Table of Contents

Contributors. Introduction. Beyond Stereotypes (Jaber F. Gubrium and James A. Holstein). Part I: Persistence. 1. Narratives of Forgiveness in Old Age (Helen K. Black). 2. Elderhood in Contemporary Lakota Society (Joan Weibel-Oralndo). 3. Claiming Identity in a Nursing Home (Debora A. Paterniti). Part II: Adaptation. 4. Three Childless Men's Pathways into Old Age (Tanya Koropeckyi-Cox). 5. Constructing Community from Troubles (Christopher A. Faircloth). 6. Family Lives of Aging Black Americans (Colleen L. Johnson and Barbara M. Barer). Part III: Change. 7. Aging and Change in a Religious Community (Sarah Matthews). 8. Identity Careers of Older Gay Men and Lesbians (Dana Rosenfeld). 9. Expectations and Experiences of Widowhood (Deborah Kestin van den Hoonaard). Epilogue. 10. Positive Aging (Mary Gergen and Kenneth J. Gergen). Index.

About the Author

Jaber F. Gubrium is Professor and Chair of Sociology at the University of Missouri, Columbia. He is editor of the Journal of Aging Studies and the author or editor of 20 books, including Oldtimers and Alzheimer's (1986), Speaking of Life (1993), and Living and Dying at Murray Manor (1997). James A. Holstein is Professor of Sociology at Marquette University and the editor of Social Problems. He is the author or editor of numerous books, including Court-Ordered Insanity (1993), Dispute Domains and Welfare Claims Reconsidering Social Constructionism (1993), and Social Problems in Everyday Life (1997). The editors have previously collaborated on What is Family? (1990), Constructing the Life Course (1994), The Active Interview (1995), The New Language of Qualitative Method (1997), The Self We Live By (1999), and Aging and Everyday Life (Blackwell, 2000).

Reviews

'Ways of Aging is a welcome antidote to deterministic theories of aging. What a treat to read such wonderfully written ethnographic accounts that both illuminate distinctive social worlds and offer provocative insight into the multiple meanings of aging and old age!' David A. Karp, Professor of Sociology, Boston College 'Ways of Aging demonstrates that environment is key to unraveling the diversity found among the aged. Gubrium and Holstein are unmistakable: aging is a coat of many colors; variety is the order of the day. A close reading of Ways of Aging will put to rest the very notion that there are 'norms' of aging. This book helps us understand how people create the scripts they live by, through narrative accounts.' Joe Hendricks, Oregon State University