The distaff and the staff: stereotypes and archetypes of the older woman in representative modern literature.
Belles-lettres, dealing with what it means to be human, serve to expose stereotypes, strip them away, and reveal the truth behind the misconceptions, often in terms of archetypes. An all-too-common subject of stereotyping is the aging of women. Much modern fiction and poetry cogently exposes such demeaning stereotypes. References to twenty-five representative poems and nine works of fiction by thirty-five modern authors (American, British, Australian, French) demonstrate that the elderly woman often survives with dignity, even nobility, in a society often insensitive to her plight, that she often ages with grace, retaining her independence, fortitude, and passion for life.
Kehl
D G
DG
Department of English, Arizona State University, Tempe 85287.
D000368:Aged / Q000523:psychology*; D000369:Aged, 80 and over / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008093:Literature, Modern; D013240:Stereotyping; D014930:Women / Q000523:psychology*