The decline of life : old age in eighteenth-century England / Susannah R. Ottaway.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Ottaway, Susannah R., 1967- author.

Series:

Cambridge studies in population, economy, and society in past time ; 39.

Cambridge studies in population, economy, and society in past time ; 39

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Older people--England--Social conditions--18th century.

Older people.

Old age--England--History--18th century.

Old age.

Aging--England--History--18th century.

Aging.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (xiv, 322 pages) : digital, PDF file(s).

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Cambridge : Cambridge University Press, 2004.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

The Decline of Life is an ambitious and absorbing study of old age in eighteenth-century England. Drawing on a wealth of sources - literature, correspondence, poor house and workhouse documents and diaries - Susannah Ottaway considers a wide range of experiences and expectations of age in the period, and demonstrates that the central concern of ageing individuals was to continue to live as independently as possible into their last days. Ageing men and women stayed closely connected to their families and communities, in relationships characterized by mutual support and reciprocal obligations. Despite these aspects of continuity, however, older individuals' ability to maintain their autonomy, and the nature of the support available to them once they did fall into necessity declined significantly in the last decades of the century. As a result, old age was increasingly marginalized. Historical demographers, historical gerontologists, sociologists, social historians and women's historians will find this book essential reading.

Contents:

Who was "old" in eighteenth-century England?

The activities of the "helmsman" : self-reliance, work, and community expectations of the elderly

"The comforts of a private fire-side"

Independent but not alone : family ties for the elderly

Community assistance to the aged under the Old Poor Law

Continuity and change in community assistance to the elderly over the eighteenth century

Within workhouse walls : indoor relief for the elderly

Conclusion : old age as a useful category of historical analysis.

Notes:

Title from publisher's bibliographic system (viewed on 05 Oct 2015).

Includes bibliographical references (p. 284-314) and index.

ISBN:

1-107-14475-2

1-280-45783-X

0-511-18581-2

0-511-18498-0

0-511-18765-3

0-511-31371-3

0-511-49597-8

0-511-18672-X

OCLC:

171138535