Old Age in Ancient Greece: Narratives of desire, narratives of disgust

This paper examines attitudes toward old age in classical Greek literature to reflect upon contemporary debates about anti-aging. The Greek habit of dividing the world into mutually exclusive categories was a hallmark of their culture. One such division, between youth and old age, formed a persistent theme in Greek myth, poetry and theatre. Youth — neotas — was sweet, beautiful and heroic. To leave youth meant one quickly passed the threshold to old age — geras. Old age was ugly, mean and tragic. There was no middle ground, no third age. Sparta, the city state least inclined toward literature, litigation, art and trade provides an instructive contrast. Here an unchanging politics engendered an unending respect for those older than oneself. This was institutionalized in the powers of the Gerousia or Council of Elders. The implications of these differing perspectives are considered in the light of our contemporary ambivalence toward aging and anti-aging.