SC096: Aging and Society
Fall 2013
Monday/Wednesday/Friday 10:00-10:50 am
306 Gasson Hall
Professor: Sara Moorman
Office: 404 McGuinn Hall
Office hours: 8:45-9:45 am Monday; 1:45-2:45 pm Wednesday
E-mail: moormans@bc.edu
About the Course
“Age doesn’t matter unless you’re a cheese,” quipped actress Billie Burke (the Good Witch in
The Wizard of Oz). Nevertheless, age does matter within societies. This class will cover specific
topics in four general areas of sociological study: roles and relationships (e.g., within the family),
inequalities (e.g., ageism), institutions (e.g., health care), and social change (e.g., the aging of the
population). By the end of the course, you will have acquired a new approach to thinking about
how you and others age in the social world and the ways in which age is portrayed in the media.
Academic Honesty
Your work must be your words and ideas. When writing papers, use quotation marks around
someone else’s exact words and identify whose words they are. If you come across a good idea,
by all means use it in your writing, but be sure to acknowledge whose idea it is. Failure to
comply will result in (a) automatic failure of the assignment, and (b) a report to the Dean and the
Committee on Academic Integrity. For further information, please review BC’s policies on
academic integrity at: www.bc.edu/integrity
Required Books
The bookstore has ordered:
 Blechman, Andrew D. 2008. Leisureville. (ISBN 9780802144188)
 Kessler, Lauren. 2007. Finding Life in the Land of Alzheimer’s. (ISBN 0670038598)
 Loe, Meika. 2011. Aging Our Way. (ISBN 9780199797905)
 Sarton, May. 1973. As We Are Now. (ISBN 9780393309577)
Available on 2-hour reserve at O’Neill.
Course Reserves Online
Access additional readings (marked with an asterisk*) as .pdf files through the library website
(http://www.bc.edu/libraries/) or through the link on the course Blackboard page.
Blackboard
Visit the Blackboard page for this course regularly for announcements, grades, course materials,
a copy of the syllabus, etc. I promise you that everything you’ve ever needed (or wanted) to
know about Aging and Society is posted here, so look before you e-mail. If you e-mail me and
don’t get an answer within 48 hours, it’s because you don’t need me to tell you the answer to
your question.
SC096 Aging and Society
Page 2 of 6
Schedule
Date
September 4
Topic
Introduction to the
Course
Reading
September 6
Age and the
Informal Structure
of Society
Leisureville Chapters 1-4
September 9
Leisureville Chapters 5-7
September 11
Leisureville Chapters 8-10
September 13
Leisureville Chapters 11, 12
September 16
1) Leisureville Chapters 13-end;
Due
2) Article online:
http://www.vulture.com/2013/04/leading
-men-age-but-their-love-interestsdont.html
September 18
1) “Complex accomplices” by Patricia
Cohen*
2) “Relaxation of age constraints” by
Jack Levin*
September 20
Age and the Formal Online: http://crr.bc.edu/specialprojects/books/the-social-security-fix-itStructure of
book/
Society: Policy
September 23
“Life at the top in America isn’t just
better, it’s longer” by Janny Scott*
September 25
“Should we ration health care for older
people?” by Harry Moody*
September 27
Online:
http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2013/05
/08/182209789/medicare-pulls-backcurtain-on-hospital-bills
September 30
“What are we going to do with Dad?” by
Jerald Winakur*
Age
norms
paper
SC096 Aging and Society
Page 3 of 6
Date
October 7
Topic
Reading
“Memory Lessons: Sixteen” by Jerald
Winakur*
October 9
What Is Aging?
