Why do we continue, as a society, to focus on youth and beauty
when our population is growing older? Denial and fear, is my first
thought. We very rarely speak of death and the art of dying
humanely as if it is taboo (Walter, 1991. If we talk about, then Death
will swoop down and pick us or our love ones up. I also believe that
we, as in our society, talk about the beauty and wellness to keep
ourselves younger and healthier instead of talking about death as if
we can avoid the conversation all together. Plus, beauty and wellness
is what sells in our society these days. It is perceived as depressing
when talking about getting older and dying. No one wants to die,
however, it is a part of life. The continual advancements in medical
technology forces us to think about living "forever" instead of dying
in our homes peacefully as one would have done a long time ago.
The National Center of Health Statistics in 2008 reported that most
people want to die peacefully at home, however over 56% percent
will end up in a nursing home and 76% of those adults will end up
dying in one. Death has become institutionalized (Waldrop, 2011).
Our population continues to age, which is forcing our healthcare
system undergo radical changes, which is a good thing. However, are
these radical changes impacting the elderly or the youth of America?
References:
Waldrop, D. P. (2011, August 1). Denying and defying death: The
culture of dying in 21st Century america. OUP Academic. Retrieved
January 27, 2022,
from https://academic.oup.com/gerontologist/article/51/4/571/599
597
Walter, T. (1991, May). Modern Death: Taboo or Not
Taboo? Sociology. Retrieved January 27, 2022,
from https://www.jstor.org/stable/42857623
