Men, Masculinities, and Aging: The Gendered Lives of Older Men

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Description

Men, Masculinities, and Aging introduces readers to the gendered nature of aging mens lives. Edward H. Thompson, noted for his work on men and aging, explores the intersections of ethnicities, class, geographies, generations, and masculinities. The book offers a fresh perspective on mens experiences with bodily aging, growing older in an ageist society, and navigating the virtual absence of cultural guidelines for being an aging man. The book also provides a sociological theory framework on how men navigate their social aging as they experience later life and very late life. Turning points such as grandfathering, the changeover from work to retirement, and the onset of health problems or becoming a career are discussed at length as Thompson frames these natural occurrences as now ordinary experiences as aging masculinities are no longer rarities. The book will provide educators, students, researchers, and practitioners a means to question standard assumptions about aging men and discuss what underlies most later-life masculinities.

Reviews

In what will be a seminal work in the field, Men, Masculinities, and Aging fuses multiple theoretical and disciplinary traditions and gives voice to the gendered lives of old men through careful and novel theoretical analysis and vivid narratives. -- Adam Shapiro, California State University San Marcos
Ed Thompson draws deep from his impressive expertise to provide an encyclopedic look at theory and research on aging masculinity. Listening to old men, he shows that they remain men even as they slow down, stand down from the combat of youth, and slim their social networks with advancing age. This book amounts to a vital survey of the rapidly growing field that Thompson pioneered. -- Neal King, Virginia Tech
Men, Masculinities and Aging is an excellent, enjoyable read which comprehensively covers the gendered lives of older men. It provides a critical analysis of the gendered lives of older men drawing attention to masculinities, health and the social worlds of older men. I will certainly be recommending this book to my third year elective module on the psychology of aging and to my graduate students. -- Kate Bennett, University of Liverpool

Author Bio

Edward H. Thompson, Jr. is professor emeritus of sociology at the College of Holy Cross. He is noted for his research on gender relations and family life and is the author or editor of several books, including Older Mens Lives, Men as Caregivers, and A Mans Guide to Healthy Aging. He is active in the Gerontological Society of America.