Overview

The world's population is ageing. Decade by decade, people are living longer than they ever have before. For rich countries in the west, the problems are obvious - economies rely on youthful populations to provide for those who have retired. As the population ages, we face a profound economic and social crisis - how do we care for the elderly when pensions and social security systems are under threat, housing is short and fewer young people are entering the workplace? There are anxieties at the highest level in the US, that an ageing population may make the country forfeit its image of youthful dynamism, as new creative generations come of ageing in the South.Yet this is only half the story. Populations in the poorer countries of the South are also ageing. Life-expectancy has increased due to the availability of life-saving medicine. Child mortality has decreased, so people are having smaller families. India will soon have one fo the largest populations of over-sixties. The one-child policy in China will similarly lead to a severe imbalance in the age-profile of the people.Here, Jeremy Seabrook examines the real implications of the ageing phenomenon and challenges our preconcepti

Full Product Details

Author:   Jeremy Seabrook
Publisher:   Pluto Press
Imprint:   Pluto Press
Dimensions:   Width: 14.00cm , Height: 1.90cm , Length: 21.60cm
Weight:   0.307kg
ISBN:  

9780745318394

ISBN 10:   0745318398
Pages:   200
Publication Date:   20 October 2003
Audience:   College/higher education ,  General/trade ,  Professional and scholarly ,  Tertiary & Higher Education ,  General
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   In Print  
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Table of Contents

Introduction - The ageing population of the world: demographic time-bomb or unique opportunity? 1. Ageing and the role of the elderly in the changing cultures of the world 2. Work and the elderly, in the West and the South 3. Themes and issues (i) Widowhood (ii) Witchcraft (iii) Remembering (iv) ...and forgetting (v) Sex in old age (vi) Ageing and sexual minorities (vii) Stranded in a world moving on (viii) Poverty in old age (ix) Old age in traumatised societies - war and natural catastrophe 4. North and South - sefety nets: the social security of flesh and blood and the social security of financial support. The elderly in individual countries, including USA, China, Vietnam, South Africa 5. Active Ageing; testimonies of the elderly 6. Self-Help, Mutual Help

Reviews

'The inspirational Jeremy Seabrook beats any celebrity radical in the art of speaking hard truths through fine prose' -- Boyd Tonkin, Independent 'One of England's most imaginative and creative writers, with a preacher's talent for prophesy and a capacity for righteous indignation reminiscent of George Orwell' -- Richard Gott, Guardian

Author Information

Jeremy Seabrook (1939-2024) wrote on inequality, poverty and the oppressed in Britain and across the Global South for over half a century. His articles were featured in the Guardian, The Times and the Independent. He has written plays for stage, TV and the theatre, some in collaboration with his close friend, Michael O’Neill. His many books include The Song of the Shirt and Cut Out: Living Without Welfare. In 2023 he published his memoirs, Private Worlds.

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