Reduced to curtain twitchers? Age, ageism and the careers of four women actors

Raisborough, Jayne; Watkins, Susan; Connor, Rachel; Pitimson, Natalie

doi:10.1080/08952841.2021.1910464

Cited by 7 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 36 publications

(24 reference statements)

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“…We have written elsewhere about the adverse impact of ageism on the careers of women actors, as gendered age stereotyping produces a striking reduction in the quantity and complexity of roles for women actors as they enter their 40s ( Raisborough et al, 2021 ). The intersections of sexism and ageism may therefore be particularly pronounced for women actors, many of whom are forced out of the profession as roles dry up: with that loss goes the ability to earn a living ( Nobis, 2015 ).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Aging as Adaptation

2023

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In traditional gerontological terms, adaptation is usually understood as the production of physical aids to mitigate the impairment effects caused by age-related disabilities, or as those alterations organisations need to make under the concept of reasonable adjustment to prevent age discrimination (in the UK, for example, age has been a protected characteristic under the Equality Act since 2010). This article will be the first to examine ageing in relation to theories of adaptation within cultural studies and the humanities. It is thus an interdisciplinary intervention within the field of cultural gerontology and cultural theories of adaptation. Adaptation studies in cultural studies and the humanities have moved away from fidelity criticism (the issue of how faithful an adaptation is to its original) towards thinking of adaptation as a creative, improvisational space. We ask if theories of adaptation as understood within cultural studies and the humanities can help us develop a more productive and creative way of conceptualising the ageing process, which reframes ageing in terms of transformational and collaborative adaptation. Moreover, for women in particular, this process of adaptation involves engagement with ideas of women’s experience that encompass an adaptive, intergenerational understanding of feminism. Our article draws on interviews with the producer and scriptwriter of the Representage theatre group’s play My Turn Now. The script for the play is adapted from a 1993 co-authored book written by a group of six women who were then in their 60s and 70s, who founded a networking group for older women.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Aging as Adaptation

2023

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“…Beyond this, the female body, being sexualized, becomes effectively invisible with age in the sense that the female body commands less attention (Jyrkinen & McKie, 2012). This has also been referred to as "social invisibility" as aging women are no longer the focus of the male gaze, become peripheral, and their lives and manifestations of their concerns are attenuated within the mass media (Jermyn, 2012;Ojala et al, 2016;Raisborough et al, 2021).…”

Section: Ageism As a Social Problemmentioning

confidence: 99%

Images from Japanese English Teaching Materials as an Ageist Hidden Curriculum

Brown¹

2022

APJCS

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Ageism in mass media is of great concern with older individuals often being stereotyped or simply rendered invisible. Yet research is largely silent on ageism in English language teaching (ELT) materials. Given the power of English education, the impact of visual media, and the tendency for English teaching materials to include visual depictions of people, such research is warranted. In response, a content analysis of 7350 visuals of people from Japanese ELT resources was conducted in the study described here. The goal was to understand four issues. First, how visible were the elderly overall? Second, given intergenerational friction as one outgrowth of ageism, did these materials normalize intergenerational interactions including the elderly? Third, to what extent did these materials exhibit ageism of women since ‘gendered ageism’ is an especially important issue? Fourth, to what extent did these materials either reproduce or subvert stereotypes of the elderly? Findings indicated that the amount of representation was biased against the elderly, that intergenerational interactions involving the elderly were scant, and that older women were especially underrepresented. While some of the elderly depictions were stereotypical, others did portray elderly people positively, as socially-involved and vigorous. These findings demonstrate the need for greater sensitivity to an ageist hidden curriculum in ELT.

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“…However, they have adopted other beauty practices to mitigate the effects of such a hair, and this behavior highlighted the conflict between the authentic look (subjective) and society's perception about competence (Cecil et al, 2021). This perspective about older women tends to be reinforced by the cultural industry, which ends up limiting the ability to develop a diverse, and not ageist, cultural representation of female aging (Raisborough, Watkins, Connor, & Pitimson, 2021). One of the points associated with ageism towards women is linked to the body, as shown in details in the next section.…”

Section: Ageism and Women: The Looks And Other Mattersmentioning

confidence: 99%

Executive Women and their Bodies: Marks of Aging

Vieira

Cepellos

2022

Organ. Soc.

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The present article regards executive women and their aged bodies. The population aging phenomenon and old age feminization are global factors. Based on the literature about the socio-hierarchized body, white, thin, male bodies are privileged in organizations. The aim of the present study is to investigate how executive women experience their aged bodies within the organizational context. The discussion emerges as relevant, since there are few studies related to aging women; studies on body-related factors are even scarcer, a fact that shines light on a theoretical gap. In total, twenty semi-structured interviews were carried out with women in the age group 40 years, or older, who act or had acted in several market segments in the country. The research allowed concluding that, in addition to challenges, choices and doubts faced on a daily basis throughout their professional journey, women have to live with a body-under-decay process, a heavy, tired, slow, stiff, limiting and less-attractive-to-the-eye body. The present study has revealed that besides gender, age also matters in organizations, nowadays. The bodies of older women are less valued and seem to have to occupy underprivileged positions in social hierarchy. In order to mitigate losses, women seek aesthetic procedures, change their eating habits and exercise to disguise the aging process.

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Reduced to curtain twitchers? Age, ageism and the careers of four women actors

Cited by 7 publications

References 36 publications

Aging as Adaptation

Aging as Adaptation

Images from Japanese English Teaching Materials as an Ageist Hidden Curriculum

Executive Women and their Bodies: Marks of Aging

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