The Biology
“If humans were built to last” by S. Jay
Olshansky*
Due
1) “Leisure of the theory class” by Greg
Critser*
October 11
2) “Of love and sex and the CR longevity
phenotype” by Greg Critser*
October 14
NO CLASS: Columbus Day
October 16
“Evolution of aging” by Jonathan
Weiner*
October 18
Dementia,
Caregiving and
Long-Term Care
As We Are Now through page 66
October 21
As We Are Now pp. 67 – end
October 23
“Losing my mind” by Thomas
DeBaggio*
October 25
“Life, with dementia” by Pam Belluck
October 28
Finding Life in the Land of Alzheimer’s
Chapters 1-4
October 30
Finding Life in the Land of Alzheimer’s
Chapters 5-9
November 1
Finding Life in the Land of Alzheimer’s
Chapters 10-14
November 4
Finding Life in the Land of Alzheimer’s
Chapters 15-19
November 6
Finding Life in the Land of Alzheimer’s
Chapters 20-end
November 8
“Amazing brains” by David Snowdon*
Policy
paper
SC096 Aging and Society
Date
November 11
Topic
Reading
“Whistling in the dark” by Mary Ellen
Geist*
Longevity and
Well-Being
Aging Our Way: Prologue, Introduction,
and Lesson 1
November 18
Aging Our Way: Lessons 2-4
November 20
Aging Our Way: Lessons 5-7
November 22
Aging Our Way: Lessons 8-10
November 25
Aging Our Way: Lessons 11-13
November 27
NO CLASS: Thanksgiving
November 29
NO CLASS: Thanksgiving
December 2
Aging Our Way: Conclusion, Postscript,
Epilogue, and Appendix
December 4
1) “Introduction: Making needles,
making lives” by Caitrin Lynch*
2) “No chains on the seats” by Caitrin
Lynch*
December 6
1) “Blue zones” by Dan Buettner*
2) “Anna Wilmot” by Neenah Ellis*
December 9
Due
“Taking care of Mom and Dad” by
Lillian Rubin*
November 13
November 15
Page 4 of 6
1) Online:
http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/boom
ing/columns/making_it_last/index.html
2) Online: http://alioutfit.tumblr.com/
3) Online:
http://advancedstyle.blogspot.com/
Dementia
book
review
SC096 Aging and Society
Date
December 11
Page 5 of 6
Topic
Reading
1) “Having our say: The Delaney sisters’
first 100 years” by Sarah Delaney*
Due
Life
history
interview
2) Online: http://fstoppers.com/picsreflections-portraits-of-the-elderly-asthey-once-were
3) Online: http://isaleshko.com/elderlyanimals/
Assessment
Grading scale
A+
none at Boston College
B+
87 – 89%
C+
77 – 79%
D+
67 – 69%
F
below 60%
A
B
C
D
Task
Participation
93 – 100%
83 – 86%
73 – 76%
63 – 66%
ABCD-
90 – 92%
80 – 82%
70 – 72%
60 – 62%
Percentage of grade
15%
Age norms project
25%
Policy paper or dementia book review
30%
Life history interview
30%
Participation: You’ll learn a lot from one another as we discuss the course readings and do inclass exercises that illustrate the topics. Because these activities – and regular attendance - are
part of being a good course citizen, it is not possible to get an A in the course without doing your
part. I will send you e-mail warnings if you’re at risk of scoring below a C on participation. A
student who competently does the basics (i.e., attends class, does the reading, pays attention, and
participates in exercises) can expect a B. A student who is a group leader, asks thoughtful
questions, shows insight into the readings, and demonstrates real engagement with the material
can expect an A.
Everything else: Scores on three writing assignments will determine the rest of your grade. I’ll
provide you with much greater detail on these assignments as they get closer. Here are the
basics:
(1) Age norms project. The question we’ll address in this project is: Do BC students identify age
norms for men and/or women in contemporary American society? You’ll survey some fellow BC
students and share your data with the class. Then you’ll use the data to draw some conclusions
about the current functions of age in our society, and you’ll compare and contrast your
conclusions to those of the authors we read.
SC096 Aging and Society
Page 6 of 6
(2) Policy paper. As we’ll learn, reforms to Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid are
necessary to sustain these programs into the future. If you choose this paper option, you’ll
identify a problem facing one of these programs, research and explain several methods for
solving it, and take your own stand on the issue. You can choose to write this paper or the
dementia book review, whichever interests you more.
(3) Dementia book review. As We Are Now and Finding Life in the Land of Alzheimer’s are
about the same topic, but they have very different viewpoints and come to very different
conclusions. In your review, you’ll describe those viewpoints and conclusions, compare and
contrast them, and provide your personal interpretation. You can choose to write this paper or the
policy paper, whichever interests you more.
(4) Life history interview. You will interview someone aged 65 or older. Your interview and
paper will cover three themes: (i) Personal life events (e.g., childhood, education, work,
marriage, children/grandchildren), (ii) Societal life events (e.g., war experience,
inventions/technological changes, cultural trends, political events), and (iii) Life review (e.g.,
what would your interviewee do differently if s/he could? What is s/he most proud of? What
advice does s/he have for a person who is in college today?)
Submitting Papers
No later than 11:59 pm on the paper due date:
(1) Go to the website www.dropitto.me/moormans
(2) Enter the password SC096
(3) Upload your file
Late Work Policies
Papers submitted after 11:59 pm on the due date will lose a letter grade per day. For example, a
paper submitted between midnight and 11:59 pm of the day following the due date is worth, at
best, a B.
Do not ask me for personal extensions.
You must provide proof of extenuating circumstances (e.g., a note from the infirmary or from
your academic dean) to avoid the late penalty.
Note that hard copies of papers count as “submitted” at the time I receive them: If you slide it
under my office door at 11 pm on the due date but I do not find it until I arrive at my office the
next morning, it’s late!
Extra Credit
Any extra credit opportunities will be made available to the entire class, and will be announced
both in class and on Blackboard.