now, when our society itself is ageing, it’s a good time to try to change our perspective on youth and old age: to define them not as a binary opposition, but as a continuity.