Advantages And Disadvantages Of Ageism

Deolinda Skjon

Ms. Stoltz

English 1711-12

December 16, 2015

Ageism and Its Differences and Similarities to Other Prejudices.

Ageism, or discrimination based on age, is different from the more commonly recognized prejudicial “isms,” such as racism, sexism, and classism, because (1) its membership is more fluid and, given a full lifespan, affects everyone, appearing natural, (2) category membership is acquired gradually, (3) there is little overt conflict between perpetrators and victims of ageism (Palmore 16), and (4) its consequences are experienced quite differently by different sectors of society (Nerenberg 217-240). Ageism is thus more insidious than other societal prejudices, because people are generally less aware of it and victims of

Nerenberg (217) has shown, for example, that poor older black women are much more likely to be victims of elder abuse than affluent, older white men. In fact, affluent elder men are often likely to experience positive ageism, as they are accorded patriarchal respect and enjoy several institutional biases, such as accumulated wealth along with Medicare, which is free health care reserved exclusively for seniors. These differences in what ageism means for different elderly populations, and consequent differences in abuse or privilege, make it difficult for the elderly to organize as a voting block or social

For one thing, health concerns arise gradually as we age, from relatively infrequent when we are young, to relatively frequent when we are old. Therefore, there is the expectation that the old will be infirm, senile, or incompetent, even when they are merely sick, or have forgotten a single item, and lack a specific skill. In other words, a fault that may arise from a single incident is thought of as a general condition. The young, on the other hand, are usually given the benefit of a doubt. Furthermore, because the health care system mainly deals with elderly when they have health concerns, aging is medicalized and viewed as a problem more generally, with little positive value. Finally, because health is associated with youth, and decline with age, all illness in old age tends to be associated with the mere fact of aging, and thus given less attention with fewer preventative measures