Journal Entry 2, Continued: Is Life Post 60 Really Golden?

The 80s television hit, The Golden Girls, followed the life of four very different women of a certain age who lived together in the same house.  All of these women were not married, their husbands were deceased with the exception of Dorothy Zbornak, who was divorced from her husband, Stan.  But instead of sitting around the house knitting, accepting their fate as spinsters, and waiting to die, these older women actually did things with their life.  The show actively fought against the stereotype of what an older woman could do with her life.  Not only were these women active, but they actually were frequently on the dating scene and had sex lives which were a constant topic of conversation.  This was revolutionary!  The thought of 60+ women who no longer had husbands acting like thirty-something single women definitely broke the mold.  It was like Sex and the City before Sex and the City ever existed.  The only difference is that these women, instead of being working New Yorkers, were retired Floridians.

The show definitely gave the impression that growing old was definitely not a bad thing; after all, these girls were "golden".  But that is not to say that the women on the show didn't struggle with the difficulties one faces while growing older.  From death scares to wrinkles, there was no doubt that although they acted young, these characters were aging.  They didn't mourn over the loss of their youth, though, usually they found comedy in the situation.  For example, listen to Sophia talk about her trip to the doctor's office in the first few seconds of this clip:

Although their characters brought about an idea of vitality and youth being still alive in an aging woman, and dealt with things in a mostly comedic fashion, the show was not without its serious moments.  

Golden Girls is an incomparable show.  There was no show like it before its time, and there has been no show like it since.  It celebrated the aging woman, something the media is usually very hesitant to do.  In a world where ageism is prevalent, these women defy the norms.

And now, I'll leave you with a bit more humor from the show; just because I can. :)