Longevity narratives: Darwinism and beyond

Area of Science:

• Gerontology
• Cultural Studies
• History of Science

Background:

• Longevity narratives are significant in understanding old age and are linked to evolutionary theories of aging.
• Early 20th-century texts offer insights into prevailing views on aging and longevity.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze longevity narratives in G. Stanley Hall's "Senescence" (1922) and Bernard Shaw's "Back to Methuselah" (1921).
• To explore the ambivalence and problems within evolutionary and cultural perspectives on aging and longevity.

Main Methods:

• Drawing on theories of longevity from the Enlightenment to the present.
• Analyzing two case studies: G. Stanley Hall's "Senescence" and Bernard Shaw's "Back to Methuselah".

Main Results:

• Both Hall's and Shaw's works reflect a crisis narrative of culture and civilization.
• Hall uses autobiographical accounts to support the idea of wise old men as knowledge repositories.
• Shaw's vision of extended midlife encounters limitations in age representation.

Conclusions:

• Evolutionary and cultural perspectives on aging and longevity are shown to be ambivalent and problematic.
• Hall and Shaw proposed distinct solutions to individual and species longevity within their cultural contexts.